Arkansas High School football

[Jimmy Chitwood]

If you want to talk about a raw athlete getting a raw deal, look no further than running back Tim Lackey (5-10, 195, 4.48) from Arkansas High (Texarkana). He is a perfect example of a talented white kid on a predominantly black team getting screwed over. He was screwed by his coach, his teammates, his "fans," and is now being screwed by college scouts.

I watched this kid play in person and posted about it on another thread earlier in the season:

he was clearly the best athlete on the field, despite being on a team that is 2/3 black and playing against a team that was 90% black. however, he didn't have many chances to shine...

his coach is trying to run a spread offense with a black quarterback that can't throw the ball past the line of scrimmage. well, not and have any idea of where the ball is going. his "quarterback" didn't have much of an idea where the ball was going even when he was handing it off! the offense fumbled the ball four times on qb/rb exchanges. ugh!

the opposing defense knew Lackey's team couldn't throw, and with 4 receivers lined up on every play (3 wide-outs and a standing-up tight end), they had 2 unblocked defenders keying on him the whole game.

the opposing defense just stacked men in the box and went straight man in the secondary... it doesn't take a football genius to know what happened.

it wasn't pretty...

furthermore, most of the black "fans" in the stands "supporting" Lackey's team were full of visceral derision for him throughout the game, regardless of the fact it was the terrible black players on the team that were the cause for their team's lack of success.

Despite his horrid situation, and his not getting nearly enough touches in a messed up offense, Lackey still finished second on the team with 482 rushing yards, 436 receiving yards and 8 touchdowns and was named an All-State performer.

As a junior, he totaled 487 rushing yards, 376 receiving yards, and 17 total touchdowns. You can see highlights from his junior season here.

Lackey didn't receive a single scholarship offer to play at any level.

 

[Riddlewire]

Spencer Keith of Pulaski Academy has accepted a scholarship offer to play QB for Kent State.
Congrats to him and Kent State.

 

[Jimmy Chitwood]

thanks for the info, Riddlewire. and congratulations to Keith.

"strangely" there is still no interest in his two most dangerous weapons...

 

[Jimmy Chitwood]

Jake Bolt safety (6-1, 175, 4.6) led Mountain Home in tackles and interceptions as both a junior and senior. One of the most talked about defensive backs in the state since the beginning of his junior year, Bolt did nothing but fulfill expectations.

He was a 2-time All-State selection and a Vype Arkansas Super Squad honoree.

But despite the media acclaim and on-field dominance, he didn't receive a single scholarship offer. From anyone at any level.

 

[Jimmy Chitwood]

Dax Dupire (5-11, 180, 4.6) quarterback, running back, do-everything-man for Fort Smith Northside.

No player in Arkansas impacted his team more than Dax Dupire this year, whose stats, talent, and heart earned him the Northwest Arkansas Times' Player of the Year award. Florida has Tim Tebow and Northside boasted Dupire, who posted Tebow-like statistics, helping his dark-horse Grizzlies overachieve in 2008 with an 8-4 record and a first-round playoff win.

Dupire completed 63.6 percent of his passes (293 of 461) with 27 touchdown tosses to just 13 picks. He threw for a conference-high 3,603 yards and rushed for a team-high 556 yards and 17 rushing touchdowns. With a minuscule offensive line, Northside coach Darrell Henry altered his offensive philosophy in the off-season to feature Dupire's attributes, which favored the Spread.

"We changed our offense completely and we put it all on Dax's shoulders," Henry said. "It was his job to make the reads and execute the throws. What impressed me was how he handled all that responsibility. He never backed down or got frustrated. He got the system down in the summer and learned it well. To put up the numbers he did having just one year in that system was impressive." Along with being named as the quarterback on the 2008 Times All-7A-West Team, he also earned the 7A-West's Outstanding Back and received an All-State selection as well. "When you're responsible for over 4,000 yards of offense and 44 touchdowns in 12 games, that's pretty hard to do and he had a great year," Henry said. "It's hard to beat that.

Dupire didn't receive a single scholarship at any level of collegiate football.

 

[PhillyBirds]

All great-looking players. Thanks for bringing them to our attention, Jimmy.

That being said, this is all kind of depressing...

