Levy Trail 5K

I alternated one-minute jogs with four-minute walks to complete the Levy Trail 5K this afternoon in 43:40, with mile splits of 14:01, 14:09, and 13:52. It's hot as hell in Levy, not exactly the kind of weather that encourages anyone to play or watch high school football. At least Maumelle High has an air-conditioned press box and, without fail in 2013 and 2014, a hospitality suite that serves all-you-can-eat food. The last two seasons' rotating menu included chili dogs, burgers, ribs and pulled pork, tacos and enchiladas, and fried chicken.
Maumelle has a new coach, and Jacksonville has one in his second season. I interviewed him last year, and he sounded committed to turning the program around. Jacksonville won multiple state championships in the 1970s and '80s but has figuratively sucked ever since.

BY PETE PERKINS

The Maumelle Hornets followed their nearly unstoppable running game to a 59-21 victory over the Jacksonville Red Devils at Hornet Stadium on Friday night.
Led by senior tailback Jacob Aclin’s 106 yards and 2 touchdowns, Maumelle rushed for 270 yards and scored on its first five possessions to take command.
“There were some things that we have to get cleaned up defensively, but overall, the effort was there,” Maumelle Coach David Farr said. “We made the connections that have to be made, and there was a lot of execution, especially on the offensive side of the football.”
“It was a tough night,” Jacksonville Coach Hickingbotham said. “We couldn’t stop them in the first half, and we couldn’t get rolling offensively. We had some success, but we just couldn’t finish drives early. It just kind of snowballed on us. We just never could figure out what we needed to figure out to get our guys in the right positions.”
Jacksonville, however, began the second half with a quick touchdown to stay in touch. Tailback Shawn Ellis’ 5-yard run with 10:41 left in the third quarter cut Maumelle’s lead to 38-21.
Jacksonville’s defense responded to stop Maumelle’s next possession on downs, but the following drive for the Red Devils was stopped by an interception at the Maumelle 11.
On the next play, Aclin turned a simple off-tackle attempt into an 89-yard touchdown run that gave Maumelle (1-0) a 46-21 lead.
Maumelle’s next possession ended with a 24-yard touchdown run by junior tailback Cory Jones, prolonged by two separate retreats and field reversals that left Jones as far as 40 yards from the end zone. As he crossed the goal line, Jones was met by senior linebacker Terry Brown, whose hit knocked Jones’ helmet off.
Jones collapsed, and there was a twenty-minute delay as emergency medical technicians examined him. He eventually rose and walked unaided to the Maumelle sideline, where he remained until the end. Ten minutes after the game, he appeared clear-headed but explained that his head still hurt.
“They have a lot of speed and athleticism, and it showed,” Hickingbotham said. “I mean, they got guys running around from side to side and scoring touchdowns. That’s one of those things we have to correct.”
Sophomore tailback Danny Smith led Jacksonville (0-1) with 117 yards on 13 carries. Ellis carried 8 times for 97 yards and 2 touchdowns. Senior quarterback Brandon Hickingbotham, the Jacksonville head coach’s son, completed 9 of 15 passes for 93 yards.
“We did some great things, but there’s a lot that we need to get cleaned up,” Farr said.