5 things to watch

Hot Springs will be at home tonight to face Fountain Lake for the first time since 2007.

The inaugural First Security Bank Kickoff Classic is scheduled for a 7 p.m. start time at Tommy J. Holt Field at Joe Reese Stadium on the campus of Hot Springs World Class High School.

Here are five things to watch in the first senior high game of the 2018 season in Garland County:

Stopping Roberson

New Hot Springs head coach Darrell Burnett said the Trojans' defensive game plan begins with trying to slow the Cobras' run game, especially with senior Andrew Roberson, who ran for 863 yards on five yards per carry and seven touchdowns last season. He ran for 1,310 yards and seven scores on 6.9 yards per carry as a sophomore.

Roberson transitions to quarterback this season, alternating reps in the backfield with junior Ian Lacy. Fountain Lake head coach J.D. Plumlee said the Cobras have a number of sets with both in the backfield at the same time.

"Our scheme does not really change with who is at quarterback," Plumlee said. "Lacy is the better thrower and Andrew is a better runner, but that is no secret."

"The biggest thing is we have to be able to stop the run," Burnett said. "J.D. does a good job calling the plays. The running back is good. He always sneaks in a tight end and they can do a little bit of both in blocking and receiving. Once you load the box up, he likes to throw it vertical.

"We have our hands full. The biggest thing is being disciplined, making sure we can tackle in open space and just flying around to the football. We have a lot to work on still."

Wary of the passing game

The Trojans must also be ready for Lacy in the passing game as the Cobras look to get the ball to senior receiver Ahman Johnson, who had 38 receptions for 570 yards and three touchdowns a year ago.

"Our offense does not change a whole lot," Plumlee said. "Right now, there is not a huge glaring notice package-wise. We keep it simple for our guys up front. I put more pressure on the quarterbacks and running backs to make it right. There's not a big difference in the scheme."

"Right now, we are still installing ourselves," Burnett said. "We are still trying to learn the base defense. The biggest thing is us, working on us and making sure we can know what we are doing it, how we are doing it and why we are doing it.

"If we can take care of that first, then we can get a little more in-depth, as far as the game plan. There are a lot of things we are leaving out right now just because we do not want to confuse the kids. We want them to play fast and at least know Fountain Lake's base offense."

Beginning a rivalry

"I think it is a great beginning of a rivalry between us and Hot Springs to kick off the season," Plumlee said. "They are so athletic and fast and strong, and that is what we see in our conference. So, we need to see it.

"We are excited. We know they will probably have more athletes than we will, but we accept that because that is what we see in the 4A-7. We are ready for the challenge."

Plumlee's senior-laden roster has been tested in the rugged 4A-7 conference against perennial contenders such as Nashville, Joe T. Robinson and Arkadelphia.

"I think we should be ready," Plumlee said. "You are always going to have first-game jitters. The players will and it is their first time out in what will mean something. You have the scrimmage, but you don't show all of your cards.

"I think both teams in that first four minutes or so will ride the wave and then everybody will settle in and play football. That is the exciting thing about football. All of the hype builds up all week up until kickoff. That is why I love the game so much. I think that our guys will settle in just fine."

Burnett said his young Trojans were sluggish to start their scrimmage at Glen Rose last week.

"The drills we do every day, we did them in the pregame and we were all over the place," Burnett said. "You had those pregame jitters. They were nervous. They were the man in junior high and, all of a sudden, they were starting in their first senior high game."

"Hopefully, the kids will feel the excitement and their adrenaline will take them past thinking about making a mistake and just play football," Burnett added. "With this group, it just takes reps. It's going to take reps, reps, reps and games, games, games. Then, once they start to get into the flow of things, the season will either be midway through or toward the end. It is one of those first year things."

Looking inward

Burnett said the Glen Rose offered the Trojans a chance to learn from their mistakes.

"We got a great chance to show them film," Burnett said. "We actually got to show them their mistakes and what they did wrong. They were like, 'Oh, okay.' That is always a teaching tool, but they can see we have a long way to go."

Burnett said he was proud of how his team responded after the slow start.

"We didn't quit," Burnett said. "We got down 28-0. Then, we fought back and scored two touchdowns and, then, it was halftime. That was the most important thing I saw and I was proud of them."

Focus on fundamentals

Plumlee said the focus in Week 1 must be on the basics, especially when facing a team with significant turnover in the offseason.

"You are making sure you are fundamentally sound and that your scheme is good," Plumlee said. "It is really hard to game plan against somebody in Week 1, especially in this situation where they are going to a brand new offense. a brand new defense and a brand new coaching staff.

"We really don't know what to expect. So, we are going to go out there and just be fundamentally sound, make sure we are not getting beat by alignment or being misaligned. Just make plays and adjust as the game goes on, if need be."

Plumlee emphasized how his team must focus on not committing penalties and avoiding turnovers.

"We do have some stuff, schematically, ready," Plumlee said. "In football, it still all comes down to tackling, blocking and ball security. Defensively, we've been preaching 'fly to the ball.'

"We know they are going to be able to get to the edge on us some. We know they have the height advantage on us at receiver. We understand all of that, but we are going to try to be as aggressive as possible and fly to the football. We take pride in getting 11 hats to the football."

Week 1

Other local matchups on Friday include Bismarck at Baptist Prep, Centerpoint at Murfreesboro, Jessieville at Cedar Ridge, Malvern at Glen Rose, Mount Ida at Magazine, Mountain Pine at Mineral Springs and Lake Hamilton at Lakeside.