WMCS kicks off tonight

WMCS kicks off tonight

Black Knights open season with jamboree in Helena

Sports Editor

It’s said that a cliché is a cliché because it’s true.

So when third-year West Memphis Christian head football coach Darrow Anderson announced his goals for tonight’s district jamboree in Helena, Arkansas, it may have seemed like coachspeak, but may be a solid place to set the bar, as well.

“We just want to get better,” says Anderson with a laugh. “Every year since I’ve been here, I feel like we’ve gotten better and better every time, and if we can continue to do that then good things will happen.”

Anderson’s Black Knights are coming off of a 2-8 overall 2015 regular season, but that was up from 1-9 the previous year.

Despite the mark, West Memphis Christian was in the postseason hunt until the very last week of the season.

When the Black Knights arrive at DeSoto School in Helena, they’ll get an early glance at three of their four district rivals, missing only perennial league bully Marshall Academy.

Anderson says that he’s excited about the experience, but that he won’t read too much into it either way.

“We want to get out there and have some success, because I believe that confidence like that can help the team as a whole,” explains the coach. “Of course we’d like to beat those schools, but if they go down and they score seven, and we drive it down and we stall out on the 10, then we did something good, and we just have to figure out how to fix those things.”

West Memphis Christian boasts just two seniors on this year’s varsity roster, as well as a sizable junior class of 11 players. Added all up and the Black Knights look to have 21 players on their varsity roster from grades 10-12, by far the most that they’ve had over the past four seasons.

“I think that’s huge because it helps us compete in practice and I think everybody could stand to be pushed a little bit,” explains Anderson.

The jamboree will consist of three 12-minute quarters of play for each school in attendance, which generally allows each school to have at least one drive on offense.

Despite these being West Memphis Christian’s league foes moving forwards, Anderson has his sights set on next Friday when North Delta visits West Memphis for the grand opening of the school’s brand-new stadium. Kickoff for that game is scheduled for 7 p.m.

“Everything we’ve done has been about trying to beat North Delta,” says Anderson. “We want to go compete on Friday, but our main focus as a team is on North Delta at home.”

Photos by Chuck Livingston

(Top) A West Memphis Christian receiver can’t haul in a deep pass.

(Bottom) Parker Benson throws a pass to the flats during practice yesterday.

By Chuck Livingston