Bryant wins Shootout of the South crown for second consecutive season

Bryant defeated Little Rock Christian 32-21

By Kyle Sutherland 

LITTLE ROCK - It may not be the same as the five he helped Bryant win as defensive coordinator, but just over two weeks into his first head coaching position Quad Sanders has already earned a championship trophy. 

Sanders' Hornets defeated Little Rock Christian 32-21 on Saturday in the 2023 Bowen Hefley Orthopedics/Arkansas Surgical Hospital 7-on-7 Shootout of the South on a warm and sunny Saturday at Joe B. Hatcher Stadium on the campus of Pulaski Academy. 

This was Bryant's second year to win the tournament after defeating Conway in 2022.

"For me as a firs- time head coach, it is great for us to come out with the win, but is better overall for our team," Sanders said. "It is good for the young guys for them to get out here and us to see how much we need them to step up and help us get through the season. 

"Out here, it is about finding depth and guys that can contribute. We brought a lot of guys and if we can get all of them to step up and contribute during the season then we will be fine, but we have a long way to go."

Bryant defeated 2021 tournament champion, Keller (Texas) 35-24 and 7A-Central foe Conway 15-14 in overtime to reach the championship bracket finals.

Little Rock Christian scored first when Auburn commit Walker White hooked up with Gabe Schroeder two and a half minutes in, but Bryant responded quick as Jordan Walker found Karter Ratliff to tie the contest at seven.

Both defenses did their jobs for most of the remainder of the first half, but each offense scored prior to the break and a Bryant interception broke a 14-14 tie giving the Hornets a 16-14 lead at halftime. 

Another Bryant interception with 8:15 to go made it 18-14 Hornets and then the second Walker-to-Ratliff score extended the lead to 25-14.

The Warriors refused to go away as they cut the lead to 25-21 on a pass from White to Connor Smith. However, Bryant all but secured the win with 22 seconds left after Shawn Rycraw hauled in a pass from Jordan Walker from 20 yards out.

Walker earned praise from Bryant's coaching staff during this tournament last season when he split reps with Arkansas baseball commit Gideon Motes and that continued throughout all of the 2022 season. With Motes opting to focus on his future, Walker is now 'The Guy' and feels much more comfortable in the system. 

"For my junior season I have really wanted to work on the game slowing down for me," Walker said. "It helps me get the ball out of my hands a lot quicker and just slows the momentum process."

Though Sanders has primarily worked with the defense during his time with the Hornets, he has also seen the growth in the 6-1, 205-pound signal caller.

"Jordan still has a lot of growing to do, but he is learning on the run," Sanders said. "We have some guys behind him who are capable, they are just super young. We really have to lean on him until those guys come along and he is growing on every play. 

"He just needs to keep progressing and he is doing a good job of that as a student of the game. That is what we need him to be and I have all of the trust in the world in Jordan."

Walker acknowledged that the Hornets lost a great coach when Buck James left for Conway, but Walker, along with the rest of the team, could not have been happier that Sanders returned.

"It is really great to have him back," Walker said. "It was a sad day when we found out he was leaving and definitely hard losing him that first time. He also left another group of guys and as a players' coach I know that was hard for him. 

"He has poured a lot into me and he wants me to make all of the throws because he knows I can do it."

Walker was named the tournament's Top Gun (quarterback), while teammate Drake Fowler was tabbed Top Defensive Player, and Little Rock Christian's Tristian Watson earned the Top Wide Receiver.

Parklane (Miss.) took third place defeating Arkansas High 27-14 in the consolation bracket.

Full results of the tournament are available on Shootout of the South’s Facebook and Twitter pages.