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Shiloh
Christian Has Made Believers
It was a balmy December afternoon in the Orange Bowl. The South Florida coliseum had been the site of many pitched gridiron battles in the facility's fledgling history. The Orange Bowl had served as the venue for arguably the greatest upset in modern sports. Joe Namath's prophecy came to pass as his New York Jets overcame apparent overwhelming odds to defeat the heavily favored Baltimore Colts in Super Bowl III. The victory precipitated the fusion of the American and National Football Leagues, and created the alignment that fans are currently familiar with. Six years later, the stadium -- surrounded by palm trees and filled to capacity with sun-drenched Floridians -- would be the setting for the 1974 divisional playoff battle between Miami Dolphins and the Oakland Raiders. Don Shula, the erstwhile coach of Baltimore had relocated to the tip of the peninusula shortly after the embarrassing debacle of Super Bowl III. Before Shula's arrival, the most compelling aspect of a Fins game was watching "Flipper" the dolphin performing parabolic jumps inside a huge aquatic tank at the south end zone of the stadium. In three years Shula had turned a hapless franchise into the most respected team in the league. The Dolphins entered the contest as the two-time-defending World Champions. A run that included an unblemished 17-0 1972 season, a feat that has yet to be equaled. Their adversaries were the silver and black attack of the Oakland Raiders. A cross section of characters and castoffs who became the most winning team of the 1970s, and who were the most prevalent and prominent subscribers to the guts and glory mentality that defined professional football in that decade. Down by less than a touchdown, with seconds remaining in the game Oakland looked its fate in the eyes and gave it the wide-brimmed smile that only a pirate could muster. Facing fourth and goal, Kenny Stabler, dubbed the snake affectionately by teammates, surveyed the Dolphin end zone frantically as the Miami rush began to collapse the crumbling pass pocket of Oakland. Just as the Stabler jettisoned the pocket, defensive end Manny Fernandez made a desperate lunge that put him in position to make a shoestring tackle. The Snake conjured up an impromptu flip of his wrist that allowed the ball to slither through a triumvirate of Miami defenders, and into the anxious arms of Raider halfback Clarence Davis. This impossible dream of a play gave Oakland a 28-26 victory and thwarted a third consecutive World Championship for Miami. --- The setting for the first overtime in a state final since 1985 was War Memorial Stadium, a crumbling edifice shrouded by a sizable plot of land masquerading as a golf course in the heart of Little Rock, Ark. It may be dabbling in hyperbole to say the structure is crumbling; nevertheless, its lack of amenities have prevented it from being a permanent site for Razorback football games. Despite the ire that the facility has attracted from many, it's still the place where high school teams dream of culminating their season. The idea of ending the season at War Memorial Stadium is what boys and coaches use to placate their minds during the grueling drills and conditioning of summer two-a-day practices. Trailing by one point in overtime after a one-yard quarterback keeper for a touchdown, Rison coach Clay Totty told his father, there beside him, that he thought it would be an apt time to roll the dice. "We were going for two points all the way," Totty said. "I wasn't watching. I went over to my daddy, you know. Me and my Dad, we've been underdogs all our life. Nobody ever gave us a dog's chance. I told him Friday, I said, 'Daddy, we may not ever get to come back up here. If we get the opportunity, we're going for it, we're going for the win.'" Shiloh Christian Coach Gus Malzahn wasn't averse to taking chances either. His career had been characterized by bucking the odds. The spread offense had elicited scoffs when it was first implemented. Now it was the most innovative and progressive offense in the state. He also gambled when he accepted his first head-coaching job in Hughes, Ark., a desolate delta town mired in the poverty that afflicts too many towns strewn along the Mississippi. "Nobody else wanted the job," Malzahn said. "It wasn't a great place to live, but it was a real good place to learn. We got better every year, and went to the state finals in '94. We're beat by Lonoke by four points. We got down inside the five and couldn't score in the last minute of the game; it was pretty tough." In
the waning hours of Saturday Dec. 9, Shiloh would have to fend
off a two-point conversion, which they had done in their 2000
season debut, to preserve a 44-game unbeaten streak, and capture
their third consecutive AA State championship. In that game,
five months earlier, the Saints had crushed a two-point conversion
in the final minutes by a hungry Osceola that would have given
them a victory in the inaugural Alltel/Hootens.com Kickoff Classic
held at Estes Stadium on the Campus of UCA. The opportunistic
stand kept intact a then 31-game winning streak, and added to
the feeling of invincibility that permeated the team during
