For water to boil, it has to reach a temperature of 212 degrees. It will not boil at 210 or 211. Once it reaches 212 degrees, steam from the water can power a train, but it is that extra degree that makes a difference.
The Bryant Hornets defeated North Little Rock High School 27-7 in the Class 7A state-championship football game at War Memorial Stadium in Little Rock on Dec. 2. It is the school’s first state championship in football.
“It is a big-time sense of accomplishment for our kids and for our coaches,” head coach Buck James said. “Our hard work paid off. It is a great sense of accomplishment.”
For two assistant coaches, the state-championship win holds extra weight because of the fact that they both graduated from Bryant High School.
“Obviously, under the leadership of coach Buck James and the effort of our kids, we were able to get to 212,” Bryant assistant coach Shane Clancy said.
Clancy, who serves as the offensive line coach for the Hornets, graduated from the school in 1998. He played football at Southern Arkansas University in Magnolia from 1998 to 2001.
“The players did a great job of buying into doing what they were supposed to do,” Clancy said. “Buck had a great plan for the coaches, and our administration at Bryant has been real supportive of Coach James’ plan and his mission to get to this point.”
“I moved to Bryant in 1998, and when I got to the high school, [winning a state championship] was the goal for a lot of football teams,” Clancy said. “Some have gotten closer than others, and some of the other sports — like baseball, softball and track — have all gotten to hoist the big trophy.
“To finally do it in football is really special.”
Travis Queck, who graduated from Bryant High School in 2005, serves as linebacker coach for the Hornets. He is also the head high school baseball coach.
“Coach [Daryl] Patton and coach [Paul] Calley set a foundation for a successful program,” Queck said. “To get the opportunity to work at your alma mater and win a state championship is something I don’t take for granted.
“Their work is a tribute to those coaches and players who came before them, with the new staff taking all their work and adding to it a little bit.”
Clancy has been with the district for five years. He served as head coach at Bethel Middle School for two years, but when James got the head-coach position at Bryant High School, James hired Clancy as an assistant.
“In the first staff meeting, Coach James laid out a plan of how we will conduct business from daily to weekly,” Clancy said. “Obviously, this was one of my goals, and he set out a plan and hired a staff that got it done.”
James said he couldn’t imagine winning a state championship for his alma mater.
“To be a part of the coaching staff to get it has to be a great sense of accomplishment,” James said. “I think it has to be a great feeling. I can’t imagine how gratifying it must be for those guys.”
Clancy said having the opportunity to play against North Little Rock for the state championship — and winning — was satisfying.
“At the start of the playoffs, we talked about how we had the chance to avenge losses to every team that has beat us in our high school career,” Clancy said. “Obviously, getting a chance at North Little Rock again is something we were very excited about.”
Clancy said North Little Rock is “a great football team.”
“Our kids took it personally and wanted to show everyone that we are the most physical team in the state,” Clancy said. “I think our offensive line and defensive line did a great job.
“It was just a total team effort. We came out there and showed them who the most physical team is.”
Bryant’s win also snapped North Little Rock’s 25-game winning streak.
Queck graduated from the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville with a degree in finance, but after graduation, he contacted Calley and Steve Griffith.
“They gave me the opportunity to spend time with them and work with them,” Queck said. “I got to work with them closely, and as that was going on, I earned my master’s in teaching while also subbing and helping out in my spare time.”
Queck said he knew at the beginning of the year that the Bryant Hornets had a chance to be something special.
“Seeing the leadership from the defensive line to the linebackers, to the defensive back, I knew pretty early that we had the opportunity. It just depended on if we got in our own way or not,” Queck said. “The guys did a great job of buying into the system and getting mentally tougher together.”
Queck has been in the district for seven years, having coached the ninth grade football team, but has been on the high school staff for three years. This year’s senior class was his last ninth-grade group.
“I can’t even put into words how proud of them I am,” Queck said, “especially at the linebacker position.”
He said senior Jakob Neel tore his ACL before the season started and missed the first four games. He finished the game with a team-high 10 tackles.
“Senior Jake Wright is the most courageous and most respected young man in the senior class,” Queck said. “Those two guys set the tone in practice, in the weight room and how they live.
“It is unmatched. I saw the success they could have at the ninth-grade level. I’m glad it came to fruition.”
Bryant finished the season 11-2, beating North Little Rock for the first time in five tries in the three years James has been head coach.
“It is a big deal for our school,” Bryant senior offensive lineman Clay McElyea said. “It is a big deal for our program, and for it being our first state championship, it’s really special.”
McElyea said Clancy has been a big influence on his life.
“He helped me improve my mental and physical toughness,” McElyea said. “He taught me what it means to be a man and showed me lessons I will take with me the rest of my life.
“I know the other offensive linemen will as well.”
Clancy coached McElyea when he was an eighth-grader at Bethel Middle School, and other than his freshman year, all throughout his high school career as well.
“Obviously, you think you can win a state championship every year,” McElyea said. “But in spring ball in pads, once I saw how we were moving and the different athletes we had, I knew we had an opportunity to be great.
“We have one of the best coaching staffs in the state, and those guys know what they are doing. It takes talent to win one of these things, but we had some great coaching as well.”
Bryant senior running back Latavion Scott led the Hornets with 31 carries for 153 yards with 3 touchdowns in the win over North Little Rock. Nate Wallace sealed the victory, returning a fumble 78 yards for a touchdown with 1:06 left to play.
“We get to enjoy it,” Clancy said. “There have been a lot of great teams and coaches that have never even played in the game.
“But to get to play in it and to get to hold the trophy in the end, is special.”
“I just think it was the seniors in the program,” Queck said. “They were sophomores when James came in, and they truly bought in that first year and truly developed.
“This senior class is the reason why we had the success we did.”
Staff writer Sam Pierce can be reached at (501) 244-4314 or spierce@arkansasonline.com.