Football Recap: Hope Takes a Loss

Hope extended their losing streak to five on Friday, dropping them down to 1-6. They took a blow against the Lakeside Rams, falling 69-14. While losing is never fun, the Bobcats can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' Arkansas football rankings (they are ranked 117th, while the Rams are ranked 15th).

Trey Hoglund and Brailyn Smith certainly did their best on Friday to avoid the loss. Hoglund rushed for 64 yards, while Smith picked up 38 receiving yards and one score. Smith didn't just play on offense: he also made three total tackles and defended one pass. Speaking of playmakers, who could forget Noah Cheatham, who went all the way with a kickoff return for a touchdown.

Most of the squad's points came courtesy of special teams, who contributed eight in total. The biggest highlight from special teams (and perhaps the team as a whole) came courtesy of Cheatham, who ran a kickoff back for a touchdown.

As for Lakeside, the victory was the fourth in a row for them, bringing their record up to 6-1. That 55 point margin sets a new team best for them this season.

Lakeside's win was the result of several impressive offensive performances. One of the most notable came from Wally Wolcott, who threw for 417 yards and four touchdowns while picking up 15.4 yards per attempt, and also punched in one TD on the ground. The dominant performance also gave Wolcott a new career-high in rushing yards (25). Another player making a difference was Logan Polczynski, who gained 135 total yards and four touchdowns.

Hope wasted no time getting back out on the field and has already played their next contest, a 64-13 defeat against Camden Fairview on the 24th. As for Lakeside, they also didn't take long to hit the field again: they've already played their next game, a 48-8 win against De Queen on the 24th.