It was a beautiful summer night in South Logan County when the Paris Eagles made the short drive south to scrimmage the Magazine Rattlers in a non-conference, preseason scrimmage. Proceeds from the scrimmage benefited the Arkansas Activities Association’s catastrophic injury fund. The fans turned out from both schools, and there was a palpable sense of excitement as fans from both schools were excited to see the start of the 2021 high school football season. Although the two schools compete in different classes and conferences, it was a clean and well-played game by both schools, and both should be in good position to have successful seasons.
Perhaps unlike most seasons in recent history, there has been a buzz all year about the finish of last year’s Eagles football team advancing to the state quarterfinals in Class 3A, and the addition of new head football coach, Jeff Weaver. Weaver inherits a talented veteran ball club that is laser-focused on not only returning to the state playoffs but possibly advancing further than they did a year ago. A lot will have to go right for Paris just like any other school, but the talent that was on the field Friday night is cause for great optimism and excitement for Paris fans.
Offensively, Paris moved the ball at will, displaying their electrifying ability to score quickly. The Eagles are deep at wide receiver, running back and other key positions. Senior quarterback Chase Watts, a three year starter, could have a monster year in Jeff Weaver’s system combined with the outstanding talent around him of the likes of All-State running back Duke Walker, and senior speed burner Blake Martines. In fact, the Eagles were missing receivers Caleb Yarnell and Cooper Haley on Tuesday. Their return to the lineup will bolster an already deep receiving corps for Chase Watts and the Eagles. Many of the key starters saw limited playing time on Tuesday, giving reserve players time to develop their skills while protecting starters for next week’s season opener.
Defensively, the Eagles did not allow a score against the Rattlers. Paris dominated the line of scrimmage with their size and experience. The Eagles outstanding senior, Nate Henderson, roamed the field, making tackles all over the field. And this was in addition to when he was not playing on offense and having a big night as a running back. Henderson, and junior Mason Bradley will provide quality depth in the offensive backfield behind Duke Walker.
But perhaps most impressive in Magazine was the play of the junior high Eagles. The junior high program is up in numbers, and the program-building effect of new coach Jeff Weaver appears to be showing itself in the junior high program. Although the Eagles struggled on defense against a good Magazine team, the junior Eagles bounced back and displayed their own tough and physical running game. From my perspective, the junior high team has made great strides and I look for them to steadily improve as the season progresses this year.
After the game, I asked Coach Weaver for some comments about his team’s performance at Magazine. Coach Weaver responded by saying, “I was really pleased with how hard we played. I thought we had a good pace to the offense, and the defense dominated the line of scrimmage. We have a lot of things to clean up before Lavaca next week.” Coach Weaver also indicated that he thought the Eagles escaped the scrimmage without injury, something every coach worries about going into a preseason scrimmage.
So the stage is set for one of the most anticipated football seasons in Paris football program history. The Eagles will make the trip down Highway 22 next Friday to open the season against the Lavaca Golden Arrows. Last season when the two teams met in Paris, it was the Eagles jumping off to a big halftime lead, only to see the Arrows fight back and make a game of it in the second half. Lavaca was young and talented last year, and I expect to see them as an improved team this year that will come out and play hard against Paris.
Resident Press will be here to bring you the action all season long. And photos from each game, just as they are now available from the Magazine scrimmage, will be available each weekend on Facebook at Paris Eagles Sports. Stay with Resident Press for the most complete coverage of Paris Eagles football!
I will have a preview of next Friday’s game at Lavaca in Resident Press on Sunday night. So, get ready…the season is here!
See you at the stadium on Friday!