 

[Jimmy Chitwood]

All great-looking players. Thanks for bringing them to our attention, Jimmy.

That being said, this is all kind of depressing...

it truly is depressing, PhillyBirds. so i think i'll wrap up adding more players soon. it is starting to get me down.

however, i think this kind of information is vital in proving that there are abundant white talents who routinely get ignored by collegiate programs, often in favor of black players who aren't as good. this, even in a state as small as Arkansas.

this type of evidence is factual, verifiable, and essential in disproving the widely spread, widely believed myth that white athletes are inferior.

as tough as it is to document this information, i feel it is worth the effort. and i wish more CFers would take the time to do the same.

 

[Riddlewire]

From Bentonville:
Erik Ragsdale has accepted a scholarship to play for Harding University (their website lists him as DB).
Chase Baggett received a full academic scholarship to UCA and plans to walk-on there (not sure if D1AA has different rules about that).
From Texarkana:
Tim Lackey plans to walk-on at Harding.

 

[Jimmy Chitwood]

Riddlewire, that these kids have to go that route is just sad. very, very sad.

********************************

Tailback/cornerback Kenneth Golden (5-foot-9, 180, 4.51) played running back for Russellville because they wanted to get the ball in the hands of their most explosive player as often as possible. After watching him play in person, I feel that Golden isn't a true tailback, but he played that position in high school simply because he was easily the most dynamic athlete on the field in most every game he played. In my opinion, he doesn't possess the necessary vision for a collegiate tailback, nor does he have the ability to plant his foot and make a cut that is essential. Rather, he is simply a very fluid, smoother than silk athlete who makes everything look easy, despite playing with a mean streak. I think he is a natural cornerback with tremendous upside. And he can run.

Golden ran a 4.51 in the 40-yard dash at the March 15, 2008 FCA Combine in Little Rock, though Tech coaches reportedly timed him in the high 4.4s.

Golden was named a 7A-Central All-Conference performer and was named the Cyclones Most Outstanding Offensive Player after rushing for 1,023 yards in 2008 and scoring 7 touchdowns for the 9-3 Cyclones that lost in the Class 7A State semifinals to Bentonville in his first year as a starter.

Golden's only scholarship offer came from in-town small college Arkansas Tech, but I guess I should look on the bright side. At least he got a scholarship to play somewhere.

 

[Jimmy Chitwood]

Two running backs play in the same backfield, one black and one white. They go about establishing one of the most dominant rushing offenses in the history of Arkansas high school football while leading their team to the state championship game. I'll let you pick which one is white, which one is black, which one got a scholarship (albeit to a non-Division One school), and which one didn't get a single scholarship offer to play anywhere.

Quinton Lindsey of Fountain Lake High School is a 6-foot, 180-pound running back. On the season, Lindsey was named an All-State, All-Conference and an All-Star honoree and was a candidate for KATV's Landers Award. He led the Cobras to a 13-1 record and a Class 3A State runner-up finish in 2008. Lindsey carried the ball 162 times for 1,558 yards (9.61 yards-per-carry) and scored 23 total touchdowns. In addition, Lindsey caught 7 passes for 120 yards, returned a kickoff 91 yards for a touchdown, and had 5 2-point conversion runs. He had one 200-plus-yards rushing game. Lost 3 fumbles.

Andrew Davis of Fountain Lake High School is a 5-10, 175-pound fullback. On the season, Davis was named an All-State, All-Conference and an All-Star honoree and was a candidate for KATV's Landers Award. He led the Cobras to a 13-1 record and a Class 3A State runner-up finish in 2008. Davis carried the ball 181 times for 1,763 yards (9.74 yards-per-carry) and scored 28 total touchdowns. In addition, Davis caught 4 passes for 67 yards, completed 4-7 passes for 51 yards, and had 5 2-point conversion runs. He had 4 200-plus-yards rushing games. He didn't lose a fumble!

So, can you tell which one is the tremendous talent and which one is the gritty over-achiever with the non-stop motor and blue collar work ethic?

 

[ToughJ.Riggins]

If you want to talk about a raw athlete getting a raw deal, look no further than running back Tim Lackey (5-10, 195, 4.48) from Arkansas High (Texarkana). He is a perfect example of a talented white kid on a predominantly black team getting screwed over. He was screwed by his coach, his teammates, his "fans," and is now being screwed by college scouts.

