Big line, big goats lead Dollarway: Cardinals counting on trio of hard-hitting linemen to pave way.

Dollarway hasn't won a state championship since 1993, but after finishing as state runner-up game two years in a row, it's hard not to have high expectations for the program.

The Cardinals begin their season in the Kickoff Classic at War Memorial Stadium, "the place where we left off at the end of last season", head coach Cortez Lee said. Lee has instilled a theme amongst his players to "start there and finish there". The Cardinals aim to defeat Central Arkansas Christian in the regular season for the first time in three years and then hope to finally capture the elusive state title.

It's a tall order for any team and it doesn't help that Dollarway lost 23 seniors from last season.

With only six starters returning, holes have to be plugged all over the field, but luckily several promising juniors and seniors should fill gaps to stay competitive and help the Cardinals push towards the team goal of a ring. Things seem to be falling into the right place as the team has a solid stable of runners in junior Treyvon Daniels and senior Herman Pea. They have huge shoes to fill with the loss of tailback Michael Willingham, but Lee is confident in their abilities.

While the run game for the Cardinals has dominated the scoreboard and the headlines of recent memory, the real power for the Cardinals will be on the line this season. A trio of seniors in Larenzo Farris, Marvell McNeary and Josh Haywood has played together since the days of peewee football, They plan to use their close-knit bond and their tremendous size to overwhelm opponents throughout season. As seniors, they "hope to continue tradition and lead by example", McNeary said.

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McNeary, who is also known as "Moo Moo" by his teammates, is "very aggressive at the point of impact and plays completely through the play", Lee said. At 6-3, 300 pounds, McNeary is one of the bigger players on the line in 4A and he has his two huge comrades complimenting him.

Lee dubbed Haywood "Big Wood." Haywood lives up to the name with a 6-3, 290 pound frame. Haywood's combination of size and speed and his ability "to utilize his hands and feet well" has drawn attention from schools like Southern Illinois and Memphis.

The final anchor is Farris, but his teammates know him as "Gorilla Zoe" for his size and strength. Farris weighs in at 304 pounds and with 6-3 height, he gives Dollarway a huge advantage on the line, literally.

Despite the fact that the Cardinals line will overshadow a good portion of their competition, the trio stays ready for anything according to Haywood. "We don't know what [other teams] have up their sleeve," Haywood said. "We don't get too big headed, we just have to play our game."

Remaining level headed will serve the Big Three well this season, especially with so much pressure riding on them from their coach and the whole team.

I'm expecting them to step up and be leaders, they are instrumental in how we do." Lee said. "If they deliver anything less than expected, then our team could be headed in a totally different direction."

With mounting pressure coming from their coach and from the team, the line has a lot to live up to, even before the season starts. If Dollarway is the program it aims to he, then the line and the rest of the team must deliver.

TEAM NOTES

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* Two quarterbacks are vying for the starting nod as of press time: junior TEVIN TYSON and sophomore JORDAN HUMPHREY. Tyson is best suited as a mobile quarterback while Humphrey has a much stronger arm and is viewed as more of a pocket passer.

* Dollarway lost two assistant coaches late in the summer, TERRY FARMER and NEAL BARBAREE. Lee made some last-minute additions with TYSON GIBSON, defensive coordinator DARRIN KIDDD remains on staff and one assistant has yet to be named as of press time. Lee said he is not too worried about the sudden changes, but said he believes "it makes you work even harder."

* Dollarway has yet to find a reliable kicker and is expecting to typically go for two after a touchdown, like in seasons past. Coach Lee is confident with the success rate of gambling for the two point conversion. When the Cardinals do use a kicker, Lee has the duties assigned to either HERMAN PEA or TREYVON DANIELS.

