By FRED CONLEY
T-H Sports Editor
The Forrest City Mustangs are just one weekend away from seeing their first real action.
Well, real action of a controlled nature, you might say.
The Mustangs will wrap up their second full week of summer drills today with a light workout as they put the final touches on their game plan for Monday's scrimmage game against West Helena.
The scrimmage begins at 6 p.m. at Sam Smith Stadium.
"We're still going hard and we're not going to let," said Forrest City Coach Donnie Willis. "We have a few kids banged up and bruised and we're letting them heal a little bit, but on Monday we want to see what everyone is capable of doing once we step onto the playing field. I think the kids are ready to bang heads with somebody else."
Willis said he and his coaching staff will keep things simple and basic during the scrimmage. No new wrinkles, At least for now. Not with Osceola looming on the horizon and possibly Osceola coaches in the stands.
"We think we have a good game plan for Osceola and we don't want to show them anymore than we need to at this point," Willis said. "We will try to play everybody and especially the junior varsity, because we think we have some sophomores who can help us this year."
The Mustangs officially open the season on Friday, Aug. 31 when they host Osceola at Sam Smith. Osceola replaces Wynne, who opted to play Saturday, Sept. 1 in the Hooten's Alltel Kick Off Classic at Little Rock Central.
Willis said Osceola may become a permanent nonconference fixture on the Mustangs' schedule.
By FRED CONLEY
T-H Sports Editor
Forrest City will begin its 2001 seventh-grade football program next week.
The program will be coached "by committee" this year, according to Athletic Director Bill Baxter.
"We are struggling with the seventh-grade program right now, because we don't have anybody strictly assigned to the program which is what we need," Baxter said. "It's not that the administration is unwilling to assign a coach to the program...it's just that we didn't have any teaching positions open that would allow us to put a coach or coaches there."
Baxter said the fix for this problem, at least this year, will be to use junior high and senior high coaches to oversee the program.
Last year Michael Work and Reggie Murphy worked closely with the program, which draws close to 100 kids each year. The program is divided into three teams and each team plays their own schedule.
This year, that will be a little different as well.
"We will try to get all of the coaches that we can over at Lincoln for the morning practices," Baxter said. "The teams will play a modified schedule...against some other seventh-grade teams close by and against each other in some intramural match ups."
The seventh-graders will start practice on the first day of school Monday, Aug. 20, and must have physicals before they will be allowed to participate.
"We are not pleased with what we have done with the program so far and we need to get it lined out," Baxter added. "With the number of kids taking part in the seventh-grade program, our ultimate future goal is to keep them in the program and hopefully get at least 50 kids on each of the junior high (eighth and ninth-grade) teams."
Baxter said he would like to have about five or six coaches working with the seventh graders this year.
The Forrest City Lady Mustang volleyball team will play an abbreviated schedule this season, along the lines of a junior varsity schedule.
Amber Main, who coaches at Calvary Christian School last year, will coach the volleyball team which include junior high girls.
The program has been on the shelf for three years and is being resurrected this year.
"I think you will see the volleyball program take hold in a short time," Baxter said.
Forrest City is also starting a cross country program this year for boys and girls.
The cross country team will be under the direction of Lewis Etheridge.
The team will host a couple of meets at Village Creek State Park.
"I think cross country will be a great addition to the Forrest City athletic program," Baxter said.
Forrest City will compete in Class AAAAA which includes AAAAA-East schools Cabot, Jonesboro, LR Mills, Jacksonville and West Memphis.
Hughes High School will field a girls' softball team for the first time this season.
Bert Greenwell, who returns to Hughes this year after spending last year away from the coaching ranks, will be the head coach. Greenwell said he has not decided just yet if the team will play slow pitch or fast pitch.
Greenwell said the team will not play in a conference and will play an abbreviated schedule.
Registration is under way for the upcoming Forrest City Recreation Department youth soccer and flag football fall programs and the adult fall softball league.
Boys and girls, ages four through 14 may sign up to participate in the youth soccer league, while boys, ages 6-12 may register for the upcoming flag football league.
The flag football league will divide into age divisions this year if enough players register to make it possible.
Kenneth Taylor, the city's athletic director, said he has already received some phone calls asking if six-year-olds could participate in the flag football league. Last year, the minimum age was seven.
The age groupings for the upcoming season will be 6-7, 8-9 and 10-12. Each age group will play against those teams in their age group.
Registration fees are $20 each for players who live inside the Forrest City city limits and $25 each for those living outside the city limits.
For more information contact Taylor at (870) 633-3667.
The soccer season is expected to get under way during the second week in September.