By Jason Avery
News-Times Staff
It would seem that the clash between Union County rivals Junction City and Smackover is one of irresistible force meeting immovable object.
Junction City’s offense has yet to be held under 35 points this season, while Smackover’s defense has allowed just 42 points total in their five wins, including 36 points during their four-game winning streak.
Tonight, the Dragons and Bucks meet in a showdown between the last of the 6-3A’s undefeated squads with a potential league title and home-field advantage throughout the playoffs on the line.
Game time is set for 7 p.m. at David Carpenter Stadium in Junction City.
The Dragons (7-0, 4-0) held off Lake Village 34-26 to stay perfect while playing without the services of senior quarterback Shuvasceiaye Frazier, who didn’t play due to injury, and is a “game-time decision” according to Junction City coach Steven Jones.
But while Frazier’s status is up in the air, Jones said via text message on Thursday that senior two-way starter DaQuann Ford will play after missing time with a broken toe.
The Bucks (5-2, 4-0) topped Fordyce 27-6 for their fourth straight win with Roshard Boone throwing four touchdown passes and Smackover’s defense turning in another terrific performance.
Smackover has been short-handed themselves with several two-way starters out with injuries over the last few weeks, but they have persevered, and Jones had plenty of praise for the Bucks.
“They’re playing very well of late,” Jones said. “They’ve won four games in a row. They had a big win last week over Fordyce. Offensively, I think they’re able to run and throw, and they play very fast. They do a lot of different things that can keep you off-balance. They’ve been very sharp the last four weeks.”
With Frazier on the sidelines, the Dragons turned to senior running back Hishmma Taylor, who rushed for 300 yards and two touchdowns on 35 carries to lead Junction City to victory at Lake Village.
“We really put it on his back in the second half,” Jones said. “He took over and did a great job. He continues to get better each week. When we get healed up a little bit, hopefully we’ll be able to distribute the ball a little bit more to different people, but he took over on Friday night, and it was nice to see.”
Smackover coach Mike Baysinger said his defense will have to find a way to slow down Taylor.
“They play fast and physical,” Baysinger said. “They’re very athletic. They’re going to be pretty good. He (Taylor) is a good one. We’ve just got to work on containing him and make sure we wrap up and gang tackle him.”
Both schools have plenty in common besides residing in Union County.
The Bucks and Dragons both play at a fast pace on offense with mobile quarterbacks, powerful running attacks and the ability to strike with the big play through the air.
Over the last two weeks, Boone, a junior, has been outstanding, completing 26 of his 42 passes for 383 yards and six touchdowns with just one interception.
Jaqueze Modica, a sophomore, has been one of Boone’s favorite targets, catching seven passes for 172 yards and three touchdowns.
With their ability to throw the ball, the Bucks have had success in the running game.
Senior Damarous White has topped the century mark in three of the last four weeks, and against Fordyce, White and sophomore Dexter Crockett combined for 139 yards.
“It looks like he’s gotten better, especially in the two games that we saw over the last couple of weeks,” Jones said of Boone. “He’s very efficient throwing the football, and they’re able to keep you from loading the box up to stop the run. Having a quarterback that can get the ball out and also run when he needs to is one of the things that leads to a four-game winning streak.”
For Baysinger, Boone’s development has come through getting the necessary experience.
“I think the biggest deal has just been reps,” Baysinger said. “Trusting the receivers to run the right routes, trusting the protection and the timing with the quarterback and the wide receivers running their receivers. Just building that trusting relationship between those kids.”
That balance on offense paved the way in the Bucks’ win over Fordyce, and Baysinger was pleased with that aspect.
“We were fairly balanced in the second half, and we usually run the ball better in the second half also,” Baysinger said. “White is kind of more of our power back, and Dexter is more of our scat back and a quicker guy. The two together combine for a different punch, but both are pretty good. It was a good mixture, but I’m glad we’re throwing and catching a little bit better each week.”
Like Junction City, Smackover also plays at a fast clip, and Jones said the Dragons’ defense will be ready due to their pace of practice.
“Our kids see it every day in practice with the way our offense practices, so we’ll be ready for tempo stuff, but they do a really good job with it,” Jones said. “They go fast in signaling things in from the sideline. They do a good job of running a lot of plays, just like we do.”
And while the Bucks certainly have offensive balance, the Dragons have been very explosive.
Taylor is nearing 1,500 yards rushing with 15 touchdowns, while Frazier has nearly 1,300 yards combined rushing and passing in just six games.
Senior wide receivers Jalen Davis and Jakobe Fisher are tied for the team lead in catches with 16 apiece with a combined eight touchdowns between them.
