By T. Scott Boatright
GRAMBLING — Don’t be fooled — the final score didn’t depict how hard the Lincoln Preparatory School football played or how close the game truly was.
Eight late points by D’Arbonne Woods stretched the margin of victory, but the Panthers still had a chance to grab a late win.
But it wasn’t meant to be as first-year head coach Chance Davison saw his Panthers fall 37-24 Friday night at the LPS football field.
In fact, Lincoln Prep jumped on top 24-21 with 4:06 left in the third stanza when quarterback Zion Hicks fired a 68-yard scoring strike to Tre Spann.
That countered a 21-yard scoring scamper by the Timberwolves Stribling only 37 seconds earlier that put D’Arbonne Woods on top 21-18.
“They competed,” Davison said of his Panthers. “I just wish we could have made stops. We’ve got a young D-end, we’ve got young linebackers — there’s a lot growing to do. A lot of times they were sitting there watching and not playing, not attacking.
“It’s just one of those things you’ve got to go through with a young team.”
But after that score that put the Panthers up 24-21, D’Arbonne Woods marched 77 yards on 10 plays with quarterback Dalton Albritton sprinting 4-yards left to paydirt to put the Timberwolves back on top 29-21.
Lincoln Prep was held to a three-and-out possession on the ensuing series, missing a wide open pass on second down and being forced to punt.
D’Arbonne Woods then drove 87 yards on 10 plays with Thorne Stribling powering his way left on a 2-yard touchdown run and added a two-point run conversion on an Albritton run with 2:38 remaining.
On fourth-and-16 from the Panthers’ 39-yard line, Hicks tried to hit Spann on another long pass that arched high through air before being knocked down at the D’Arbonne Woods’ 12 by a pair of defenders double-teaming Spann.
Two kneels later the game was over.
The Panthers did a solid job of getting to ballcarriers wasn’t a problem. But swarming to the ball and making the tackle at the first point of contact was something that didn’t happen nearly enough.
“They killed us with that power and counter all night,” Davison said. “It’s just something I wish we could have stopped. I wish we could have gotten in the hole and do something different — make that stop at or behind the line of scrimmage.”
Davison admitted D’Arbonne Woods’ misdirection offense was a source of frustration because he knew, and told his team, that was what they’d be facing defensively.
“That’s the thing — we’ve been practicing against it all week,” Davison said. “We knew what they did, what was coming. That was the first thing we talked about this week in practice. That’s they’re bread and butter.
“They’re going to block down and kick out. But like I said, I’ve got a freshman defensive end and he’ s just standing there looking. He was the biggest man on the field and was just watching and not attacking. It’s just one of those things where we’ve got to learn to squeeze and cut it off.”
Hicks completed 11-of-20 passes for 228 yards with a touchdown and an interception while Spann led Lincoln Prep receivers with five catches for 133 yards.
Freshman Brysen Slate led Lincoln Prep in rushing with 53 yards on 12 carries, including a 1-yard touchdown while Hicks added 14 carries for 35 yards and two scores.
Davison said fatigue played a role for his key players late in the game.
“Zion did a good job considering it was his first game at quarterback,” Davison said. “The thing is, he plays both ways. And he worked hard last night. I pulled him on defense in the fourth quarter for a bit just trying to give him some blows.
“We’re trying to get a rotation where everybody can get a blow at some point (in the second half). Even though I know I need him and other players out there, I have to find a way to get them a little rest — give them so blows. That’s hard to do with your best players, but we have to keep trying to find a way, which means finding a way to get some of our younger guys to step up, even if just for one series.”
Davison said he was proud of the effort both his senior standouts showed.
“He made a few other catches in between those plays, too,” Davison said of Spann’s night. “He’s one of those kids we can depend on. We missed him on one play where he was wide open. But that was part of it all. It’s just one of those things. We’re still growing. But we’re going to get better.”
Next up for the Panthers will be a game atShreveport’s Magnolia School of Excellence, which fell 66-6 at Glenbrook in Week 1 action, on Thursday.
“Now we just go back to work and focus on the things we didn’t do right tonight,” Davison said. “Just keep working. I need them to understand tonight was nothing to put their head down about. They competed. The energy was good. They kept playing and didn’t give up.
“And I’m happy about that. There were times in some games last year where we just gave up. So I’m happy with their effort. Proud of that effort.”
