By Jason Avery
News-Times Staff
Making a deep run in the playoffs has become an annual tradition at Des Arc.
On Friday night, the Eagles will take on Junction City in the 2A state quarterfinals, marking the fifth time in six years that they will have played in the third round of the playoffs.
They also have a fan in Junction City coach Steven Jones.
“As a coach, you see a lot of teams throughout the season as far as breaking down film goes, and this Des Arc bunch has been the most fun to watch,” Jones said. “The way that they really just fly around defensively, and the way they push people around offensively, they have that blue-collar mentality. It’s just going to be a fun matchup for us. Physically, they show a lot of effort in what they do. It’s going to be a fun game.”
When asked to elaborate further on what makes Des Arc fun to watch, Jones praised the effort of the Eagles’ offensive line.
“Just to see a team that has an offensive line that for four quarters has a great pad level,” Jones said. “They are underneath the defensive line and blowing people off the ball in the fourth quarter in every game that I’ve seen. It’s fun to see guys give that effort, and that’s what we hang our hat on too, so it’s going to be a fun matchup for both of us.”
That offensive line has helped pave the way for the Eagles, who have ripped off six straight wins after starting the season 3-3.
Senior quarterback Garrett Goodman is the conductor of the Eagles’ option offense, and Des Arc coach Drake Widener said he is another coach on the field.
“Garrett is extremely smart,” Widener said. “He’s me on the field basically as far as knowing what I want, making checks at the line. He’s heady. He gets it. The guys believe in him. He’s got moxie. I think they trust him and know that when he lines up and has got to make a play, he’s going to make something happen. I think they believe that, and I think he believes that. He’s been huge this year. He’s a great leader. He makes good throws when we need him to throw it. He makes plays. He’s very, very good at running the option, which is what we need. He does a great job for us.”
Behind Goodman is a bevy of running backs that are capable of making big plays.
Overall, the Eagles have six players with at least 100 yards rushing on the season.
However, junior Jackson Morton went from not being in the picture to having over 1,200 yards thanks to persistence and taking advantage of the opportunity given to him.
Against Mountain Pine last week, Morton had 93 yards and three touchdowns on 17 carries.
“He’s a kid that didn’t even start at running back in the preseason,” Widener said. “Goodman got hurt in the first game of the year, so one of our running backs went to quarterback. Jackson came in at running back and ran like a wildman. The rest is history. When Goodman got back, he went to quarterback, Jackson took one of the running back spots. He earned his spot, and has been the go-to guy. He runs hard. He’s got a lot of heart. He’s not very big, he’s not very fast, but he runs hard. Our kids win with heart, and that’s what is fun about watching them is they play really hard.”
Cooper Roberts, a junior who took over at quarterback when Goodman was injured, as well as senior Donald McCoy, give the Eagles two more threats in the backfield with a combined 1,300 yards between them.
“It’s huge,” Widener said of the Eagles’ depth at running back. “When you’ve got running backs that you can count on, you can do different things with all of them because you have a bunch that you can trust.”
But perhaps what’s more impressive about the Eagles’ run is that they have done it without sophomore Luke Morton, who was lost for the season due to an injury suffered back in Week 8.
On offense, Morton had over 500 yards rushing while also serving as a receiving threat outside.
On defense, Morton had seven interceptions.
And while the Eagles certainly miss Morton’s presence, others have stepped in to fill the void.
“We had some backs that had to step up, and in the secondary, he was our best player,” Widener said. “We had to shift some guys around and do some things. Caeden Fields is a senior that never really got to play. He’s a decent athlete and cover guy, and he had to step up and we had to do some different things to make sure he didn’t have to go in there and stick his nose in much because he’s not that kind of guy, so we have to formation him around to make sure he doesn’t have to do that. We had to do some adjusting as coaches as far as game planning and what we did with him. He’s really stepped up and done a great job for us in the secondary. Luke’s a huge player for us and he’s only a sophomore. He’s going to be a huge player over the next two years.”
The Eagles also have several playmakers on defense that the Dragons will have to keep a watchful eye on.
Senior Zeke Tacker is a three-year starter at linebacker having earned All-Conference honors three times.
Will Kearby, a junior, is also a standout at linebacker.
“Will Kearby is one of the toughest human beings on the face on the planet,” Widener said. “He’s a 140-pound, 150-pound linebacker that will knock your face off. He’s physical. He flies around. He’s a really good player.”
Caleb Jobe, a junior, has four sacks for the Eagles.
Senior Chuck Crawford, listed at 6-foot-5 and 295 pounds, helps anchor the lines on both sides of the ball, and Widener said a lot of the state’s Division II schools have their eye on him with Kentucky Wesleyan having offered him.
“He’s an animal,” Widener said. “It’s hard to block him. He’s a really good player that anchors the middle for us. On offense, he’s a mauler for us.”
For Jones, Des Arc’s aggressiveness is something his team must combat if they are to be successful.
“They’re based out of a 4-2-5,” Jones said of the Eagles’ defense. “They do a lot of different things in coverage, but the way that they fly to the football is a thing that we’ve got to be ready for. They like to attack. They like to blitz off the edge, especially out of some of the spread stuff that we like to do, they like to send extra guys and just play cover three behind it. They do a good job of getting eight guys in the box, which is tough to deal with. As each week goes, we’re trying to find creative ways to get the ball out in space, and we’ll have to do a good job of that.”
With the Eagles back in the quarterfinals, Widener credited his seniors for the team’s success during their winning streak.
“I think we’ve stayed healthy, knock on wood,” Widener said. “We’ve gotten some confidence. Our kids are really believing in themselves right now, and our leadership has really stepped up. We’ve got a good group of seniors, and they’ve done a good job of setting the standard. We’ve got some good underclassmen, too.
“Our guys have done a really good job of being focused on the details and just taking it one week at a time and being really focused on that opponent for that week. We’re not going to be fancy, we’re going to do the same things week in and week out, and our guys execute and they know the system. They know no matter what front you give us, they know what our job is and what we’re doing. They execute really well. My hat is off to our seniors. They’ve done a fantastic job of staying the course and making sure everybody understands the expectations.”