With Frazier out last week, sophomore Brady Hutcheson went 8-of-14 passing for 102 yards with two rushing touchdowns.
“Brady stepped in as a sophomore on the road and helped lead us to a win,” Jones said. “He did a good job. He got the ball where it needed to be, and he was able to throw for over 100 yards, which I think is the fifth week in a row we’ve done that. Brady was able to do a couple of things very well, and the more he plays, the better he’s going to get.”
Although it wasn’t easy, Jones was pleased with how his team kept its poise down the stretch in a close game on the road.
“It wasn’t pretty, but we found a way to get out of there with a victory,” Jones said. “We didn’t play very, very well at all, and I think that was a wake-up call for our guys. Every Friday is important and we can’t overlook anybody. I think our kids really see that now. I’ve seen the focus change already in practice this week with not taking anybody for granted.”
Smackover also showed great resolve a week ago.
Fordyce scored on its third offensive play of the game, but were held in check the rest of the way.
“I thought they did a good job of responding well,” Baysinger said. “I was proud of them Friday night. I was anxious to see how they would compete against somebody a little bit better, and they did a good job.”
Although Smackover enters with a four-game winning streak, the Bucks have been inconsistent at times, but Baysinger said the biggest factor has been his team improving each week.
“I think us just keeping working on us and keep getting better each week has been the game plan,” Baysinger said. “That’s been our focus. Not really so much on the opponent as it is just getting us better through the season.”
The Bucks’ defense has been superb during their winning streak, and Baysinger hopes their solid play continues again this week.
“I think they’re going to be good,” Baysinger said. “There’s a good game plan set for them. We’re going to line up sound, try to play aggressive and take away the things they like to do. I hope the defense just continues their play. They’ve played well all year, so if they continue that, I think we’ll be OK.”
Jones added that the Bucks’ defense does a good job of keeping offenses guessing by mixing things up.
“They’re very aggressive, and their defensive end play has been very solid,” Jones said. “They’re very athletic at that spot. They do a lot as far as stunts and blitzes and coverages. They keep you off-balance with what they do. They do a good job of mixing it up.”
With so much at stake, Jones is expecting the game to have the feel of a playoff game.
“It’s a big game Friday night for sure,” Jones said. “After Friday night, the winner will take control of the first seed in our conference, and that’s what both teams are fighting for is to get that No. 1 seed that has home-field advantage throughout and have that first-round bye. We expect a good atmosphere Friday night. The Junction City-Smackover game always provides a big crowd, a good atmosphere and it looks like we’re going to have good weather, so we’re excited to play against a good team on Friday.”
Baysinger said he is eager to see how his team will perform tonight.
“I’m anxious to see,” Baysinger said. “I don’t think we’ve faced anybody this good yet. Harding Academy was pretty good, but they didn’t look just as athletic on film, so we’ll have to see. Once again, kind of like Fordyce and how they step up to the next level of play and what they’ll do. I think they’re fired up and ready to go.”
For Jones, a Junction City graduate in his first year of coaching at his alma mater, the rivalry has a personal feel to it.
“With the schools being so close together, all the kids know each other,” Jones said. “Growing up and playing each other in a lot of different sports, that’s what makes it a cool atmosphere. Two local teams that are similar in size that get to compete. I think that’s what has really given this game a lot of flavor.”
Adding more drama to the contest is that Junction City is the new top-ranked team in 3A in this week’s Associated Press and Hooten’s rankings, but Jones said the Dragons aren’t concerned with that.
“The rankings are out there. We just try to encourage our guys to understand that the ranking that matters is the one that comes out in mid-December,” Jones said. “We try not to focus on that at all, and just focus on the task at hand, which is Smackover this week.”
Since the series was renewed in 2014, the Dragons have won all three meetings, but all of them have been close with Junction City’s 33-19 win in 2014 serving as the largest margin of victory.
In the last two years, the Dragons’ wins have been by a combined nine points.
If the Bucks are to collect a win on the road, Baysinger said the offense must be able to stay on the field.
“I think we’ve got to be able to control and sustain drives on offense,” Baysinger said.
“We have to be more mistake-free and polish that up a little bit. They come off the ball real low and real hard, so I think our O-Line is going to have a challenge to take care of. Defensively, we have to line up sound, and the kids do their job and play their keys and go where they’re supposed to go on each play, wrap up and make good tackles.”
For the Dragons, Jones said his team must steer clear of turnovers and penalties.
“We’ve got to clean up turnovers and penalties,” Jones said. “Those two things are crucial to us on Friday night. Those things kept Lake Village in the game on Friday night. We had a running back with 300 yards and had only 36 points to show for it, so just turning the ball over getting rid of dumb penalties are the things that we’ve got to clean up.”