the 2000 season. The conversion attempt by Rison began inauspiciously. Third-string quarterback Dreyon Grey, inserted in this pressure packed moment for his speed, bobbled the ball as he took his first steps away from the line of scrimmage. "I wasn't watching," Totty said. "I told my daddy to tell me if we got it." Not having the benefit of taking a live snap all year, Grey regained control of the ball as he sprinted down the line. With "all-everything" Saint Rhett Lashlee hanging on, Grey shoveled a pass to Rogeric Smith for the win and the AA State title. Weeks after the fact, Smith had yet to relinquish the ball that eradicated the dreams of so many Saints faithful. "It's a special play we put in six or seven weeks ago," Totty said. "We put in a different quarterback (Dreyon Grey) because he has a little more speed and can make something happen." It was a full house backfield arranged in a T-formation. The same offense that George Halas had made famous in '30s and '40s when he was the rough and tumble coach of the Chicago Bears. A team so fierce they were called, "Monsters of the Midway" by the Chicago press. "That's a tough way to lose," Malzahn said. "When we look back on it, it's probably the toughest way to the lose. The state championship game on a 2-point conversion for the last play of the game." The most notorious streak-busters in Arkansas struck again. A decade earlier they had ended a 63-game winning streak authored by Barton High School in the same stadium under the same glare of a state championship game. All season long Shemar Bracey had been the engine that drove the offense of the Rison Wildcats. A trend that continued in the championship game; his 34 carries for 184 yards and three touchdowns not only provided points, but also enabled the wildcats to control the ball and keep the high-octane offense of Shiloh on the sideline. The most logical tactic to employ if you had the toughness and speed to run against a quick reactive front seven like the Saints had. The stunning victory prompted a banner headline with end of the world type in the Arkansas Democrat Gazette. A streak that took almost three years to compile was wiped out in an instant by a gadget play executed by two young men whom probably won't realize the implications of their actions until they are old and gray. This was the first time any of the Shiloh players had experienced a loss as a Saint. "We had a great run," Malzahn said. "Our seniors are still champions. We won a lot of games with them leading us. We got used to winning, but I told our players that you learn a lot about yourself when you lose." Like
the Dolphins, almost 26 years to the day earlier, the Saints
hopes for a three-peat were dashed by a team with a reputation
for excellence. With the upset, Totty, in his third year as
head coach, joined a litany of great field marshals, which have
led Rison to a state title. The Wildcats have won six state
titles under Benny Arnold (1950), James Wright (1970), Horace
Jennings (1982), Mark Whatley (1990-91) and Jimmy "Red"
Parker (1995). "Shiloh didn't play well, and Rison played lights outs," said Chris Hooten, of Hooten publishing. "Instead of two or three great athletes, Rison had five or six, including some 4.4 guys. It wasn't handed to them; they had to make plays. I don't think the loss had anything to do with X's or O's. It comes down to how many big games can you play, and Shiloh just ran out of gas." Shiloh had run the gauntlet all year with their streak unblemished. They survived by one point over Osceola in the season opener, and managed a tie with 5A power Springfield. They outlasted a scrappy Charleston team twice; even conjuring up what local scribes mused as divine intervention when J.D. Weathers kicked a 42-yard field goal that caromed off the crossbar for a last second victory. Even last season in the quarterfinals, they managed to fire a few more bullets than Junction City in a 70-64 win. But at last their luck ran out, amidst a frenzied crowd that made up for the lack of numbers with their unbridled enthusiasm. --- When asked in an October interview if the season would be a disappointment if the Saints didn't win a state championship, Coach Malzahn responded, "Yeah, I think so. It would be to our kids and our fans, and you know that's tough, but that goes along with it. Really, I wouldn't want our kids to think anything but that." That kind of response could make the outside observer think that the Saints are an institution that exists solely for the purpose of football. A school with blinders on, disregarding anything ancillary that would intervene with their run of destiny. The team and individual accomplishments that Shiloh has garnered could corroborate that assumption. Junior quarterback Rhett Lashlee has thrown for 8,836 yards and 115 touchdowns in the past two seasons. Those kind of prolific numbers transcend leagues. His 64 touchdowns tosses in 1999 and 51 in 2000 make Dan Marino's NFL record of 48 in 1984 look pedestrian. What makes Lashlee even more impressive is the litany of other duties he performs. He not only is a signal caller for an unbelievably potent offense, but also punts, returns punts and during the playoffs became the premier cover man for Shiloh. No quarterback has seen that much action since Slingin' Sammy Baugh performed work worthy of a yeoman for Texas Christian University in the mid-'30s. Lashlee's brilliant performance in the quarterfinals last year against