FORT SMITH -- Siloam Springs' young football team got its first taste of varsity action Tuesday, Aug. 16, in an Arkansas Activities Association benefit game against Fort Smith Southside at Jim Rowland Stadium.
And while the Class 7A Mavericks overwhelmed the Panthers 41-14 in a two-quarter varsity portion of the scrimmage, Siloam Springs did have some moments to build on heading into the start of the regular season.
"There were several mistakes obviously, but we had a lot of young guys playing," said Siloam Springs coach Brandon Craig. "Learning the speed of the game on a Friday night, that's a big deal. We got a lot of eyes opened tonight. A lot of guys got to see it first hand, and we're going to learn from it. That's all we can do."
The Mavericks hit the Panthers for several big plays on offense and a pair of turnovers on defense.
Southside running backs Amari Tucker and Isaac Gregory each rushed for two touchdowns, including a long TD run for each.
Tucker went for a 55-yard touchdown run on Southside's first possesssion and later had a 25-yard touchdown run.
Gregory had a one-yard TD run after an interception by Braxton Canada set up the Mavericks at the 1-yard line. Gregory also had a 65-yard run late in the first quarter to give Southside a 28-0 lead.
"Their back's one of the top five backs in the state," Craig said, referring to Tucker. "They were running a little inside zone. He was able to make some nice, press cuts getting out of there. He's got a lot of speed, Once he broke open, we weren't going to catch him. We know he's a talented back. We knew that going into it. We talked to the kids about it all week. He didn't make us look good."
Siloam Springs moved the ball in the first quarter but failed to convert on a pair of fourth-and-shorts, giving the ball back to Southside.
"Running the ball we were good except for third-and-short," Craig said. "Third-and-short we got off the field too many times, couldn't keep drives alive and that hurt us. Offense has got to keep drives alive, keep the defense off the field and go score when we're on this side of the 50."
The Panthers began to find themselves offensively at the end of the first quarter and into the second.
Sophomore quarterback Jackson Still hit a pair of passes to Jed Derwin and Gio Flores and Still also had a run for 20 yards. Derwin had a rush for 11 yards, and a combination of runs from Still and Flores led to a one-yard touchdown run by Derwin to make it 28-7.
Southside's Carter Zimmerman, who split time at quarterback with George Herrell, threw a 42-yard touchdown pass to Xander Connor to put the Mavericks up 34-7 in the second quarter.
Still and the Panthers responded later in the fourth with a scoring drive that ended with Still hitting sophomore Mikey McKinley for a 30-yard touchdown pass to make it 34-14.
Southside added a late touchdown near the end of the first half for a 41-14 score.
The Mavericks finished with 14 carries for 194 yards with Tucker gaining 103 yards on five carries. Zimmerman and Herrell combined to hit 11 of 24 passes for 155 yards. Herrell completed 9 of 18 for 106 yards.
"The one thing I wanted to see, I wanted to see us be efficient running the football and throwing and just staying on the field, making first downs and being productive," said Southside coach Kim Dameron. "We had our moments when we could be better, but I thought we did some good things. We controlled the line of scrimmage. We've got two good backs and a couple of decent receivers. If we keep getting Amari Tucker and Isaac Gregory the ball, we've got a chance."
The Mavericks open their 2022 season Friday at intracity rival Fort Smith Northside.
Siloam Springs finished with 31 carries for 127 yards, and sophomore quarterback Jackson Still completed 11 of 21 passes for 92 yards with two interceptions. Still also had 10 carries for 29 yards.
"He did a great job," Craig said of his sophomore quarterback. "I thought for the first game, for the first live situation against another team, he played really well."
Jed Derwin finished with 11 carries for 52 yards, while Flores had six carries for 20 yards and Silas Tugwell four carries for 26 yards.
Flores had three catches for 26 yards, while Quinten Motsinger had three receptions for 15 yards, McKinley two catches for 33 yards, Tugwell one catch for 12 yards, Derwin one catch for five yards and Noah Shipp one catch for one yard.
A 24-minute second half with a running clock was held for junior varsity. Southside outscored Siloam Springs 14-7 in the period.
Siloam Springs rushed for 53 yards on 13 carries and completed three passes for 26 yards.
Tugwell ran for a 19-yard touchdown for Siloam Springs and had 27 yards on three carries and one catch for 12 yards.
Cooper Church rushed nine times for 44 yards and had one catch for four yards.
Dane Marlatt completed three passes for 26 yards. Jase Mackey caught a pass for 10 yards.
Now the Panthers turn their attention to Rogers Heritage, which competed with Prairie Grove and Poteau, Okla., last Friday in a scrimmage at Prairie Grove.
Heritage senior quarterback Carter Hensley had touchdown drives against both teams as the War Eagles lost to Poteau 14-7 and lost to Prairie Grove 20-14.
Siloam Springs is familiar with Heritage, having scrimmaged the War Eagles the last two seasons, beating Heritage 42-0 in 2020 and losing to Heritage 21-13.
The Panthers also competed with the War Eagles in team camp over the summer. Heritage went 0-10 in 2021, its third winless season in four years. The War Eagles are under the leadership of first-year coach Eric Munoz.
"They're a lot like us," Craig said of Heritage. "I think they're going to be making a youth movement. They've had some struggles. But it's obviously going to be a game that's a tossup. I think both teams are going to go into it expecting to win the game, and both teams know how important it is to win this game."
Craig said this Friday's game against the War Eagles is the culmination of all the hard work in the winter, spring and summertime. Kickoff is 7 p.m. at David Gates Stadium in Rogers.
"It's all leading up to game one," Craig said. "Our kids work extremely hard. You want them to have the opportunity go out there and win our first game, get a good taste in their mouth and be confident."
Graham Thomas/Herald-Leader Siloam Springs sophomore Gio Flores (No. 22) runs around the left side against Fort Smith Southside during an Arkansas Activities Association benefit game on Tuesday, Aug. 16, at Jim Rowland Stadium in Fort Smith.
Graham Thomas/Herald-Leader Siloam Springs junior Jed Derwin (right) runs around the block of teammate Brock Gold (No. 77) and turns up field as Fort Smith Southside's Russell Key (No. 12) sets up to make a tackle during the two teams' Arkansas Activities Association benefit game on Tuesday, Aug. 16, at Jim Rowland Stadium in Fort Smith.
Graham Thomas/Herald-Leader Siloam Springs sophomore quarterback Jackson Still throws a pass against Fort Smith Southside during an Arkansas Activities Association benefit game on Tuesday, Aug. 16, at Jim Rowland Stadium in Fort Smith.