Clark eyes return to football playoffs

By Jesse Granger

Wednesday, Aug. 26, 2015 | 4:36 p.m.

When Don Willis took over the Clark High football program it was in the middle of a 42-game losing streak.

Since snapping it, Willis has led the Chargers to the playoffs in 2013 for the first time in a decade, and in 2014 to their first winning season in years.

Despite the miraculous rebuild, they view last year as a failure due to missing out on the playoffs at the hands of a five-way tiebreaker. They beat Faith Lutheran, the defending state champions, but lost winnable games against Sierra Vista and Mojave.

“If you look back last year we were one game away from being league champs,” Willis said.

Now Clark is recharged and ready to take the next step by returning to the postseason.

If they do, it will be on the backs of their returning skill players. Clark returns its leading passer, junior signal caller Nick Kinnard (6-foot, 180 pounds), who threw for 1,016 yards and 10 touchdowns in 2014.

With 145.1 passing yards per game Kinnard was one of the most surprising players in the state last year as a sophomore, and with another year under his belt, could be even more dangerous.

He will be surrounded by a host of weapons that return from last year. Senior tight end Amir Boone (6-foot-3, 195 pounds) caught two touchdowns in 2014, and is excited to see what the future holds for the Chargers’ offense.

“Our offense actually uses all of our players,” Boone said. “We have many weapons. We go to the run game when we need it and our pass game is amazing.”

Leading the rushing attack will be senior Milan Dixon (5-foot-6, 180 pounds), who managed to run for 246 yards and three touchdowns on the ground last year with only 35 carries.

Clark’s offense, which averaged 32.1 points per game in 2014, won’t be an issue. But the Chargers will need to shore up their defense that gave up an average of 40.25 points per game in their four losses.

The biggest of which was a 54-34 loss to Sierra Vista that still torments the defense.

“It’s been a really big motivator,” defensive end Donovan Jackson said. “We were focused the prior game, (a dominating 34-13 win over Pahrump Valley) but we didn’t get it done (against Sierra Vista), so that’s the drive this season, to stay focused and get the job done.”

Jackson teams with Robert A’Hearn, Jordan Strong and Omar Arellano to lead the Chargers’ defense.

Staying focused is paramount in the Sunset Division, where any slip up can be the difference between a playoff spot and watching from home, but that is why Willis loves coaching in it.

“It’s a tough league, a competitive league, but we are prepared for it,” Willis said. “It’s football at its best. When two teams are evenly paired and they are fighting out there in close games it is good football.”