When Mark Kehner first arrived at Glen Rose 14 years ago, the Beavers football coach said he "never would have dreamed" that Glen Rose and Malvern would play football against each other.
But times and attendance numbers change. Tonight's game at Beaver Stadium will be the fifth meeting between the two Hot Spring County communities.
Malvern vs. Glen Rose
2012;Malvern 31, Glen Rose 28
2013;Malvern 35, Glen Rose 27
2014;Malvern 38, Glen Rose 0
2015;Malvern 41, Glen Rose 21
"It's been a good relationship with Malvern and us playing," Kehner said. "We've had great attendance for our games against each other. It's been great for both communities, and the kids have a lot of respect for each other. It's been a clean rivalry and a very exciting game."
Malvern has won all four of the previous meetings, including last season's 41-21 meeting at Malvern's Claude Mann Stadium.
In 2002, Arkansas had only four football classifications. Malvern was a member of the AAAA-Southwest; Glen Rose played in the 5AA. There are now six football classifications with Malvern playing in the 7-4A and Glen Rose in the 5-3A. According to the latest attendance numbers from the Arkansas Activities Association, Malvern averaged 462.3 students while Glen Rose averaged 240.7.
Kehner is a graduate of Magnet Cove, another Hot Spring County school. He is a contemporary of former NFL players Keith Traylor and Isaac Davis, who played for the Leopards in the early 1990s.
"When you're going to school like Magnet Cove or Glen Rose, you didn't want to be on the same field with those cats," Kehner said of Traylor and Davis. "But this game is a good thing for us. We've changed the culture of football around here. It's a good thing for us that we can play games like this."
Sports on 09/02/2016