CABOT — To compete at the highest level in Arkansas high school football, a program needs to be able to rely on experienced upperclassmen.
The 2009 Cabot Panthers will have the benefit of 23 returning seniors, 12 of whom received significant playing time last season.
Head coach Mike Malham (227-98-4) returns for his 29th season and said that group of seniors will play a large role in the outcome of the upcoming season.
"We have a good group coming back," Malham said. "Usually you onlyhave about 16 or 17 seniors, so 23 is a pretty good number. Five or six of those have been playing since they were sophomores. We'll be disappointed if we don't have a good season."
Two of those players will be playing bothways for Malham. 2009 Three Rivers Players To Watch Michael James (5-11, 195) and Spencer Neumann (6-0, 195) return to headline the offensive backfield and the linebacking corps for the Panthers. James has rushed for more than 3,000 yards over the past two seasons. Neumann, who played fullback in junior high but has played mostly linebacker for the varsity team, returns to the offensive side and will split time and carries with James.
"Neumann is probably a better open-field runner than James," Malham said. "James is more like a bulldozer while Neumann has a few more moves.
Neumann may get as many carries as James this year."
The Panthers will also benefit from having a three-year starter at quarterback. Seth Bloomberg (5'8, 160) returns under center, and Malham said he has the tools to run the Cabot offense.
"He's quick," Malham said. "He's more quick than he is fast. He's smart and runs the option well. Of course this is his third year to start so he has the experience as well."
The seasoned veterans in the backfield will still have their work cut out for them because of the inexperience up front. The offensive line returns just one starter in Walt James (6-0, 245) and he is coming off a knee injury. The group will benefit from the senior leadership of Jay Verkler (5-11, 220) and Cole Lockwood (5-11, 275). Junior David Young and Nathan Cash will fill out the starting lineup. Brian Tarrence and the behemoth Chris Joslin (6-3, 315) will also work in the rotation.
The Panthers will operate out of a two-tight end set, and those two will be
Brock Bunting (5-10, 195) and Rod Quinn (5-11, 207). Juniors Jesse Roberts
and Justin Ellison could also see action.
The focus of the defense this season will be its speed and strength. Mal
ham said the projected starters average a 4.69 40-yard dash time and a
256-pound power clean.
That power up front starts with three-year starter T.J. Bertrand (6-0,
260). The senior, who moved to Cabot from New Orleans after Hurricane
Katrina, squats over 500 pounds and goes over 300 in the bench press and
power clean. Jay Turpin and Jared Maxwell also return with Chris Perez and
Jared Dumais to fill out the defensive line.
The rest of the defense will rely on speed. James and Neumann move over
from fullback to man the linebacker position. Twins Joe and Powell Bryant
return at safety with their 4.5 40 speed. Alex Bray and Logan Spry (4.5 40),
who also handles kicking duties, will be the cornerbacks.
The Panthers will try to defend their 2008 conference title, the 11th in
Malham's tenure. A 21-17 loss to Springdale Har-Ber in the quarterfinals
ended hopes of a third state championship. With the senior leadership and
returning starters the Panthers have back, there's reason to believe they will
get that title in 2009.
BREAKING DOWN
THE PANTHERS23 seniors9-2 record in 200829 seasons Coach Mike Malham
has been with the Panthers
CABOT PANTHERS
Sept. 1 ............... Jacksonville
Sept. 11 ..............Sylvan Hills
Sept. 18 ................ at LR Hall
Sept. 25 ................Conway*
Oct. 2 ........... at LR Catholic*
Oct. 16 ...............LR Central*
Oct. 23 ................ at Bryant*
Oct. 30 .............. Van Buren*
Nov. 5 ........... at Russellville*
Special, Pages 172, 173, 174 on 08/23/2009