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Cabot Presents Challenges For Har-Ber
Last updated Wednesday, November 19, 2008 8:08 PM CST in Prep Sports
By Matt Jones
SPECIAL TO THE MORNING NEWS
SPRINGDALE -- Springdale Har-Ber coach Chris Wood doesn't need to watch much film to see this year's Cabot Panthers. He saw them last year.
"They're the same, just a year older," Wood said. "The one thing you get from Cabot is they're going to do what they do, year in and year out."
That doesn't mean it gets any easier for Har-Ber (9-2), which travels to Cabot on Friday night in a second-round game in the Class 7A Playoffs.
The Wildcats beat the Panthers in the first round of the playoffs last season, 35-14 in Springdale, en route to a runner-up finish.
Cabot (9-1) is no stranger to the playoffs. The Panthers are a perennial playoff contender, having advanced to the state championship game three times under coach Mike Malham, and winning it all in 2000.
"Any time you get to this point in the playoffs, they're all legitimate schools that can compete for a state championship," Wood said. "Our kids understand that. Coach Malham does a great job at Cabot and his kids play extremely hard."
The Panthers are led by junior fullback Michael James, who has rushed for 1,151 yards and 21 touchdowns this season.
"He's a hard-nosed runner," Wood said. "He gets in behind the offensive line and has got the breakaway speed to break off the big one, but he can get the hard yards.
"He's a dynamite athlete."
James has rushed for more than 100 yards six times this season, including the Panthers' last game -- a 12-7 win over Russellville to claim the 7A Central championship two weeks ago.
James is a product of Cabot's vaunted Diamond-T offense, which against Russellville allowed the Panthers to sustain a 19-play drive that took the final 9 minutes, 39 seconds off the clock.
While Cabot's playbook isn't the biggest, Wood said it's effective.
"They stick to what they do, and they do it well," Wood said.
The Wildcats are coming off back-to-back games against two of the state's best defenses in Bentonville and North Little Rock.
Har-Ber did well in those two games, with senior running back Derek Brinker rushing for 302 yards and four touchdowns as the Wildcats won by a combined 57-27.
"They beat the heck out of Bentonville," Malham said. "They are playing good football, they have reloaded.
"They are more balanced this year. That running back (Brinker) is very good."
Har-Ber will have its work cut out as Cabot's defense fits the same mold as the Wildcats' last two opponents, Wood said.
Cabot has allowed just 98 points in 10 games. The Panthers defense has held opponents to 21 points during Cabot's current four-game winning streak, and seven opponents have failed to score 10 points on the squad.
"It's a big challenge for us," Wood said. "They stick with their 5-2 and have a couple of great linebackers and a legitimate nose guard...Going to play them there their defense will feed off the crowd."
There are several similarities between the Panthers' defense and that of Har-Ber's last opponent, North Little Rock, Wood said.
"They're both very physical, there's no doubt about that," Wood said. "They both fly to the football and that really stands out, just how hard they play."
TONIGHT'S TICKET
Springdale Har-Ber at Cabot
KICKOFF: 7:30 p.m.
RECORDS: Har-Ber is 9-2 overall; Cabot is 9-1.
RANKINGS: Har-Ber is No. 3 in Class 7A by Hooten's Arkansas Football. Cabot is No. 5.
HOOTEN'S LINE: Cabot by 6.
RADIO: Har-Ber, KYMG-AM 1590.
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