Abshier turns losing program into winners built on toughness

Danny Abshier was surprised when one of his players came up to him and apologized for losing a playoff game that ended the 2019 season for Prairie Grove.

"After the game, a kid said to me he was sorry we didn't get you your 200th win," Abshier said. "I hadn't even thought about that and it stunned me."

Abshier views the game as most coaches do; Coaches lose games, players win games. So, no apologies were necessary from players when Prairie Grove lost, 28-27, at Hamburg to finish 4-7 on the season.

Abshier still stood at 199 career wins at Prairie Grove when the Tigers hosted Farmington on Sept. 4 to begin the 2020 season. Farmington owned consecutive wins over its former conference rivals in the annual "Battle of 62" Highway and the Cardinals entered the game 1-0 after beating Class 7A Rogers Heritage. Prairie Grove hadn't even seen live action after a scheduled scrimmage with Clarksville was canceled because of covid-19 concerns with the Panthers.

Prairie Grove was at a disadvantage, but the Tigers rewarded their coach win No. 200 after beating Farmington 19-7. Even then, Abshier tried to downplay his milestone victory and credit the players who made it happen.

"More than anything, it made them so happy," said Abshier, who is in his 28th season as head coach at Prairie Grove. "They wanted that for me and so many of them after the game came up and said 'congratulations, coach.' It was special for them, and it was special for me."

Abshier is a throw-back to the days when teams mostly tried to outmuscle each other while crowded near the line of scrimmage. Year after year, he's lined the Tigers up in the Wing-T formation that features misdirection and precision ball-handling in the backfield. On defense, Abshier requires physicality from players who are taught to break down and drive ball carriers into the ground in textbook fashion.

So, it wasn't surprising when Prairie Grove won No. 200 for Abshier with a stout defense and two fourth-quarter touchdowns to overcome a 7-6 deficit to the Cardinals.

"In my high school career, there's no better feeling than getting him his 200th win against Farmington, where he went to school," said Cade Grant, a senior running back for the Tigers.

HIS MENTOR

Prairie Grove is not averse to the passing game, especially with an athlete like Isaac Disney, who caught 33 passes for 813 yards as a senior in 2016. But Ashier still strongly believes in the run game and the Wing-T formation he learned from his mentor, Tommy Tice, who was inducted into the Arkansas High School Coaches Association Hall of Fame after posting 289 career victories at Harrison and Huntsville.

Tice hired Abshier at Harrison following a recommendation from the late John Outlaw, a legendary high school coach in Arkansas and Texas. Abshier was a pulling guard in football at Henderson State and he began his transition into coaching as a graduate assistant working with physical education classes at a junior high in Arkadelphia. Outlaw heard from his assistants about the fine job Abshier was doing and he relayed that information to Tice.

"John called me and said 'hey, you ought to hire this guy,'" Tice said. "Danny was everything John said he would be and he was the kind of guy I liked. He was humble and hard-working. He was a guy who just wanted an opportunity and I've never regretted the day I hired him."

BUILDING A PROGRAM

Abshier briefly left football after three years as an assistant coach to start a business, but that desire to coach never left and he resurfaced in the unlikeliest of places, Prairie Grove, which lost 42 of 66 games between 1984-1992. Abshier joined the staff as a defensive coordinator and was promoted to the head coaching position when Mark Mallett left in 1992 after compiling a 14-26 record (35 percent winning percentage) with the Tigers.

Starting a head coaching career at a place where losing was commonplace is not ideal for a young man in the profession, but Abshier took a chance.

"In everyone's eyes (Prairie Grove) was not a good place to be," said Abshier, who graduated from Farmington High School. "But it's near home and I was hoping to get back to Farmington because that's where I grew up. I was thinking 'I know people and I can do other things on the side.' I was also thinking of coming over here, I get to be defensive coordinator instead of a general assistant. After three years as a defensive coordinator, Mark Mallett decided to move on and I got the job."