I watched this kid play in person and posted about it on another thread earlier in the season:

he was clearly the best athlete on the field, despite being on a team that is 2/3 black and playing against a team that was 90% black. however, he didn't have many chances to shine...

his coach is trying to run a spread offense with a black quarterback that can't throw the ball past the line of scrimmage. well, not and have any idea of where the ball is going. his "quarterback" didn't have much of an idea where the ball was going even when he was handing it off! the offense fumbled the ball four times on qb/rb exchanges. ugh!

the opposing defense knew Lackey's team couldn't throw, and with 4 receivers lined up on every play (3 wide-outs and a standing-up tight end), they had 2 unblocked defenders keying on him the whole game.

the opposing defense just stacked men in the box and went straight man in the secondary... it doesn't take a football genius to know what happened.

it wasn't pretty...

furthermore, most of the black "fans" in the stands "supporting" Lackey's team were full of visceral derision for him throughout the game, regardless of the fact it was the terrible black players on the team that were the cause for their team's lack of success.

Despite his horrid situation, and his not getting nearly enough touches in a messed up offense, Lackey still finished second on the team with 482 rushing yards, 436 receiving yards and 8 touchdowns and was named an All-State performer.

As a junior, he totaled 487 rushing yards, 376 receiving yards, and 17 total touchdowns. You can see highlights from his junior season here.

Lackey didn't receive a single scholarship offer to play at any level.

I had heard about this kid in another thread; so I'm going to check out his video. You see black RBs on nearly all white teams in h.s shine all the time. The tide is turning more sour, even in h.s football now. I'm not sure what the coaches deal was, but Lackey deserved far more carries. Maybe the coach didn't want to upset "team chemistry" in the locker room by having a white kid star, at what has been wrongly labeled a black position, on a 2/3s black team. It would be hard for him to gain attention with only solid h.s rushing stats as a white kid; Scout.com and especially Rivals.com and ESPN Scouts INC. aren't going to help him get noticed at all.

 

[ToughJ.Riggins]

>>>Just watched Lackey's video; I wish ESPN would hire me as a RB and WR analyst. Although I don't have much experience; I am still far more creative and accurate than their scouts when reviewing white players; even when I know little.

My analysis from what I know:

Lackey looks like he could contribute to a backfield at a mid-major Div. IA school; maybe in a Kevin Faulk NE type role or a Marlon Lucky type role at Nebraska. That's how Lackey has seemed to be used in high school; as a guy who displayed good pass catching skills, who never received a lot of carries in a spread type offense.

As a DI RB prospect: Lackey has a good burst, good pass catching skills; solid top-end speed, seems like he possesses good vision and has good measurables (4.48 PR in the 40 yard), with monster squat numbers.

Seems like a legit Div. IA prospect, but his change of direction in tight spaces and when going at full gear isn't much better than average for a Div. IA prospects and you'd like to see better considering he didn't get a lot of running work in high school.

Also, wasn't able to see more than a couple tackle breaking runs in the video either; it wasn't long enough.

Of course it's hard to tell when this kid really didn't get enough carries. Strange b/c Lackey was vital to his teams success, but they didn't use him much on the ground and only mostly through the air on short passes and seemed to favor the QB running the ball despite Lackey's obvious physical talents...He needs to put together a longer video of himself for his site with more runs where he cuts back in another direction or breaks tackles.


Now if you read an ESPN review you know it would be something like this; even though they have none for Lackey:

Lackey is a player who has a few attributes you would want to see in a Division IA prospect, but we feel he is more of a lower level player (lie).

Has a burst from behind the line of scrimmage (true), but seems like mostly a one cut and go type player (not the entire picture and every white player is discriminated like this by Luginbill, even when it is truly ridiculous like with McGuffie, Trumpy, Wegher, Burkhead or Gaffney). There just isn't a lot of hip fluidity or change of direction skills in this player (lie; his change of direction would be somewhere in the middle of the pack of Div. IA RB scholarship athletes from what I've seen), but Lackey doesn't hesitate or dance and will quickly head north-south (isn't that what gaining yards is about).

