HIGH SCHOOL FOOTBALL : Final Plan In The Works

BY LANE KRAMER

Posted on Tuesday, August 22, 2006

This is the second in a series previewing the Super Six teams in each of the six new high school football classifications.

SPRINGDALE — A sign outside the press box at Champions Stadium lists Shiloh Christian’s state championship years.

For years, it let visitors know the Saints were the football state champions in 1998, 1999 and 2001, but this year, it looked different when players reported for preseason practice.

It had been replaced with another sign that listed those same years, but there was an empty space on the far right.

Come December, the Saints plan on filling that space with “2006.”

“It’s a new sign up there, and they left a big space for it,” said Patrick Ryan, a senior wide receiver and cornerback. “When you go to Shiloh, you expect to win.”

After losing in the quarterfinals the past two years, which included a 9-4 season last year, the Saints have a reason to be confident. They return 15 starters, eight on offense and seven on defense, and all are seniors. Five players already have received NCAA Division I scholarship offers.

Shiloh Christian also had a productive summer, earning national attention by winning the Southeastern Select 7-on-7 Tournament in Hoover, Ala.

Since then, the focus has been on fine-tuning the Spread, nohuddle offense that Coach Josh Floyd learned while playing quarterback for Gus Malzahn at the school in the late 1990 s.

Now, with quarterback Matt Simpson and receivers Crosby Tuck, Austin Tucker and Ryan entering their third year as starters, Shiloh Christian is the favorite to win the Class 3 A state title.

“It is an advantage for Matt and the receivers that they’ve been playing together so long,” Floyd said. “They can read each other more than a normal group.”

That chemistry has resulted in gaudy passing totals for Simpson, 6-1, 198 pounds. He has thrown for 7, 948 yards and 90 touchdowns in his career and last year completed 259 of 409 passes for 4, 387 yards and 52 touchdowns with only 11 interceptions.

Simpson has a powerful and accurate arm, but his greatest asset may be his intelligence. A 4. 0 student, he has scholarship offers from Harvard and Troy.

Tuck, 6-1, 190, is the top college prospect on the team with his raw speed, leaping ability and sure hands. He orally committed to Arkansas last month.

“He can fly by people,” Floyd said of Tuck, who had at least 1, 250 yards receiving and 15 touchdowns each of the past two years. “He can get off a defensive back, and he’s able to adjust to the ball in the air.”

Tucker (1, 012 yards and 10 touchdowns receiving last year ) and Ryan (698 yards, 14 touchdowns ) are the second and third options for Simpson.

The key for Shiloh Christian could be keeping 6-2, 205-pound running back David Ingram healthy. Ingram, who has an offer from Missouri State, rushed for 824 yards and nine touchdowns as a sophomore, but his totals fell off last year when he missed time because of a stress fracture in his leg.

Offensive tackle Nolan Hankins, 6-7, 325, has improved vastly in the past two years and has offers from Maryland, Baylor, Tulsa, Central Florida and Arkansas State.

The Saints are also well-balanced on defense.

Ryan and Andrew Jordan bring speed at cornerback, and Tucker is back at safety.

Fayetteville transfer Adam Herring, the son of Arkansas Razorbacks defensive coordinator Reggie Herring, joins Hadyn Thomas and Ingram at linebacker. Herring, a 6-2, 205-pound senior, has offers from Middle Tennessee and Missouri State.

Sophomore tackle Nick O’Quinn will join returning ends Brandon McBryde and Dobbs to give Shiloh Christian depth on the line.

“This is the best defense we’ve ever had,” Floyd said. “They’re going to keep us to where we can score 28 or 35 points and still win games.” SHILOH CHRISTIAN SAINTS CONFERENCE 1-3 A COACH Josh Floyd (third season ) ASSISTANTS Tucker Barnard, defensive coordinator; Jeff Conaway, receivers; Caleb Perry, line; Jimmy Harris, Jon Bodenstein, David McGee WHY SHILOH CHRISTIAN IS RANKED NO. 1 The Saints, who lost in the state quarterfinals each of the past two years, have five players with Division I scholarship offers. They return eight starters on offense and seven on defense, all of whom are seniors. BEST-CASE SCENARIO Shiloh Christian rolls through its conference schedule and stays healthy, allowing the Saints to maintain momentum and earn a top seed as they enter the playoffs. WORST-CASE SCENARIO Injuries at key positions, like running back or quarterback, cripple the Saints, throwing off the rhythm in the Spread offense. An upset in conference play lowers their playoff seed and forces them to go on the road early. KEY GAME Sept. 15 vs. Greenwood —The Saints should have little trouble cruising through their 1-3 A schedule. Their biggest test should come in Week 3 against defending Class AAAA state champion Greenwood, which they nearly upset on the road (45-42 ) to open last season.

— Lane Kramer