Junction City, where he threw for almost 700 yards, warranted attention in Sports Illustrated. Some high school teams don't throw for 700 yards all season. "Rhett Lashlee has as much God-given ability as a high school quarterback that I've ever seen," Malzahn said. "He's good within a system, but he has the ability to make a play on his own, to scramble out of the pocket and throw the ball back across the field 60 yards and hit a guy in stride. He's got it." Before Lashlee was throwing the ball all over Northwest Arkansas, Josh Floyd was directing Saints to distinction. In 1997 Shiloh was recognized nationally for amassing more yards than any other high school in the country. With him as triggerman, the offense became a high speed conduit that dispatched balls to a myriad of receivers. They set a state record for touchdown receptions in a single year. His favorite target was Shane Williams who set state records for receiving yards and touchdowns in a single season. Williams along with counterpart Cole McNair received scholarships to Baylor and Tulsa University respectively. Floyd walked on at Oklahoma State, but is currently a scholarship player at Quachita Baptist University. "Josh Floyd was just gifted naturally," Malzahn said. "He's the best I've ever seen within a system. The timing part, the decision making and we just tried to improve his skills a little bit." These staggering statistics have put the Saints on a national stage. Their ability to move the ball up and down the field at will, as if they were playing catch in the back yard, makes them one of the state's most highly recognized teams. If the media and casual fans are awestruck by the robust numbers Shiloh has compiled, the Saints themselves are certainly not. "We're not here for stats," Malzahn said. "We don't get caught up in that, at least our kids don't talk about. If they do try to get individual, we'll correct that. We've been real fortunate to have team players. We get a lot of attention for whatever reason. Our guys have handled it real well. We don't have any jealousy, it's a team deal." --- Despite the assumption that Shiloh Christian is merely a football factory, they are teaching the three R's. The school is accredited by the nonpublic schools association and the Association of Christian Schools International. While their curriculum may differ from those of public schools, it is hard to argue with success. According to the school web site, 99 percent of their students have gone to college. That statistic is buoyed by the fact that 87 percent of graduates last year were offered academic scholarships. The ACT scores of students at Shiloh Christian rank in the top 12 percent nationally, and in the top 8 percent of the state. "The private schools tend to focus on quality education and Christian philosophy," said Stacey Williams, executive director of the Arkansas Nonpublic Accrediting Association and who is also elementary principal for Shiloh Christian. "The philosophy, the mission statement, and the objectives of the school drive everything the school does." Everything the school does from athletics to academics is predicated on this mission statement that was conceived in 1976 when the school first opened its doors. Their mission is to first provide an academically Christian education, which emphasizes the importance of faith in God and His revealed Word. The school also believes that it is its responsibility to nurture the growth of students, not only in academic, social and physical parameters, but in the spiritual realm as well. The final mission is to produce individuals who are capable of being both productive members of society and contributing members of the Body of the Christ. "The commitment and excellence it takes to succeed in the classroom and athletics aren't mutually exclusive," said Glenn Holzman, superintendent of Shiloh Christian School. "The same success that our football team has had can be seen in our students achievements in the classroom." However, it doesn't come cheap to bask in the warm waters of this kind of spiritual and academic enlightenment. The average cost of tuition is $3,800, roughly the same amount it would cost someone to attend the University of Arkansas for a year as a full-time student taking 15 credit hours per semester. Some may think that this somewhat exorbitant cost for secondary education would be a prohibitive factor in increasing enrollment at Shiloh Christian and other private schools. Four years ago enrollment at Shiloh Christian was 635. A head count last year for the kindergarten through 12th -grade school system was 797, making it by far the biggest private school in the two-county area. Statewide, the number of students taught in schools affiliated with the nonpublic schools association rose from roughly 18,000 about five years ago to 19,686 in the fall of 1999, that compares with the 447,352 children in kindergarten through 12th grade in the public schools throughout the state. Seven private or parochial schools in Washington and Benton counties are affiliated with the Arkansas Nonpublic Accrediting Association. Those schools enrolled 2,120 children last year, compared with the nearly 50,000 enrolled in public schools. The exodus to private education in Northwest Arkansas isn't because the alternative is lacking. Springdale High School not only has