ROSTER

Head Coach CORTEZ LEE

Team

NO.   NAME                 GRADE    HT/WT     POSITION

1     TEVIN TYSON           11     6'1/180     QB/FS
2     JULIUS NELSON         11     5'10/170    CB/WB
3     NICHOLAS GATSON       12     5'8/165       RB
4     TREYVION DANIELS      11     6'2/240     RB/DE
5     BOOKER MAYS           11     6'0/175     WR/CB
6     BRYANT WEST           11     5'10/180    RB/CB
7     FRANKIE SPICER        12     5'10/180    RB/LB
8     HERMAN PEA            12     5'8/220     RB/LB
9     JORDAN HUMPHREY       10     6'4/220       QB
10    ADDISON GRANDY        10     6'2/170       WR
12    DEONDRE' GOODWIN      11     6'4/180       QB
13    DEDRICK DUNLAP        12     5'10/180      WR
14    LEONDRAY DOLFORD      12     6'6/190       DE
15    CEDRIC LAWS           12     5'10/170    WR/CB
17    ANTOINE CARTER        11     6'3/210       DE
18    DENZELLE BOLDEN       12     6'3/175       CB
20    EDWARD ARNOLD JR.     12     6'0/160       WR
22    CHARLESTON GIRLEY     11     6'3/210     LB/TE
Z3    JAMES CHATMAN         11     6'0/170       WR
24    CARL DEVOSE           10     5'9/160       WR
25    JIMMY FLOWERS         11     6'0/160       WR
26    TRISTAN GALLON        11     6'2/170       WR
28    TARYNCE HUDSON        11     6'0/175       LB
29    KENDALL SCOTT         11     5'10/180    RB/SS
32    JEROD LEE             12     5'10/170      WR
33    NICHOLAS HALL         11     6'0/225     LB/TE
36    GARY LINDSEY          12     6'1/190       CB
38    CHRISTOPHER RANKIN    10     5'10/170    WR/CB
41    KEONDRA MALLETT       11     5'9/165       CB
46    DAMIEN MORRIS         11     5'10/170      WR
47    TEVUN MURRY           12     6'0/180       WR
53    CHRISTOPNER GIPSON    11     6'3/270       DT
54    LARENZO FARRIS        12     6'1/300       C
55    DAMIEN CARTER         10     5'10/160      LB
59    SEDRIC ODOM           12     5'10/240      G
60    JEREMIAH ANDERSON     10     6'0/250       G
61    MICHAEL BROWN         10     6'1/245      DE/T
62    TORAH CONAWAY         12     6'4/300       T
63    ROD COOKSEY           11     5'10/275      G
64    ALBERT ELLIS          11     6'1/270       T
65    DEVIN MASON           11     6'1/270       DT
66    RYAN WEAR             11     5'10/260     DT/G
67    J.J. HUFF             11     5'10/250      G
68    DARIUS PERRY          11     5'11/205      LB
69    SHAMARIO ALLMOND      10     6'1/250     DE/DT
71    HENRY JYNES           10     6'2/240       T
73    ISIAH WALLS           10     6'1/300       G
74    JAROD PORTILLO        10     5'8/260       G
75    JEFFREY ULRICH        12     6'0/250      G/DT
76    MARVELL MCNEARY       12     6'3/300       T
77    JOSHUA HAYWOOD        12     6'3/300      T/DT
82    GARY JACKSON          12     5'10/170      WR
83    ANTWAN NOWDEN         11     6'0/200     WR/LB
85    TEVIN THREET          12     6'1/170       WR
99    DEVONTE' SARGENT      11     6'5/300      G/DT

Numbers as of press time, subject to change LAST YEAR: 10-4 overall.
7-0 in 4A-8

SCHEDULE

Aug. 31               at CAC
Sept. 11                OPEN
Sept. 18              Marion
Sept. 25            Warren *
Oct. 2               Dumas *
Oct. 9          at Fordyce *
Oct. 16         at McGehee *
Oct. 23            Hamburg *
Oct. 30    at Lake Village *
Nov. 5           Star City *