Hot Springs running back Cleo Floyd is questionable for Friday's 5A-South Conference game against Hope at Reese Memorial Stadium in Hot Springs.
Coach Chris Vereen said Wednesday that Floyd, who sprained his ankle in the Trojans' 14-7 loss at Watson Chapel last Friday, "might be 50 percent at best."
Floyd was injured on a running play in the second quarter. He remained on defense at safety but did not return on offense, where he was limited to 12 yards on six carries.
A year ago, Floyd had a breakout game against Watson Chapel, totaling 352 all-purpose yards in a 24-7 victory. But without him for most of last Friday's game, the Trojans' offense committed four turnovers despite piling up more than 300 yards.
"You take that out of your offense, your production goes down," Vereen said. "Without him, we still played well enough to win the ballgame. We didn't put the ball in the end zone."
Floyd has rushed for 483 yards and 3 touchdowns on 86 carries this season for Hot Springs (3-1), the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette's No. 6 team in Class 5A.
Vereen said Floyd dealt with knee sprains and ankle sprains last season, but they weren't issues on Friday nights. The Trojans coach is hoping for the same this Friday.
"If he feels like he can go, he'll go," Vereen said.
Floyd, a preseason second-team All-Arkansas Preps selection, rushed for 2,060 yards and 20 touchdowns on 203 carries last season to lead Hot Springs to the 5A-South championship and the school's first playoff victory since 1984. He also had 87 tackles (45 unassisted) and 3 interceptions at safety.
PULASKI ACADEMY
Mutual respect
For 35 minutes following Pulaski Academy's 56-12 victory over Jennings, Mo., players, coaches and fans of both teams lingered on Rector Field in Little Rock.
They made small talk, hugged and took pictures. There seemed to be a mutual respect between the schools that have relatively little in common.
While Jennings players were interested in Pulaski Academy's high-profile football program, Bruins players were just as interested in their opponents, who have had to deal with a civil unrest for the past 14 months. Jennings High School is located in St. Louis, near Ferguson, Mo.
"I'm so grateful for Jennings and what they're doing," Pulaski Academy Coach Kevin Kelley said. "They needed a football game and they took advantage of the situation. They took some time and toured [Little Rock] Central High and learned about the desegregation stuff that went on in the 1950s and 1960s.
"Jennings is the closest high school to Ferguson and they wanted to educate their kids. My hats off to what their coach is trying to teach their kids."
Ferguson, Mo., has been in the national spotlight since the Aug. 9, 2014, shooting of Michael Brown, an 18-year-old black man who was fatally shot by a white Ferguson police officer. The circumstances that surrounded the shooting sparked tensions in the northern suburb of St. Louis.
Jennings had only 24 players available for Friday's game, and the lack of depth played a part in the loss.
"It's out of sight, out of mind for our kids," Kelley said. "They think, ah, it's not going to happen here, but we're getting to talk to these kids and we're getting some first-hand knowledge of what went down.
"Any time you get a chance to play football and learn something about someone else, I think that's fantastic."
HELENA-WEST HELENA
Defensive night
Helena-West Helena relied on its defense to win its first 2-4A Conference game of the season, forcing two key turnovers last Friday night in a 25-14 victory at Newport.
Willie Brewster intercepted Newport quarterback Quavion Harris and the Cougars took a 13-0 lead on Malik Arnett's 6-yard touchdown run with 4:23 left in the first half.
Helena-West Helena led 13-8 with 2:09 left in the third quarter and Newport was driving, but linebacker Kentavious Stackhouse forced a fumble by Carl Turner. The Cougars made it 19-8 with 11:30 left on Arnett's touchdown run, which was set up by his 33-yard pass to Alex Collier.
"The defense played the best they've played all year," Helena-West Helena Coach Russell Smith said. "We kept Turner contained all night. We did a great job."
Kameron Davis led Helena-West Helena with 7 tackles, including 3 unassisted and 1 for a loss.
Arnett rushed for 114 yards and 2 touchdowns on 16 carries and passed for 53 yards and another score.
"Our quarterback has gotten confident," Smith said. "We're doing a great job of running the football."
The Cougars host Central Arkansas Christian (3-1, 1-0) on Friday night. CAC beat Riverview 27-14 last Friday in its conference opener.
Mustangs wide receiver Josh Johnson has caught 27 passes for 407 yards and 2 touchdowns.
"CAC is a very good team," Smith said. "They've got a lot of key weapons. I think it will be a good game."
Sports on 10/01/2015