Lackey also might be a little undersized for the DI level when you consider he isn't a burner and lacks the true change of direction skills of a scat-back (lie; he's 5'10 195 lbs. still as a h.s senior; typical Div. IA size; and has a good burst, great vision, makes a good first cut, runs a 4.48-4.55 40 yard and squats a ridiculous 500 lbs.).

Overall this isn't a player to get real excited about when you consider his lack of production (somewhat of a lie when you consider how his team used him), but could be a great Division II or III prospect and we wish him well (lie; you fabricate about him to protect your job and the black athletic supremacy myth).

I nominate Tom Luginbill for Caste Clown of 2008

!

 

[Electric Slide]

Guys I see where everyone is coming from, and looking at the situation of many talented players not getting enough oportunities you could consider it as causing depression. I get the the reason, though I would like to give an alternative view. This makes me realize how incredible it is for the white athletes that do make it against daunting odds. It's kind of like seeing the kids on TV living in trash dumps, it makes you realize that yes there are things that need to improve, but our lives aren't so bad compared to that.

I think it is up to us to not be sad and not let ourselves suffer when there's no reason to. If we do this, it means we are basing our lives on the decisions of others. We need to take charge of our own lives and not let others have the power to control our emotions. I know a lot of people were depressed about Peyton Hillis' injury, but I was just extremely happy even if only for 5 games or so do what we all acknowledge is one of the most difficult feats in all sports on the planet Earth, to be a white man starting as running back in the NFL! On top of that he has the opportunity to do it again next year.

Seeing that truly gave me hope that if there's someone like Hillis, I know there are others out there who not only are extremely talented, but to have the fortitude to persist even though he didn't have many allies in his life to encourage him in his dream of playing RB in the NFL. Remember, teachers and other adult figures tell kids from an early age to not hope to play pro-sports. They tell the odds of making it being so slim to ALL kids, so imagine the thought of a WHITE kid wanting to play in the NFL. It takes a lot of persistence to tell yourself that you will do it for all those years, when others tell you "yeah, right." Remember back when you were in high school and college, people asking you what you wanted to do after HS/college. Imagine what people, even with good intentions think when you say NFL, especially if you're white?

That's why it gives me hope that there's other truly independent thinking guys out there that are willing to do extrordinary things. My question to the guys here is if we run into one of these prospects, what are we going to say to them? Will we say it's too bad because you'll get discriminated against? Are we going to say just have fun playing, but don't expect to play in college or pro? Or are we going to encourage them to do everything possible to make it happen and live their dreams?

We can't say "were just being realistic" because in my book that saying is pure garbage and has no place in society because it has never done any good, because all it does is promote a mediocre version of reality, not an amazing extrordinary version. If Peyton Hillis was "being realistic," he would have never done the incredibly risky and uncertain things it took to get himself in the NFL. He wouldn't have even "wasted" his time thinking about going to the NFL, because a "realist" doesn't do such "pointless" things.

As far as Tim Lackey goes, I understand his difficult situation being in a school and having to be the minority race 9 hours a day at school and practice. While rare, I have seen white football and basketball players before that were on majority black teams that were highly supported by the team, coaches, and fans. Most of them where wiggerish, but some where not.

My point is that as much as I would love ideal circumstances for these players, the fact is that life is full of unfavorable situations, and being a white football player is just another one of those. This things are overcome every day when you look at the success stories of Hillis, Hester, and many other white football players at all levels. What I think we should do is figure out ways we can promote these players and educate them on what they need to do to replicate the success of other players in similar situations. That's all it takes.

Anyway sorry for the long post, but I hope you all thought it was inspiring and enjoyed it. I know it's easy to get down, but remember it was only people who looked up who were able to succeed. Stay positive because that's the only way we can strategize to make this situation better!

 

[Jimmy Chitwood]

does it surprise anyone here that the two fastest verifiable 40 times for football players in Arkansas' senior class belong to white athletes? probably not.

however, it probably also isn't a surprise that neither of them are going to play college football. anywhere.

Cornerback/running back Jacob Grigg, Harrison (5-10, 185, 4.41) - at the March 1, 2008 Combine in Fayetteville, AR, measured out with a 4.41 40, 36 inch vertical, 4.00 shuttle. Grigg also ran at the Dallas NIKE Combine on March 14, where his shuttle time was the fastest of all athletes in attendance, and his 40 time was 8th out of the 800 athletes in attendance.

