By T. Scott Boatright
GRAMBLING — Saving the best for last.
That’s how the Lincoln Preparatory School football team closed out regular season play.
The Panthers took control early in the second stanza Friday night and roared to a 40-8 District 1-1A action at Panthers Field.
Lincoln Prep finished the regular season at 7-3 overall and 5-2 in 1-1A while Arcadia fell to 4-6 and 3-4 in district play.
Panthers coach Glen Hall said it was the perfect way to close our regular-season play.
“I have seen this team so focused,” Hall said. “All week. I didn’t have to give out any punishment work this week. Everybody was locked in. Tonight, you could hear a mouse during warm-ups. They’ve never done that. Ryan (Randolph, a junior lineman) came to me before the game and told me, ‘We got this, Coach.’
“They blocked, they ran, and they played Lincoln Prep football, and I’m proud of them. We played. It’s the best all-together game we’ve played. We played together in every aspect — special teams, passing, running, blocking, and we tackled like crazy. So it was the best all-around effort we’ve had.”
After driving down to the Arcadia 24-yard line before turning the ball over on downs on their opening possession, the Panthers got the ball back on an interception run back to the Hornets’ 8-yard line.
Three plays later Lincoln Prep quarterback Jordan Brown connected with receiver Cenario Wilson on a 11-yard touchdown pass that put the Panthers up 6-0 with 3:03 left in the opening quarter after failing to convert the two-point conversion run.
Arcadia drove as far as the Lincoln Prep 42 on the ensuing before turning the ball over on downs, and on the next play the Panthers’ D’Tavion Wright slashed left on a 59-yard scoring scamper that upped the lead to 12-0 only 27 seconds into the second quarter.
After forcing a Hornets’ punt, the Panthers scored again on their next possession as a 37-pass from Brown to Verslanski Glosson set up a 9-yard end around TD run by Wilson to push Lincoln Prep’s lead to 18-0 at the 9:23 mark of the second stanza.
“He throws some of his better passes when he’s not thinking,” Hall said of Brown’s effort on the night. “So what we try to get him to do is throw screens and quick, short passes so he doesn’t have to think so much. It’s on the job training. He’s still learning on the job.”
Arcadia got its lone score with 7:05 remaining in the first half as quarterback Rodtravious Jackson lofted an 8-yard touchdown pass to Kristofer Jackson, who used his 6-3 frame to jump up and reach over a pair of Lincoln Prep defenders.
Jackson appeared to be stopped on the two-point conversion run but kept fighting, using extra effort to reach the ball across the goal line to cut the Panthers’ advantage to 18-8.
Lincoln Prep pushed its lead to 26-9 as Wright took the direct snap in the Wildcat offensive set and scored on an 8-yard scamper before tacking on the 2-point conversion run to put the Panthers’ on top 26-8 with 1:27 remaining in the first half.
The Panthers upped their lead to 24-8 at the 9:18 mark of the third quarter as a Trey Spann interception set up a 28-yard off tackle scoring scamper by Jaylin Huntley.
“For the last three weeks, Huntley’s been focused,” Hall said. “If he gets the ball in his hands in the open field, they can’t catch him. In the beginning he was lackadaisical, but now when he gets that ball, he hits the hole and he’s up the field.
“And he’s running tough and knocking defenders back. He’s been in the weight room doing the things he’s supposed to do. I’m just glad he’s bought in.”
Lincoln Prep’s final score came as Wright spinned his way through an initial tackle attempt before racing 35 yards to paydirt with 6:56 left on the clock.
“D Wright is a beast,” Hall said. “I’m writing to every (college) coach trying to sell him. Somebody’s going to take him. He’s going to go somewhere, even if it’s a small school. He’s going to be a heckuva player for somebody on the next level. I’m just so proud of him.”
Now the Panthers wait to hear their Division IV Select School playoff fate.
“With this kind of win, we have a chance to end up at No. 16 (in the bracket) and get a (first round) home game,” Hall said. “We have momentum on our side. Tonight really helped that. It’s good to be playing your best football at this time of year.”
