Storm Center: Reduced-player football could be option for Malden

RECTOR, Ark. — Bleachers at Paul Temerian Memorial Field were packed with fans as the hometown Rector Cougars played host to Izard County Friday night.

That’s right.

Just a 20-minute drive from Kennett on Missouri Highway 84 and Arkansas Highway 90, playoff high school football was on the docket.

Rector�s Gabe Mosley (72) engages at the point of attack during an Arkansas 8-man semifinal game versus Izard County dated Friday, Nov. 17, 2023, in Rector, Ark. Offensive lines in 8-man football typically feature three linemen plus a tight end. (Photo by Eric Viccaro, staff)

And this game was massive. Rector and Izard County were vying for the right to play in the Arkansas 8-man football state championship game at Little Rock.

Rector defeated Izard County, 62-40, in a thrilling end-to-end game that truly wasn’t decided until early in the fourth quarter.

“It’s football, it’s really no different,” said Rector head coach David Hendrix after the game. “It’s just a little bit faster.”

The Rector community has rallied around football, said high school athletic director and principal Nathan Henderson, as evidenced by Friday�s standing-room only crowd. (Photo by Eric Viccaro, staff)

Drew Henderson was the star of the show with 402 yards on 40 carries, with seven rushing TD and one more passing.

Henderson also was dynamic on defense with seven tackles, a fumble recovery and an interception.

“We’ve had so much support,” said Henderson, who plays quarterback and outside linebacker for Rector. “They come out and support us every game. Everyone’s rallied around us.”

The Rector (Ark.) High School football team smiles as the Cougars receive their �ticket� to the 8-man state championship game slated for Nov. 30 in Little Rock. (Photo by Eric Viccaro, staff)

Three years ago, Rector school officials made a shrewd decision. The district dropped from 11-man to 8-man football.

“We were afraid we would have only 12, 13 players for a season since we have a small school,” Hendrix said.

Rector High School principal/athletic director Nathan Henderson agreed.

“It was a numbers game,” Henderson said. “With our student population in slow decline, we have seen a decline in team numbers. We also looked at the class sizes that were coming, and that made it a logical choice.”

Even with three less players on the field, this brand of football is both fast and furious — as evidenced by the 102-point output last Friday.

Typically, there are two less offensive linemen and one less skill position player on offense. The defense has one fewer person at all three levels, line, linebackers and secondary.

Eight-man football is still played on a 100-yard regulation field with 10-yard end zones. However, the field is narrower, just 40 yards compared to 53 1/3 yards for an 11-man field.

Some states, such as Nebraska, offer the full smorgasbord of football — 6-man, 8-man and 11-man. Minnesota, Oregon, South Dakota and North Dakota offer 9-man football. Texas is famous for its 6-man game.

GIVE IT A CHANCE

Maybe Malden could consider 8-man football as an alternative. The sports editor is offering this branch as a possibility.

At the most recent Malden school board meeting, there were no discussions on the future of the program.

Reduced player football seems like a whole lot better solution than dropping down to the junior varsity level for a couple of years. Those games really wouldn’t have much meaning, would they?

Malden’s last win was on Oct. 1, 2021, a 44-6 thrashing of East Prairie. The following week, the Green Wave lost to Portageville. And that’s when the losing began.

During the 2022 season, Malden had a pair of forfeit losses due to a lack of players. Portageville scored 68 points and Scott City 62 in two of the contests as the Green Wave went 0-9.

This past season, Malden nearly pulled off an upset win over East Prairie, falling 50-42 on Sept. 29 — the same night then head coach Shane Kearbey was ejected and suspended indefinitely from coaching the remainder of the school year.

Dexter piled up 78 points on Malden, Scott City 62, Caruthersville 60 and Kelly 50 points this season.

The team has been through a revolving door at the top since 2020: Justin Peden, Jeff Bullock, Brian Vent, Kearbey and Nealey. That’s five coaches in four seasons. Some of them have been placed in the head coach's chair out of necessity, but that still counts.

The sports editor understands there’s no quick fix for Malden football, but going the reduced-player route should surely be up for consideration — and it would eliminate the “lack of players” excuse.

The biggest drawback right now would be horrendous travel. I get that. Fuel costs are high, and it would be a strain on bus maintenance.

If Malden would ever chose to play 8-man football, with more than 40 schools playing this variety of the game in Missouri, the Green Wave would likely be placed in District 1.

Eight-man District 1 this year is composed of the following Springfield/Joplin area schools: College Heights Christian, Greenfield, Jasper, Liberal and Lockwood. Malden would make a couple lengthy trips across Missouri. But, so would some of your opposition.

In nearby Arkansas, Malden would have plenty of close opponents with Rector and Corning, also located in Clay County.

How about playing a yearly home-and-home with the Cougars? It’s just a thought.

Rector was full of spirit Friday, with fans arriving well before kickoff time, and the fans went home happy — including some who drove from Dunklin County for the game.

“Rector is a community rich in basketball tradition,” athletic director Henderson noted. “But, slowly, over the last 10 years, we have seen a growing following for our football program.”

Henderson noted bringing Hendrix back home to Rector several years ago has been crucial to the Cougars' success. Without reduced-player football, there was a chance the program would have been shut down.

There’s drama in 8-man football, too, and Rector has been impacted by it.

Strong-Hutting, a school district in Arkansas, self-reported the use of an ineligible player, which eliminated them from the postseason.

Augusta was awarded with a victory, and will play Spring Hill at 7 p.m. Friday, Nov. 24, in the state semifinals.

The Arkansas 8-man football state championship will take place at 7 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 30, at War Memorial Stadium in Little Rock. Rector will play for a state title for the second straight year.

Missouri is down to its Final Four compsed of Braymer/Breckenridge, Archie, South Holt and Worth County/Northeast Nodaway.

The Show-Me State’s 8-man title game is scheduled for the same time at Faurot Field in Columbia.

Famous football players who played the reduced-player version are current Dallas Cowboy Leighton Vander Esch, ex-Los Angeles Rams safety Nolan Cromwell, former Minnesota Viking Chad Greenway, ex-NFL coach Jack Pardee, Fumblerooski runner Dean Steinkuhler and former Chicago Bears running backs Rashaan Salaam and Tarik Cohen.

So, yes, reduced-player football is still FOOTBALL. I’m just giving you an option to think about, Malden football fans.

Editor’s Note: This column doesn’t necessarily reflect the views of the Delta Dunklin Democrat, Concord House Publishing or Rust Communications. The views are solely that of the author.