RUSSELLVILLE -- Trevion Traylor always wanted to be disruptive. At 6 feet and 280 pounds, he did just that but only in small bursts. The defensive lineman's weight kept him from playing more than four or five snaps in a row.
Friday night -- nearly 25 pounds lighter and with plenty more confidence -- Traylor made life miserable for Van Buren.
Russellville routed the Pointers 38-6 at Cyclone Stadium, holding Van Buren to just 40 yards of total offense in the first half as the Cyclone defense put an end to the Pointers' undefeated start.
Van Buren (4-1, 1-1 6A-West) lost starting quarterback Bryce Perkins early in the first quarter when he suffered a broken collarbone. Coach Crosby Tuck said the injury will end the sophomore's season. With reserves Clark Seeger and Connor Brady alternating snaps the rest of the way, the Pointers were never able to generate any kind of offensive rhythm.
It didn't help that Traylor and the Russellville defensive front were constantly in the backfield, sending all three of Van Buren's quarterbacks scrambling.
"[Traylor] caused us more problems than anything that happened out here," Tuck said. "Unbelievable football game out of him and we struggled to come up with an answer for him."
By the time the Cyclones grabbed a 7-0 advantage near the end of the first quarter on a 56-yard run by Mykai Taylor, it was evident they had the muscle to overpower the Pointers on the ground. But several drives stalled for Russellville (3-2, 1-1) before Damon Donoho busted up the middle to double the hosts' lead headed into halftime.
And while running back Tracy Daniels said the Cyclones approached it like it was a scoreless game during the intermission, they knew where their bread was going to be buttered in the second half. Russellville continued to pound the ball, compiling 202 rushing yards and scoring all five on their touchdowns on the ground -- Daniels scored the final two with quarterback Gavin Graham punching the other in from a yard out.
"[Coach's message] was to punish them hard, finish them in the first half and keep going in the second," Daniels said.
Although Van Buren eventually crossed the 200-yard mark as a team thanks to some soft Russellville defense during the late stages, the Pointers didn't score until there was just 10:44 remaining when Brady hit Malachi Henry on a 28-yard touchdown pass to the back corner of the end zone.
What looked to be a promising 4-0 start for Van Buren -- including wins over 7A teams Springdale and Rogers Heritage -- will be altered by the absence of Perkins.
After going a combined 3-18 the last two seasons with just one conference win, Coach Dave Wheeler and the Cyclones finally got to celebrate a homecoming win.
"That's a huge win for us," Wheeler said. "We're a team that hasn't had success the last couple of years."
The music blared inside Russellville's fieldhouse as the Cyclones posed for photos, soaking it all in. For Traylor, now in his senior season, he relished it all the more given what he and his classmates endured to get to that very moment.
It was a fitting end to a night that went about as well as he could've asked for.
"There ain't nothing like beating up on a grown man who's trying to do the same to you," Traylor said. "You can't run the ball against us -- not a chance."