The defense doesn’t rest for Marion on senior night

The defense doesn’t rest for Marion on senior night

Sports Editor As November rolls in for high school football teams in Arkansas, so too does the season for catching up on their checklists.

For Marion, last Friday night’s 42-6 win against Jacksonville did a couple of things for their team.

The Pats clinched at least a .500 regular season for the first time since 2011 in the win as they improved to 5-4 overall. They also assured themselves of finishing above .500 in the conference for the first time since that season now that they’re 4-2 in the league ahead of a Thursday night showdown with Jonesboro this week.

The win against the Titans also clinched a first-round home playoff game in this season’s Class 6A state tournament.

In that game, Marion got out of the gates hot by scoring the first 42 points, riding an opportunistic offense and riding a stingy defense to the victory on senior night.

“Defensively, they played lights out,” said third-year Marion head coach Jed Davis. “Offensive execution was a little lacking. I told the offensive line at halftime that they (Jacksonville) gave us something that we didn’t really expect, so we ran some concepts that we hadn’t run in a few weeks. Just like I’d expect a receiver to remember a play from three or four weeks ago, I expect our linemen to do the same.” Marion’s offense actually started fast by executing a quick 5-play, 75-yard drive that was capped off by a 64yard Tom Young touchdown run with 10:08 left in the first quarter.

If possible, the Marion defense started faster than their counterparts on the other side of the ball. On Jacksonville’s first offensive snap, sophomore linebacker Anthony Switzer intercepted a pass and returned it 16 yards to the Jacksonville 1yard line where Marion quarterback Peyton Walker finished the job with a touchdown run on first down for a quick 14-0 advantage.

Marion’s defense was back at it on the Titans’ following possession when Kuriston Hill came up with a fumble, but the Pats were forced to punt.

That 14-0 tally doubled as the score after a quarter.

Marion would push ahead 21-0 when Walker hit junior wide receiver Taylor Brown from 18 yards out with 10:37 in the first half. That throw capped a 7-play, 62-yard drive that bridged the first and second stanzas.

Young was at it again on first down midway through the second quarter when he caught a short pass from Walker and made multiple Jacksonville defenders miss en route to a 91-yard touchdown catch-and-run for a 280 lead.

That lead grew to 35-0 on Marion’s following possession when Walker found junior Ryan Robins from 16 yards out.

Walker finished play with 307 yards passing, though he was just 15 of 35 through the air with 3 touchdowns and an interception. Young led Marion in rushing yards and receiving yards as he tallied 70 and 115, respectively. Collin Chambers caught 6 balls for 76 yards, highlighted by a 33-yard reception. Robins checked in with 4 catches for 76 yards and that score.

Marion’s defense continued to do the job as the Pats forced three total turnovers in the first half, while also forcing four punts on the other possessions, while Jacksonville’s eighth drive ended with the first-half horn.

In the first half, Marion surrendered just 52 total yards, which was helped by a 39yard rush on the final play of that frame.

“The defense did what they were supposed to do,” Davis said. “Is it the best we’ve played on that side of the ball this year? I don’t know. I won’t know until I watch the film, and usually I judge the best performance by how we looked against a better team, and as far as that goes, I think that second half against Pine Bluff was pretty strong. Maybe it isn’t the best we’ve performed all year, but it also could have been a byproduct of who we’re playing, too.”

Marion’s final score came in the third quarter when senior Jamal Pearson bowled across from 13 yards out for that 42-0 lead.

Jacksonville (2-7 overall, 15 6A-East) avoided the shutout on its final drive when quarterback Shawn Ellis scored from 3 yards out.

Marion football notes:

Big game in Jonesboro Marion ends its regular season with a game with major playoff seeding implications on Thursday in Jonesboro. The Golden Hurricane are tied for first place in the 6AEast with a mark of 5-1, while Marion is just behind at 4-2.

The playoff seeding for the Pats are up in the air at the moment as Marion is just one game behind Jonesboro and Pine Bluff for first place in the conference, with West Memphis tied with Marion at 4-2 in the league. The Blue Devils hold that head-tohead tiebreaker with the Pats.

Marion can do no worse than the number 4 seed from the East, but could finish as high as second, depending on the other results.

Kickoff in Jonesboro is scheduled for 7 p.m.

By Chuck Livingston