CHARLESTON- Well, I think I am like everyone else…when I hear the name “Dizzy Dean”, I think of the Major League Baseball Hall of Famer from Logan County.
But the baseball Hall of Famer will not make an appearance on Friday night at Alumni Stadium when the Charleston Tigers host Elkins in the season opener for the Tigers. Instead, it will be Greenwood transfer quarterback Dizzy Dean who will lead a productive Elkins passing attack for the Elks.
Dean threw for 2,842 yards in 2022, just shy of the conference mark set by Drew Moore of Lincoln. Dean threw for 205 completions on 280 attempts and 37 touchdowns. Another Dean, Stone Dean, was his favorite receiver a year ago. Dean had 27 receptions for 328 yards and seven touchdowns for the Elks.
But as good as the Elks’ passing attack is, they can also run the football. Elkins’ leading rusher, Da’ Shawn Chairs, led the conference in rushing with 1,887 yards on the season on 180 carries. Chairs had 31 touchdowns on the season.
Elkins plays in Class 4A in Conference 1 along with Ozark, Gravette, Gentry, Lincoln, Huntsville, Green Forrest, and Berryville. Hooten’s Arkansas Football publication has forecasted the Elks to win the conference, just ahead of conference rival Ozark.
This week’s game will be Ekins’s second game of the season. The Elks opened on August 25 for a zero-week game at home with Pottsville. At press time for this story, that game had not yet been played. By playing on zero-week, the Elks will have an open date on September 15.
Charleston is playing their first game of the season this week, choosing to not take the option of scheduling a game on zero-week. As a result, the Tigers will not have a bye this season and will play ten consecutive regular season games. This has always worked well for the Tigers, giving the coaches a little more preparation time with the team before the start of the season.
The Charleston Tigers began their run to the Class 3A-1 conference championship and an eventual state championship in 2022 with a road, non-conference win at Elkins. The Tigers defeated the Elks by the score of 42-22. No doubt, Elkins will be looking to return the favor this year with their own road win at Charleston against a young Tigers team.
For Charleston, it will be all about putting last year’s state championship in the rear-view mirror and focusing on a new team and a new season. Several talented and experienced players that led the Tigers to the title a year ago have graduated, and taking their places is another class of young and talented Tigers. Offensively, Charleston will be led by senior receiver Reese Merechka who had a great junior season and was an important part of the Charleston championship last season. But several questions remain about who will fill important positions on both sides of the ball leading into Friday’s game with Elkins.
The Tigers traditionally play a very tough non-conference schedule each season to make them beter for conference and post-season play. It is a method that has worked well for Charleston, but the process will have to play out as the young Tigers gain experience and develop throughout the course of the season. Head football coach Ricky May focuses on conference play that will lead to eventual playoff berths and a shot to compete for a state title. The Tigers definitely want to win every time they take the field, but the focus is being healthy and improved as a football team before conference play begins on September 22 when they host the Greenland Pirates.
Next week in week two (September 8) Charleston will travel to Ozark for their annual “Battle of Franklin County” with the Hillbillies. Elkins will return home to host Clarksville.
RNN Sports photographer Ronni Tate Young will be on the turf at Alumni Field to bring you action photos from the game. And watch for our post-game story on this game on Sunday at residentnewsnetwork.com
So, football fans, the long wait is over, and hopefully so is the extreme heat! Enjoy the game, RNN Sports will see you there!
