By Stan Sadler
RISON - You only have to go back to last year's meeting between Rison and Barton to know what type of team the Wildcats will be facing Friday night on the road.
Just a year ago, Rison held first half leads of 20-0 and 28-6 against Barton. Then, on the first snap of the fourth quarter, an 88-yard pass play for a touchdown suddenly sent the Bears to a 30-28 lead over Rison, before the Wildcats cleared away the cobwebs of three lost fumbles for a 46-30 win, surviving the Bears' 310 yards of passing.
Rison head coach Clay Totty knows the Wildcats will be facing that same type of Barton team when the pair of traditionrich schools get together in Phillips County this week for their 6-3A Conference battle. Kickoff is scheduled for 7 o'clock. Rison is 4-0 in the conference and 7-0 overall, while Barton is 2-2 and 4-4 and looking for a playoff spot.
After losing their first two games of the season, the Bears have rebounded with wins in four of their last six outings, and only a missed conversion on Sept. 23 kept Barton from knocking off Fordyce, with the 'Bugs escaping for a 49-48 victory. Totty even pointed out how the Bears went 'toe-totoe' with Lake Village on Sept. 30 before dropping a 27-14 decision to the Beavers.
'Everyone knows we're not going to out-athlete anyone,' Totty said this week. 'And we're banged up right now. It's going to be a tough game for us against a good team (Barton). Another team that has plenty of athletes and big-play potential. I'm concerned about our team, not only because we're banged up with some injuries, but be‐cause we didn't have the inten‐sity and edge (against Lake Vil‐lage) that we need to have. I keep reminding this group that they've proved they can beat anyone, but they can also lose to anyone. We have to have in‐tensity and an edge about us. Last Friday night, we looked like the 2021 Wildcats. If we re‐vert to that, we won't go very far. We weren't...
To access content, please login or purchase a subscription.