Rogers hoping to take Class 7A-West next step up at Bentonville on Friday night
BY DUDLEY E. DAWSON
Rogers head football coach Chad Harbinson and his staff have spent the last few seasons building up their gridiron program into a true Class 7A-West contender.
The Mounties (5-2, 3-1) will get a chance to take another step forward Friday night at Bentonville (4-3, 4-0) in a game that would give them a share of the league lead with two weeks left in the regular season.
“It obviously starts with having good players,” Harbinson said. “We have had some talent. It is just kind of getting that talent to mesh and play well together and compliment each other and having a culture where nobody really cares who gets the credit as long as we are successful. Our kids have kind of bought into that.”
So has an energized Rogers fan base, which has seen the Mounties win a school-best 26 games the past three seasons and advance to the state playoff quarterfinals each year.
“They believe in us, believe in what we do and how we do it and I think the excitement in the community helps us,” Harbinson said. “It is a lot of fun and I do believe our guys are playing with a lot of confidence.”
The Rogers program has matured on and off the field in the last few years.
“Obviously I think that starts with having a good off-season program and since we hired Coach (xxxx) Williams, our defensive coordinator in 2021, he has been here and he also does our strength and conditioning,” Harbinson said. “It’s been fun to watch the growth and development of our team and the of guys that have gotten better.
“I feel like now when we step out on the field that we are not getting pushed around. We are bigger, stronger and faster than we have ever been.
“It takes a culture and I think it takes really good players and a good coaching staff to get that.”
Rogers is coming off a 48-9 rout of previous unbeaten Springdale in which the Mounties scored on its first four offensive possessions and also put up a pair of defensive scores.
“We’ve got some dudes that are playing pretty good and the coaching staff is working hard,” Harbinson said. “Our kids are playing well right now.”
Rogers’ only league loss this season was a 41-38 decision to Fayetteville that left the Mounties feeling they had left a win on the field.
“I hate to bring it up, because it is irrelevant now, but we just felt like we left the Fayetteville game slip away because we mad a couple of crucial errors in the game,” Harbinson said.“I think from that game we have played about as clean as we can the last couple of weeks to get us back into the position we are now.”
Rogers quarterback Jeff Regan ran for two touchdowns and also threw for a pair in the win over Springdale.
“Jeff Regan is our quarterback and since we’ve got into conference, he has been exceptional,” Harbinson said. “He is a threat to run it and can also beat you with his arm and these first few conference games, he has had some reality good nights.
“I think the big thing with him is that he is just learning to play within the offense. He spreads the ball around, knows where to go with it and is seeing things a lot clearer now than he was earlier in the season. We have just kind of seen him grow up.”
Braxton Lindsey has been a stalwart on defense the past two seasons and has become that on offense this season.
“Everybody knows those guys are who we run the offense through,” Harbinson said. “It’s no secret. But what we have also be pleased with our offensive line. The supporting cast around those guys has gotten a lot better.
“We thought that was going to the case and we were just going to have to continue to improve.”
Rogers’ defense returned five starters from last season’s 8-4 squad.
“It’s kind of cool about our defense because we had some guys coming back and they were in their fourth year in our system now so they really understand it,” Harbinson said. “We also had a guy at every level of the defense coming back.
“We have Nesto Gonzalez, a three-year starter and a really good defensive tackle and he is having a really good season.
“We had an inside backer Corbin Norris coming back and he was having a really good season until he broke his foot in the Fayetteville game. He’s out, but hopefully we will be getting him back later in the year.
“Cam Cunningham is back at corner and is probably going to play at the next level. He is a really good player and Markus Mounce has played three years and played well.
“Zeke Parsons and Christian Ferrier are both playing safety and it has kind of come together back there for us.”
Bentonville started the season 0-3 against a tough non-conference slate, but has since reeled off four consecutive wins, including a 41-10 rout of Fayetteville last Friday night.
“It is the same challenge that you see from them every year,” Harbinson said. “It is just like carbon copies from year to year – they always have a big, physical offensive line, always a good back, the quarterback play is always solid.
“…They have got some really good football players and always do a a great job of mixing things up and keeping you off balance.
“And they will formation you. Our defense is going to be challenged this week to make sure we get lined up, getting our eye discipline good and just fitting gaps and do a great job of stopping the run game.
“I think their offense runs through that and if you can slow this down, it can hope you make them one-dimensional, but they are still good throwing it, too. It will be a challenge.
“Defensively, I just think they are as good as anybody in our league and about the most disciplined team we play. It is hard to get them out of position.”
Photo by John D. James
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