an accomplished football team, but is one the bellwether schools academically in Arkansas. Their excellence is reflected in the investment they have made in their personnel. Springdale schools pay their teachers an average of $39,818, the highest in the state. Rogers is also ranked high; they pay their teachers an average of $36,669, the 7th highest rating in the state. In fact the average salary for schoolteachers in the four largest districts in Washington and Benton counties was higher than the state average, according to recent statistics gathered by the Arkansas Department of Education. Springdale public schools offer the best pay to the widest range of teachers. They offer the highest starting salary for a teacher with the least amount of experience and the lowest level of education, a bachelor's degree. A base starting salary for a teacher at Springdale is $30,070, the best in the state. The investments that officials at Springdale have chosen to make in the faculty have paid dividends in the form of student success. In the 1998-99 school year, Springdale students' scores on the ACT ranked in the top 20 percent nationally. They have also garnered 10 State Blue Ribbon awards and five national Blue Ribbon Awards. These awards signify academic success that exceeds national and state averages. Where Shiloh Christian does have an advantage, is in teacher to student ratio. The high school averages one teacher for every 10 students. A luxury that can't be found at Springdale, one the largest high schools in the state. It has a student teacher ration of 18-to-1, according to the registrar office of the school. --- Off the main drag in Springdale, a collection of buildings rises sharply from the rolling landscape that lies parallel and perpendicular to Johnson Road. Inside the perimeter of these buildings, rests the Field of Champions, the stage for the most compelling high school football action in the state. Just a Rhett Lashlee deep ball away, is the command center where the daring sorties that are a staple of the Saints' offense are conceived. Resting across the parking lot from the Field of Champions, a clumsy garage door in the middle of school's main building serves as the entrance. Visitors' eyes are immediately drawn to a huge mauve banner, declaring the Saints as the most prolific offense in the country for 1997. Strewn throughout the locker room is the debris of a high school football team. Empty soda cans and candy wrappers detract from the war room quality that the coaches want the room to project. Beyond a class partition are the coaches' offices. Replete with their own locker room and big screen television, the area provides a comfortable atmosphere for coaches to burn the midnight oil. Sitting in recliners and couches, are Coach Malzahn's lieutenants and sergeants. Their attire doesn't resemble that of typical coaches. Polo Shirts adorned with rain pullovers are complimented by neatly pressed khakis. A garb that is more suited for launching a ball off the first tee at Pinnacle Golf Course than getting down in the mud and leading young men to a collective goal. Resting proudly on top of the television is Hootens/Alltel.com championship trophy, garnered for the Saints defeat of Osceola in the season opener. Emerging from his office is the general. Coach Malzahn uses the modest space, which lies adjacent to the main office, to delegate and carry out his numerous administrative chores as athletic director. Malzahn's attire and work area reflect his organized and careful approach that is so much a part of Shiloh Christians' success. A pristine, long sleeve collared shirt is tucked neatly into carefully pressed khakis, a look that bucks the stereotype of shabbily dressed coaches. He is a tall man who exudes confidence, his closely set eyes gleam with intensity through oval-shaped glasses that give him a professorial aura. His desk is no exception; the blotter has been centered equidistant from all four sides. A boyish, soft face doesn't suggest that he could be the inexorable taskmaster who has driven the Saints to state and national prominence. The spread offense is definitely on the vanguard of coaching philosophy. While some of its critics view the system as being slightly more to the left than the libertarian party, it's still a dynamic, frenetic offense that is aesthetically pleasing for fans. The Saints coming to town could be compared to Barnum and Bailey erecting a big top on the outskirts of town. They're the number one draw in high school football, whose supporters aren't averse to making eight-hour round trips to back their boys. Fans are easily spotted on the interstate; their Saint flags protrude proudly from car doors, and their windows are covered with encouraging platitudes written in shoe polish. Curious spectators who have no affiliation to the team, but are looking for excitement further buoy crowd numbers at Saints' games. When the Saints made the inaugural cross town pilgrimage to play Springdale, more than 8,000 attended. At Charleston during the state semifinal game, spectators were spilling 10 deep into both end zones and sidelines. What are they coming to see? For many the game is merely a social event. An opportunity to spin yarns with old friends and waste a Friday night in the great Arkansas outdoors, rather than in front of the television. However, for