Abshier faced a huge challenge at Prairie Grove, which was 0-10 in 1988, and his success was gradual. He was 4-6 his first year in 1993, followed by 3-7 records in 1994 and 1995. A pivotal year for Abshier came in 1996 when Prairie Grove posted a 6-5 record while barely outscoring its opponents by a 244-230 margin.

That first winning season served as a springboard for 1997, when Prairie Grove finished 11-3 and won a conference championship for the first time since 1963.

"When we made the playoffs for the first time since whenever, the red carpet was rolled out and it was so much fun because we were winning," Abshier said. "People here weren't used to that."

Beginning in 2001 with a 10-1 record, Prairie Grove became a consistent winner with Abshier at the helm and mostly with John Elder, Craig Laird, and later with Mason Pinkley as assistants. Even with powerhouse Shiloh Christian joining the 4A-1 Conference, Prairie Grove won 24 consecutive regular-season games before having that streak snapped with a 28-21 loss at Pea Ridge in 2017.

While many other schools went to the Spread, Abshier continued to emphasize the physical aspect of the game in a run-oriented offense he played in high school and college.

"Danny cares about kids and the players love him," said Laird, the defensive coordinator for the Tigers. "He'll get in your face or give you a hug, you know, before the virus, and he'll do anything in the world for anybody. When we get together as a staff, we have fun, we talk, and we have breakfast together every Saturday during the season."

Cedarville coach Max Washausen was both a player (2000-02) and assistant coach (2010-13) under Abshier at Prairie Grove, and he credits Abshier for his development that led to his first head coaching opportunity with the Pirates.

"I went to college (University of Arkansas) to be a coach and Danny got me ready to become a coach," said Washausen, whose team is off to a 3-0 start this season. "As a player, I would've run through a brick wall for him. He preached discipline but he would also show he loves you, and not even think about it."

The Tigers won a school-record 13 games in 2015 and reached the championship game in Class 4A before losing 39-20 at Nashville at War Memorial Stadium. Prairie Grove was a top team again in 2016 when the Tigers won their fourth conference championship and finished 12-1 after losing 48-28 to eventual state champion Warren in the semifinals.

"Going to Little Rock against Nashville, that was fun," Abshier said. "We're leading at halftime then can't score in the second half. But getting to Little Rock and winning a conference championship was a great year for us."

MR. 200 (AND COUNTING)

With win No. 200 secured, Prairie Grove took the field against former 4A-1 Conference member Pea Ridge at Tiger Stadium last week. Prairie Grove hurt themselves with penalties and two fumbles that led to touchdowns, but the Tigers still managed to win 35-33 after a failed 2-point pass by Pea Ridge with one minute, 23 seconds left in the game. Tough runs up the middle by Foster Layman helped open up the passing game and quarterback Knox Laird took advantage by throwing two touchdown passes to Landon Semrad and one to Jackson Sorters, a senior who caught the first touchdown pass of his career.

At 58, Abshier is a fixture at Prairie Grove and the Tigers will attempt to move to 3-0 at Stilwell, Okla., before beginning 4A-1 Conference play against Green Forest on Sept. 25. The likelihood of Abshier moving on to a bigger school and bigger paychecks like coaches often do has long since passed, and Abshier is OK with that.

"There's still goals here I want to reach," said Abshier, who has won 64 percent (201-113-2) at Prairie Grove. "I'm going to coach a while longer, maybe five more years, including this one. Let's see how it goes."

Abshier has many interests and he takes pride in fertilizing, watering, and mowing the pristine grass field at Tiger Stadium, especially in the summer with another football season approaching. But he'll be remembered most as a coach who took a chance at a losing program and turned his players into tough, hard-nosed teams that reflect the grit and resolve he's always shown as a player and coach.

"Danny's a tough guy who teaches his kids to play tough football," Tice said. "He's the perfect fit for Prairie Grove."