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Dons Prepare For Official Start Of Practice With 'Clash On The Current'
While their legs were fresh, the Doniphan Dons matched two respectable foes step for step at the inaugural ‘Clash On The Current’ 7-on-7 tournament held July 30 at Doniphan High School.
The Dons varsity and junior varsity both opened the day with wins over the Thayer Bobcats. In their first meeting with the Dexter Bearcats, the varsity Dons held a lead at the midway point before a couple of turnovers swung the momentum.
In 7-on-7, teams received six points for a touchdown, three for an interception, two for a defensive stop on downs and one point for a point-after-touchdown. Games last for 20 minutes with a running clock.
Doniphan opened with a 29-20 win over the Thayer varsity with senior Trey Mills taking snaps at quarterback. Mills hooked up with junior Alonzo Rios on three touchdown plays.
The Dons defense recorded three interceptions for nine points from Hunter Roberts, Maguire Baucom and Trey Mills.
Against Dexter, Alex Harris took over at quarterback and connected with Rios on a 10-yard pass play for a score and an 11-8 lead. The Bearcats turned the game around with a pair of interceptions to claim a 28-11 win.
Dexter sailed past the competition with two wins over the Dons and two more against Thayer to earn the unofficial championship. Eight schools, including some from Arkansas, originally were scheduled to participate but several were forced to drop out due to COVID-19 concerns.
The event was sponsored by the Ripley County Chamber of Commerce. Lunch for all players and coaches was provided by Sycamore Hills Country Club.
“I’m proud of our kids’ effort,” said Dons head coach Jeremy Stout. “The majority only had about one week of practice.”
Doniphan had 19 players suited up for the day, just one less than Dexter. Thayer had 16 players available to play.
While the Dons primarily remain a running offense, the opportunity to throw the ball and also defend against the pass was a welcomed opportunity.
“We looked at four different quarterbacks and got a lot of receivers involved,” said Stout. “Defensively we looked good at times and other times we let the elements get to us,” he said.
Senior Hunter Roberts joined sophomore Kris Black in quarterbacking the jayvee in two games. Roberts missed most of last season with a broken arm but will be counted on for leadership.
The Dons jayvee defeated Thayer 13-6 in their first contest. Black connected with Matthew Schroeder for a touchdown.
The Dons defense added four points with a pair of defensive stops and an interception from Rios in the end zone accounted for three more on the Bobcats’ last possession.
Stout hopes to see the numbers grow when fall practice officially begins at 9 a.m. Monday, Aug. 10. Players are expected to be at the fieldhouse at 8 a.m. opening day.
“Even if you don’t have a physical yet, we need everyone to be there and start getting the acclimation days behind them,” said Stout.
Stout encourages everyone with an interest in playing football to come to practice and see what the experience may offer for them.
“We want this community to be proud of this football team,” he said. “We want every kid in this community to want to be a part of this program.”
