9-19-25 Pulaksi

Friday night’s game against the Pulaski Academy Bruins from Little Rock, Arkansas, should be fun to watch. 

   At least for the first half. 

   Because unlike other standard visitors to Highlander Stadium, the Bruins will roll out a completely unorthodox approach to the game of football. This is the team that never punts. They go for it on every fourth down.

   Every kickoff is an onside kick.

   If they unveil some sort of weird surprise on offense or defense, the Scots will surely adjust at halftime. 

   Pukaski may use artificial intelligence to coach the team because they list one assistant coach, Madison Taylor.

   I suspect that Pulaski’s unorthodox approach to the game helps to keep their opponents off-balance. Former head coach Kevin Kelley became one of the most talked about high school coaches in the nation when he rolled out his unique formula. And it helped him win big. Over his 18-year run at Pulaski he won the Arkansas state championship nine times. Is he crazy or is he a genius? 

   Kelley’s protege, Anthony Lucas, was a standout at Pulaski and went on the play for the Arkansas Razorbacks and then in the NFL. Lucas is now the head coach and is carrying on many of the Bruins’ unusual analytics.

   During the Randy Allen era at Highland Park, the Scots have played Pulaksi twice, in 2014 and 2015. HP won in 2014 then the Bruins won in 2015. That game was huge because it broke the Scots’ 84-game home winning streak. It is hard to believe but under Coach Allen, the Scots won every home game from 1999 to 2015. 

   Pulaski’s current roster features 12 seniors, 20 juniors and 24 sophomores. The Scots have never faced a team that includes two dozen sophomores on varsity.

   The Scots have limited access to information on the Bruins, but they have enough to prepare. HP traditionally concentrates on what it can do rather than changing to fit the other team’s strengths and weaknesses.

   This season the Bruins are 0-2, losing to Robinson, 53-14, and to West Monroe (Louisiana), 31-17. Like Highland Park, Pulaski Academy rarely loses two games in a row.

   One thing the HP coaches know is that the Bruins play fast. It’s like an up-tempo offense on steroids. Opponents who aren’t ready for the non-stop action can tire out during the game.

   Over the past two Fridays the Scots have beaten Lovejoy, 21-0, and Jesuit, 42-14. The offense has clicked well and the defense has been stifling. Martin True and Dean Williams each had an interception against Jesuit and Ronan Moreland had two. The HP turnover bucket was overflowing.

   The Scots have the area’s top-ranked passing offense, averaging 316 yards per game. And the Scots boast the area’s fifth-ranked total offense, averaging 450 yards per game.

   Who scored a touchdown for the Scots against Jesuit? The party includes Matthew White, Isaiah Lee, Case Messer, Cannon Bozman, Charlie Olmstead and Buck Randall. And while kicker Sutton Stock didn’t score a touchdown, he did kick an extra point after each of the six TDs, giving him half a dozen points also.  

   Seven players with six points each. That’s spreading the love.