Panthers ready for Vilonia

By Demetrice Elmore, Amanda Smallwood and Julie Storing
UCA sportswriting

As the regular season winds down and the state playoffs begin, the Greenbrier Panthers and the Vilonia Eagles take different approaches to the annual Judge’s Cup tonight at Vilonia.

After a disappointing loss to Harrison last week, Greenbrier coach Randy Tribble said this final game would be a big deciding factor in the Panthers’ placement in the playoffs.

“This is a huge game,” Tribble said. “Vilonia is our biggest rival. This game will make a big difference. If we win, we play at home. If we lose, we play on the road. It’s a big game for us, and we have to bounce back.”

Greenbrier’s record fell to 6-3 overall and 4-2 in the 5A-West conference. Greenbrier and Vilonia are tied for third place in their conference. The top four teams will advance to the Class 5A State Playoffs, so even the loser of this game will continue on in the fourth seed.

Vilonia coach Jim Stanley said his team was taking a more relaxed approach to the game.

“We're treating this game as if it is any other normal game,” he said. “It’s less pressure on this game because we are already in the playoffs.”

Vilonia killed the Panthers in last season’s Judges Cup, 47-7.

“Greenbrier is a different group of kids than last year,” Stanley said. “They are a lot more talented, and their juniors and seniors have improved a lot. Our team this year has gotten a lot younger after losing a lot of our seniors.”

Despite taking this easy approach to the game, Stanley said he would still like the team to capture the third seed.

Tribble said that the short week has caused the Panthers to work hard in a short amount of time.

“We’ll try to correct the mistakes we made Friday night against Harrison,” Tribble said. “Once we finalize our plan, we will work really hard. We have a shorter week, and that means we have to work harder.”

Last week, Greenbrier junior Hunter Winston rushed for 140 yards, and sophomore quarterback Neal Burcham completed 14 of 24 passes for 173 yards.

Last season, both Vilonia and Greenbrier failed to make the state playoffs.