Dragons still force as new guys fill in

El Dorado News-Times/Michael Orrell

Junction City head football coach David Carpenter walks the sidelines against Woodlawn in the first half at Paul H. Muse Field in Junction City on Friday night.
El Dorado News-Times/Michael Orrell Junction City head football coach David Carpenter walks the sidelines against Woodlawn in the first half at Paul H. Muse Field in Junction City on Friday night.

Junction City, winners of 40 consecutive games and the past three Class 2A state championships, is reloading, not rebuilding, after losing three of the school’s best players to graduation.

The Dragons remain the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette’s No. 1 team in Class 2A going into the 2015 season despite no longer having quarterback Randall Holyfield, running back JaQwis Dancy and tight end/defensive end Jamario Bell.

Junction City Coach David Carpenter enters his 20th season in his second run with the Dragons and said he is excited about the players who’ll try to follow the winning tradition that Holyfield, Dancy and Bell helped uphold in south Arkansas.

“You get what you can get in there and keep on going,” said Carpenter, whose team returns five offensive starters and five defensive starters. “We’ve got a lot of guys back who got a lot of playing time last year. They know what’s going on. They’ll know what to expect. They’ve been in so many games anyway.”

The Dragons haven’t lost since an opening-week loss at Earle in August 2012. They beat Hazen in last year’s Class 2A state championship game for their third consecutive title and sixth overall.

Carpenter deflects the credit for the Dragons’ success.

At a Glance

COACH David Carpenter (20th season)

CONFERENCE 8-2A

2014 RECORD 13-0 (won Class 2A state championship)

KEY RETURNERS OL/LB Matthew Freeman (Sr., 6-1, 210), QB/DL Will Smith (6-2, 225), OL/DL Garrett Woods (Sr., 6-1, 250)

2015 SCHEDULE

DATE;OPPONENT

Sept. 5;at Smackover

Sept. 11:at Rison*

Sept. 18:at Haynesville, La.

Sept. 25;Hermitage*

Oct. 2;OPEN

Oct. 9;at Parkers Chapel*

Oct. 16;Bearden*

Oct. 23;OPEN

Oct. 30;Woodlawn*

Nov. 6;at Strong*

*8-2A game

“We’ve had a lot of good athletes who work hard at it and trying to make things go,” he said. “It’s all credit to the young men that are playing who get out there and work hard every week to continue to make things to go.”

Junction City will turn to senior Will Smith at quarterback. Smith backed up Holyfield last season, completing 10 of 16 passes for 144 yards and 2 touchdowns, but he saw plenty of work in the second half of games.

Twelve of Junction City’s 13 games were impacted by the Arkansas Activities Association’s sportsmanship rule, which calls for a running clock in the second half once a team reaches a 35-point lead.

Junior C.J. Johnson takes over for Dancey at running back. Johnson had 682 yards and six touchdowns last season backing up Dancy, who rushed for more than 2,000 yards in 2014 and was a first-team Democrat-Gazette All-Arkansas Preps selection.

Senior Matthew Freeman was the team’s only two-way starter last season, anchoring the offensive line and playing linebacker, where he ended up with 112 tackles.

“You’ve got a guy with that much experience over there, it keeps everything going smoothly,” Carpenter said of the three-year starter on the offensive line.

Class 2A Super Six

CLASS 2A SUPER SIX

TEAM;2014;CONFERENCE

  1. Junction City;13-0;8-2A

  2. Rison;11-2;8-2A

  3. Hazen;14-1;6-2A

  4. Earle;10-4;3-2A

  5. Gurdon;9-3;7-2A

  6. McCrory;9-4;6-2A

Junction City will have two open dates in the 8-4A Conference just as it did last season, Oct. 2 and Oct. 23. The Dragons also must go on the road to play conference rivals Rison (Sept. 11) and Strong (Nov. 6).

Carpenter and the Dragons aren’t fazed by the schedule.

“You don’t like having a lot of open dates, but with our schedule we have this year I’m glad we have it,” Carpenter said. “We play in a good conference that’s fun to play in.”

Junction City opens the season Sept. 5 at Class 3A runner-up Smackover. The Dragons and Buckaroos will be in the same conference next season in the 6-3A Conference. It’s a game that Carpenter is looking forward to.

“We love playing them anyway,” Carpenter said. “It’s a rivalry that we have. We’re 30 miles apart from each other. There’s always a lot of people to come watch the ballgame.”

Carpenter said his main goal in fall camp is to make sure the Dragons keep improving.

“We’ve done a good job of getting everybody in and getting better every day,” Carpenter said. “As we continue to put in the offense, they’re learning more. I want to make sure that in two weeks, we have a lot more of it down. It’s the same over on the defensive side.

“As long as they continue to hustle and improve, that’s what you want.”

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