This fall, he totaled 145 carries for 1,241 yards and 13 touchdowns and 12 receptions for 124 yards and 1 touchdown. He was named an All-State performer. But despite his elite measurables, Grigg's only scholarship offer came from Army (right after his combine performance in Dallas). Grigg turned it down, because he felt he was good enough to go to a more high-profile program.

Not surprisingly to anyone here, no such offer ever materialized.

In a bizarre, and devastating turn of events, Grigg tore up his shoulder at some point this season and will never play football again. However no one, not even his parents or coaches, knew about it until after the season had ended (which goes to show the incredible pain tolerance the kid has). Yet, still no other schools had offered him. Unfortunately, this tremendous talent will never be able to prove his doubters wrong now.

Hot Springs Lakeside wide receiver/cornerback Ben Crumpton (5-10, some say 5-11, 177, 4.41) recorded the fourth-fastest 40-yard dash, 4.47 seconds at the March 15, 2008 FCA Combine in Little Rock, AR, despite slipping on his start. He had the best times in the pro-shuttle and L-drill, with a 3.95 and 7.09, respectively. (A reminder: a pro shuttle time of less than 4.0 is exceptional.) He also recorded a 31 1 / 2-inch vertical leap, and was named Combine MVP.

He ran a 4.41 in the 40 with a vertical of 37 inches, while replicating his 3.95 in the pro shuttle, at the Max Emfinger All-American Combine.

Crumpton came into the combine somewhat unheralded because he only played in about 4 1/2 games last year (junior season) due to injury. Though his playing time was limited, Crumpton used his speed and athleticism to catch 33 passes for 573 yards and 8 touchdowns as a junior.

Crumpton totaled 55 catches for 1,067 yards and 18 touchdowns in just 8 games as a senior, accounting for more than half of his team's receiving yards and more than two-thirds of the receiving touchdowns. He averaged 133.4 yards-per-game and was second in the state in yards-per-catch. As good as Crumpton was at wide receiver, he was even better at cornerback where he literally took away half of the field in the passing game. His head coach couldn't recall exactly how many completions he gave up, but he said it wasn't many. He was named an All-State performer.

Despite his elite physical measurables and on-field production, Crumpton was not offered a single scholarship from any school at any level.

 

[Jimmy Chitwood]

i'm going out to watch a scrimmage tonight between two of the traditional powers in Arkansas football: Shiloh Christian and Fayetteville.

there are a lot of talented White players who should be making an impact. Shiloh Christian, by the way, is ranked as the top overall team in Arkansas and in many polls is in the National Top 25. this despite being all-White except for their mulatto starting quarterback.

 

[Europe]

It's amazing how these white athletes don't get scholarships. In '77 when ND won the national title I believe they had an all white receiving corp.-- Kris Haines, Pete Holohan, and ken Mcafee. So, there are no good white receivers now?

 

[Jimmy Chitwood]

i'll keep this recap brief, because i'm tired ...

Shiloh Christian's Garrett Harper was the best player on the field tonight. every time he touched the ball, it was a big play. we've mentioned him before, and he's the real deal. he's a junior now, and if scouts really cared about talent he'd already have at least a dozen scholarship offers. he has zero, at the moment.

defensive lineman Samuel Harvill, he of the age group world record bench press and all the Combine MVPs, is still a monster. he's a junior, as well. and a dominant force in the middle. he had 3 tackles for loss in the first quarter alone. he has been offered by UNLV andSMU.

o-lineman Travis Bodenstein is also a very gifted big man. he has already picked upan offer from Tulsa.

"oddly," the black (possibly mulatto)quarterback has already picked up numerous Division-I offers, including Arkansas and Auburn. thisdespite his being at best the Saints 4th-best player.

for Fayetteville, their three best skill guys are both White: quarterback Brandon Allen (a junior), wideout/running back Michael Heintzman (a senior), and a cornerback whose name/year i don't know as of yet. he looked very good, though.

Allen is a tall, long quarterback, but the kid can run. and he makes people look silly in the open field! it's unusual seeing such a lanky kid making people miss so easily, much like a Matt Jones or a Vince Young.

