Sports

EL DORADO WITH PLENTY TO PLAY FOR

By Josh Tinker/COMMERCIAL SPORTS EDITOR
Thursday, November 5, 2009 12:33 AM CST

Scott Reed knows his team still has plenty to play for. In a season where Reed’s El Dorado squad accomplished nearly every one of its goals by Week 9, the Wildcats have one more goal they’ll be attempting to accomplish tonight: An undefeated regular season.

Hakeem Stewart (left), shown here against Little Rock J.A. Fair last week, is part of a deep group of Pine Bluff skill players who will be trying to take down the undefeated El Dorado Wildcats at Jordan Stadium. PINE BLUFF COMMERCIAL/RALPH FITZGERALD.

And if El Dorado does that by knocking off the Pine Bluff Zebras, they’ll have their second consecutive conference championship wrapped up to accompany its No. 1 playoff seed from the 6A-South Conference and a first-round bye in the playoffs.

“I don’t think it’s hard,” said Reed of motivating his team which has already secured that No. 1 playoff spot and at least a share of the conference championship. “(The players) know Pine Bluff is good, and we have a pretty good rivalry with them.”

Aiding the Wildcats (9-0, 6-0 6A South) in their enthusiasm is the nature in which Pine Bluff clinched its No. 4 seed from the conference. The Zebras lost two league games by a combined three points, and two goal-line stands, while the Wildcats, meanwhile, won two games in similar fashion, and Reed admitted the roles could be reversed entering what is the final week of the season.

“In conference, we won a couple of close games,” Reed said. “They’ve lost a couple of close games where they had a chance to win. We’re pretty evenly matched.”

Much of the Wildcats’ success has come from an offense that has replaced its entire backfield and four members of its offensive line. Gone are all-state quarterback Paul Anzalone and all-state running backs Dexter Toney and Justin Billings, who both signed with Arkansas-Pine Bluff after their senior seasons.

In their places in the backfield is a trio of players who Pine Bluff coach Bobby Bolding said was just as good as those who recently departed. Taylor Reed, the coach’s son who started at wide receiver for the Wildcats last year, slides over to quarterback this season. The elder Reed has been impressed with his son’s play under center, especially his touchdown-to-interception ratio of 16-to-3.

“That’s better than 5-to-1. That’s pretty good,” Scott Reed said.

Taking the reigns at tailback are senior James Ford and junior John Miles.

“One of them (Ford) is about 195 pounds, and he’s going to pound you,” said Bolding of El Dorado’s rushing attack. “You can’t arm-tackle him. He’s a north-and-south kind of runner. The other is a slasher. He may be like a young Billings. He’s small, but he’s got that wiggle. The complement each other, and they take about the same number of snaps.

“They’re quarterback is good. We knew he was coming. We knew he was a good athlete. He’s coach Reed’s son, and he’s probably been groomed to play the position his whole life.”

Coach Reed, however, hasn’t seen a secondary like the Zebras will bring into the contest.

“Pine Bluff’s secondary is good. They have very good closing and recovery speed,” Reed said. “Some things you get against other people you might not get against them.”

That speed advantage carries over to Pine Bluff’s offense, as the Zebras have three players on offense who can run the 40-yard dash in 4.4 or less, and receiver Jonathan Frazier runs a 4.5.

“No doubt they’re the fastest team we’ll play,” Reed said. “You’ve got to trust the guys you have out there to make plays. There are going to be times when they’re going to have to make the plays that will determine the outcome. We have to be confident in what we’ve told them that they’re going to make plays.”

Kickoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. at Jordan Stadium.

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