many football aficionados it is a sensory overload. They can watch football all weekend on television, and won't see a team that employs as wide open an attack as the Saints do. The Saints disorient defenses by spreading the field out with four and five wide receivers, in an attempt to utilize all 5,300 square yards. Not only is the defense spread out, but they are further vexed by the machine gun pace of the Saint's quick strike no huddle offense. The spread offense enables Shiloh to dictate the style of play and pace to the defense instead of the other way around. As defenses have evolved, they have forced conservative, ball control offenses to read and react to them. Outdated option, single wing, veer and power I attack have been slowed down by defenses crowding the line of scrimmage eight and nine deep daring quarterbacks to throw. Opposing defenses are praying that the Saints don't throw. Shiloh typically sees junk defenses that are created for the ad hoc purpose of slowing down such a frenetic attack. The timing and precision that offense commands is triggered by unheralded center Ryan Blackwell. With a lithe 6-3 195 pound frame, he breaks the physical mold for the typical center. The wide-open attack of Shiloh requires Blackwell to deliver the ball almost exclusively from the shotgun formation. The success of the offense hinges on Blackwell delivering the ball accurately and on time to Lashlee. His counterparts were also integral in the success of the Saints. Guards Dustin Sarver and Grant Nickell along with tackles Dru Samuelson, Nick Mcleod, Marc Henline and Aaron Jackson held defenders at bay, and allowed Lashlee to survey the field calmly. Their exceptional level of play inspired Lashlee to comment: "I've said all year long, that they are the best offensive line in the state." With the line providing Lashlee with ample time, the Saints were able to unleash the full compliment of their game plan. A defense that is spread from sideline to sideline makes the middle of the field the soft underbelly, and split ends John Friesen and Drew Tucker attacked it like two ravenous hyenas . When the defense was tired of eating intermediate gains, they would move their safeties up in an effort to shut down the crossing game of the Saints. Because the safeties were neglecting their deep coverage responsibilities, it left their corners susceptible to one-on-one coverage. This allowed flankers James Schisler and Brad Reed to get over the top of defenses and make big plays all season long. Tight ends Brad Godwin and Brent Morgan, who lead the team with 74 receptions and more than 1,000 yards receiving, were often able to slip unfettered into the secondary. If they were covered, it was often a gross mismatch. More than any other position, the tight end or wingback reaped the benefits of the Saints wide-open attack. Many of their second unit wide receivers and tight ends doubled as standouts at defensive end, linebacker and defensive back. The most heralded iron man, had to be David Meyer. He not only led the team in rushing with 596 yards on a paltry 96 carries, but also led the team in tackles with 105. Directing this carefully scripted choreography was Lashlee, an estimable young man with poise beyond his years. His precocity was matched only by his toughness. Countless times, he displayed the courage to stand and deliver in a collapsing pocket. Lashlee, who is only a junior, has fused raw ability with a fierce desire to be the best quarterback he can. While most kids are working part time so they can earn spending money, Lashlee is immersed in the Saints' playbook, a rare level of professionalism at the high school ranks. "This team is pretty unstoppable," said Andy Jensen, a sports writer for the Morning News of Springdale. "They seem to do everything well. I can't remember a high school kid ever kicking a 42-yard field goal, but their kicker did." Jensen was alluding to J.D. Weathers' game-winning kick that kept the Saints unbeaten streak alive. The sparingly used kicker shook off an earlier missed extra point to hit the field goal of the year in Arkansas football. Trailing 7-6 he booted a 42-yard attempt that bounced off the crossbar and split the uprights. "I hit a little high on the ball," Weathers said. "It was just enough to get there, and that was all I needed." This season more than any other, the defense stepped out of the long shadow cast by the offense. They routinely shut teams out, and returned the ball quickly to their explosive offense. "They've just got a great defense", said John Karnes, Greenland head coach. "You can't throw on their secondary, and their line just keeps coming at you." Shiloh Christian's depth allowed them to rotate two units on a five-man front. Defensive end Brent Morgan, arguably the state's premier speed rusher, along with Wesley Murphy, was able to apply over-the-top pressure all season. If an opposing quarterback wished to step up in the pocket to get underneath the rush, tackles Grant Nickell, Marc Henline, Scotty Shepard and Chris Hill were waiting. With such an explosive array of interchangeable parts, many teams didn't stand a chance. Instead of rubbing salt in their wounds, the Saints implemented an altruistic game plan that saw them shut the attack down once a comfortable lead had been achieved. In the second half of many games, reserves