Patriots impress in preaseason benefit game
Marion shines on both sides of the ball in scrimmage with Stuttgart
Marion School District The second season of the Keith Houston era at Marion will officially begin next Friday, but Tuesday’s benefit game against the Stuttgart Ricebirds gave the fans that made the trip to Arkansas County their first look at the team. The Patriots looked comfortable on both sides of the ball, frustrating a Stuttgart team that finished with a 9-2 record a season ago.
The combination of a short offseason due to a coaching change and a sophomore quarterback contributed to the slow start that the Patriots had at the beginning of last season. One year later, an intense offseason and expanded playbook have created a shared confidence between the players that has not been seen for a while in the program.
Marion’s defense may have been the biggest story of the game. Stuttgart scored on the last play of the night, but those were the only points Marion gave up. The two most notable plays defensively were an interception by Frank Bohanon and a fumble recovery for a touchdown by Dontonio Moore.
“I think the defense looked well tonight, but we still have some things we need to work on,” Houston said. “Our coaches have done a great job instructing these kids in the offseason, and when they applied what we taught is when they looked their best tonight.”
The first and second team offenses also had a solid night against the Ricebirds, outscoring them 49-to-6.
Quarterback Daedrick Cail and his talented wide receiver corps had a few hiccups, but the development of the passing game seemed to be well ahead of schedule.
Kentreal Jones played the majority of the night at running back for the Pats.
Jones found the endzone twice, once on a passing play. Anthony Price dressed out, but did not play due to elbow soreness. “Kentreal has done a lot in the weight room over the offseason and it’s carried over into the way he runs the ball now,” Houston said. “He does everything we ask him to do, he has great vision running the ball, and he had a great night.”
The offensive line also had a good night, opening up holes for the backs to run as well as protecting Cail and Gerrard long enough to get their passes off. Houston said the line still has some areas that they need to improve on, but they did enough of the right things to keep their quarterbacks upright on Tuesday.
Up next for the Pats is the season-opener on Friday, Aug. 30, at home against the Blytheville Chickasaws. Kick-off from Patriot Stadium is scheduled for 7 p.m.