Heintzman was keyed on by the entire secondary of Shiloh, and they dared Fayetteville's other receivers to make enough plays to stay competitive. none of them could, and the strategy worked.

the cornerback i mentioned was awesome. he took away his half of the field all night long. he was only thrown at one time, and he nearly came up with the pick before the ball fell incomplete.

ina similar scenario to whati've seen very often in this state, the only black defender on Fayetteville's defense was the other corner. and he was picked on mercilessly!

he was simply awful. Fayetteville rotated another White guy in with the black corner, but when the black dude would come back in ... it was like Shiloh's eyes lit up.

blackie gave up three touchdown passes in the first half before Shiloh took out their starters with 8 minutes left in the second quarter.

i almost felt sorry for the kid.

 

[Riddlewire]

The Arkansas media is under the impression that Frazier won this game single-handedly (nevermind that it was just a scrimmage). It's going to be another "Basil Shabazz" type of year in the Arkansas high school football press. We won't be able to escape Frazier's name.
Here's some footage from the game.
clipEdited by: Riddlewire

 

[Jimmy Chitwood]

in the above Shiloh Christian-Fayettevill game, to illustrate the caste system's fascination with black affletes over more deserving White ones, here are the stats of the black Kiehl Frazier and the White Garrett Harper:

Frazier: 4 carries for63 yards and 1 touchdown (51 yards came on the touchdown run), and 8 of 10 passing for 94 yards and 2 touchdowns.
Harper: 141 yards rushing on (i think) 8 carries and 2 (or was it 3?) touchdowns (including a 71-yarder), and he also accounted for a big portion of the receiving yardage and caught at least one of the touchdown passes.

i apologize for not being exact on Harper's stats, but the news stories didn't care enough about his performance to write all his numbers down ... despite him being the best athlete and best performance on the field ... and i had to go from memory on some of them.

also, Shiloh Christian is playing Evangel Christian on Fox Sports Southwest, Thursday night at 7p.m. Evangel is nationally ranked, and they are the last team to beat Shiloh ... two years ago, and it was a butt whipping.

 

[Colonel_Reb]

I'd like to see that Evangel-Shiloh game, although Evangel has gotten a lot blacker since I used to go watch them play in the mid-90s.

 

[Riddlewire]

Shiloh did well on their first defensive series against Evangel. Although there was a dropped pass and a bobbled pass that were both in open space and could've gone for big yardage. Shiloh is going to have to be willing to spread out on D or Evangel will rape them in the passing game.

Update
Shiloh scores easily on their first possession. 7-0.

Observation: Evangel's DLine is huge. Much bigger than Shiloh's OLine. But Evangel can't tackle.

Update #2
Evangel drives down quickly and stalls out for a FG. 7-3.
Shiloh goes four and out on their next possession.

BTW, if you want to see my hometown team play (just out of curiosity), the game is streaming live on internet here http://arkansasmatters.com/
I'll be cheering for the opposing team. It's pretty much a black v white affair. Both towns are mostly white, but my town prefers to use a mostly black football team. Embarrassing.
Edited by: Riddlewire

 

[mrjohnnynofear]

It's on Fox Sports Southwest also.

 

[Riddlewire]

I'd say Frazier has been exposed in this game.
He's a good high school quarterback, but definitely not D1A material. He plays for a fantastic team that makes him look good. He floats his passes. He has a slow throwing motion. And he's nowhere near the "athletic freak" that he's been hyped to be. His first steps are slow and clumsy. His team easily dominates their usual 4A competition, leaving him plenty of room to run. But when he is required to make something happen with his own feet, the play is usually a loss.
He's going to make some coach very upset in college.

 

[Riddlewire]

Shiloh takes a 37-36 lead with 18 seconds left in the game.
Evangel returns the kickoff to the Shiloh 40. A final play gets them down to the 4yd line, but time runs out. Shiloh wins.

Shiloh's center really let his team down tonight. Lots of bad snaps that resulted in busted plays and losses. That's not a skill or physical weakness, though. They'll get that fixed and win another state championship this year. There's really no team in Arkansas that can slow them down.

 

[Colonel_Reb]

I bet that Shiloh game was something to see, Riddlewire! BTW, who won the game between the black and white teams?