flooded in from the sideline, and the spread offense was used as the conduit for an ultra conservative running attack. Coach Malzahn said he adheres to this policy because he never wants to humiliate the other team. He also added that he wouldn't want another team to run the score up on him, and didn't think it meshed with the school or his Christian ideology. --- Being lavished with superlatives and attention hasn't gone to anybody's head on the team. It is remarkable how invariably every player responds to the attention in a self-effacing nature. On its face, this team doesn't appear to have any egos. The sum of the whole is greater than the parts is the attitude that these young men try to project. Every player comports himself as is if he were on his best behavior. Every interview with the press ended with players thanking the lord for giving them strength to win and persevere. Because the Saints have such a disparate offensive philosophy, it makes planning for them in one week almost impossible. Nonetheless, there have been two teams that have poured sugar in the gas tank of their high-octane offense. Springdale coach Jarrell Williams implemented a sophisticated package of zone blitzes to make Lashlee throw the ball before he wanted. When Lashlee was calling the play at the line of scrimmage, Springdale feigned a blitz. Once the ball was snapped, Springdale peeled off in coverage. This coupled with timely mixing of coverages kept the Saints offense off balance enough to force a 7-7 tie. Charleston coach Shane Storey probably spent more time than anybody dissecting the Saints' offense. He said they have five or six great athletes, while most teams only have two or three. He implemented the same-zone blitzing scheme to hold the Saints to nine points in their first meeting. In their second game, the state semifinal, the offensive line of the Saints did a better job of picking up blitzes, and Lashlee was able to check down and find his receiver. As F. Scott Fiztgerald said, "Show me a hero and I'll write you a tragedy." Colleagues and fellow teams have alleged that Shiloh Christian has committed recruiting violations. There are still ill feelings from when schools in the 1AA Conference accused the Saints of recruiting. The schools asserted that Shiloh Christian had an unfair competitive advantage, because as a private school, it could award financial aid to students in need, and six teams in the 1AA Conference used an Arkansas Activities Association rule to avoid playing the Saints in the conference schedule. Shiloh Christian was forced to play its league games against opponents from the 1AAA Conference during the 1998 and 1999 season. The AAA investigated and determined that the school had committed no violations. The Arkansas Democrat-Gazette conducted an investigation; in more than 80 interviews, no one would speak on the record about misconduct. Since then, the school has revised its financial-aid policy: No first-year student may receive financial aid. Arkansas Democrat Gazette columnist Wally Hall had said that if Shiloh had an advantage it was in finances. And that doesn't seem such an advantage now. "The biggest advantage of a private school is that most of our kids have two parents," Malzahn said. "A real stable home life and they support what we are doing." "Good programs recruit for themselves," Chris Hooten said. "People may say bad things about Shiloh Christian, but nobody says anything bad about Coach Malzahn." Love 'em or hate 'em, Shiloh Christian had to be the most exciting team in the state this season, if not the past three. Their synergistic style makes Friday night fun again. Amidst a culture where is it hip to be apathetic and disenfranchised, it is refreshing to see a group of young men pull so passionately together for a collective goal. Post Script. As the new year was ushered in, Malzahn took command of a new cadre of young men. He took the job at rival Springdale, replacing Jarrell Williams, who retired after 31 years as head football coach and athletic director. "When I first got into coaching 10 years ago, there was one or two jobs that you look at and Springdale was at the top of that list," Malzahn said. "I've admired that program for a long time, and it's an honor to be the new head coach of the Bulldogs." Springdale Superintendent Jim Rollins, who had headed a search committee consisting of seven Springdale administrators and school officials, announced on Jan. 3, that Malzahn would be replacing Williams. "Any of us who've been around Northwest Arkansas for very long, know about Gus Malzahn," Rollins said. "Coach Malzahn is one of our state's most distinguished coaches. His record speaks clearly for itself. Even more importantly, we know him as a man of character and we look forward to his personal model for our kids." The former offensive coordinator of the team will assume leadership. Chris Wood directed the Saints offense in 1998 and 1999. He left last year to become the offensive coordinator for Stephen F. Austin High in Texas. "The offense is going to be very similar," Wood said. "I plan to emphasize the running attack a little more because I feel we have some really great athletes back there. But obviously, they've been very successful in the past, and I don't want to tinker too much."
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