Play after play, the Siloam Springs offensive line opened up big holes, and Hunter Talley and the Panthers took advantage.
Talley rushed 11 times for 246 yards and 5 touchdowns and threw for 181 yards and 2 more scores as Siloam Springs blew by Pea Ridge 53-14 in a nonconference game at Panther Stadium.
Talley had a 66-yard touchdown run on the Panthers' first offensive play and a 55-yard TD run on his second carry of the night. The 6-foot-4, 200-pound senior gave credit to the big boys up front.
"It felt good to come out with a 'W,'" Talley said. "The offensive line had a tremendous game. Those dudes are really, really good. It might be the best offensive line I've ever played for. They really handled their stuff today."
The Panthers (1-2) rolled up 591 yards of offense despite missing 16 players due to covid-19 quarantine or injury.
"It was a tough week. We had a lot of kids out," Siloam Springs Coach Brandon Craig said. "A lot of kids had to step up and play different positions. We had kids everywhere. It was almost like the first week of practice for us in some cases. For us to be able to go out there tonight, take control of the game and do what we did, I was really proud of our kids."
Leading 12-0 after Talley's first two TD runs, the Panthers got the ball back for their third possession and scored just as quick. Sophomore Jed Derwin blew through the middle of the Pea Ridge defense for a 73-yard run and a 19-0 lead.
The Blackhawks got a score back when Cade Mann recovered a fumble and ran 25 yards for a touchdown to make it 19-6.
But Siloam Springs answered with two more scores to go up 33-6. Talley ran for a 28-yard score, and on the next drive, he hit a 25-yard touchdown pass on fourth and 22 to Nick Driscoll.
Pea Ridge (0-3) put together its most impressive drive right before halftime as quarterback Gavin Dixon hit four of five passes for 90 yards and found Trevor Blair for a touchdown and two-point conversion to get within 33-14 with 24.6 seconds left before halftime.
"That's been the story of our season so far," said Pea Ridge Coach Brey Cook. "It's whenever we want to execute we do, but we have to make that decision every time."
Patrick Church returned the ensuing squib kickoff 29 into Pea Ridge territory. Talley then rushed for 43 yards down to the 5-yard line with eight seconds left. Talley ran in from 5 yards out to give the Panthers a 39-14 halftime lead.
Church's return definitely sparked the drive. He had a long kickoff return that also helped the previous drive.
"Patrick's a kid that's also stepped up for us," Craig said. "We didn't know for sure what he was going to be able to do for us. He's stepped up and played some receiver, played some running back this week, returned kicks for us. To have a kid like that step up for us is just huge for our program, huge for the team, and he put us in a position where we decided, hey let's take a shot here."
Siloam Springs scored quickly to start the second half as Talley hit Brendan Lashley for 25 yards and followed with a 38-yard score, his fifth TD of the night for a 46-14 lead.
After Nicholas Flack recovered a Pea Ridge fumble, Talley threw a 36-yard touchdown pass to Driscoll.
Derwin rushed for 128 yards on 10 carries for Siloam Springs, which finished with 410 rushing yards.
"(Derwin) did a great job coming back," Craig said. "He was in quarantine most of the week. He came back and was able to step right back in for us. He does a really good job of seeing blocks and what's happening right in front of him and that's a real good trait to have as a running back."
Lashley caught four passes for 93 yards, while Driscoll had two receptions for 61 yards.
Dixon completed 16 of 29 passes for 187 yards with Blair catching 5 passes for 76 yards and Will Anderson six passes for 42 yards.
Siloam Springs' defense stuffed Pea Ridge's rushing attack for minus eight yards on 15 carries.
Pea Ridge is scheduled to open 5A-West Conference play next week at home against Alma, while Siloam Springs travels to Van Buren (3-0).
"We're still 1-2, and that's the important thing to realize is we're not where we need to be and we can't get over confident based on one night," Talley said. "We've got to come in to work Monday and get ready for a good Van Buren team."
Siloam Springs defeated Van Buren 43-42 last season when Talley ran for a two-point conversion in overtime.
Said Craig on Van Buren: "They're 3-0. They're very athletic in certain positions. They're a tough, hard-nosed football team. We've played them all the years I've been here. This will be my fourth year to play them. We've had some really, really tight games. I don't expect anything different. We're going to have to go down there ready to play a tough football game."
