Palo Verde, Cimarron expect more offense

Adam Candee

Wednesday, Sept. 24, 2003 | 9:10 a.m.

Turn back the clock to last year's game between Cimarron-Memorial and Palo Verde and you might find the action -- specifically the offense -- set back far more than a year.

Final score: Palo Verde 2, Cimarron 0.

Really. And the Spartans' defense looks better this year under coordinator Greg Spencer.

Yet the change for both teams in 2003 is improved offense that could blow away last year's safety-only score when Cimarron visits Palo Verde to open division play Thursday night.

Most area games are being played a night early because Rosh Hashanah begins at sundown on Friday.

"This will be a big test for us," Panthers coach Darwin Rost said. "Cimarron looks like the Cimarron of the past."

Both the Panthers (4-0) and Spartans (3-1) look like powers in the present. In eight combined games, the teams have allowed a touchdown or less four times. That brand of defense is a hallmark of both squads, with Palo Verde led by defensive coordinator Charlie Jarvis and Cimarron coached by Spencer.

This year, however, offense has been plentiful through non-division action. Palo Verde is averaging a hearty 35.2 points per game, and Cimarron is certainly not lagging behind at 21.7 points per game. Though not as widely regarded before the season, the Spartans are showing that they may be able to hang with the Panthers.

The Spartans have run a gauntlet of Las Vegas, Coronado, Desert Pines and Eldorado thus far, falling only to the Wildcats. Cimarron coach Ron Smeltzer feels that the victories served to open the ears and eyes of his players.

"We're finally getting to the point where the kids believe in what we're telling them," Smeltzer said. "It's helped us to have these three wins."

For the Panthers, wins against four opponents with a combined 4-12 record have built confidence. Yet Palo Verde understands that the level of competition vaults far upward in division matchups against Cimarron, Cheyenne and Centennial.

"Our other opponents, they came to play hard, but they just couldn't match us," Palo Verde tailback Tyree Walton said. "I think Cimarron's going to have the size and the speed to match up with us."

After struggling to score throughout the 2002 season, Palo Verde appears more comfortable in the second year of its unorthodox double-wing offense. With a more seasoned Jarrell Harrison at quarterback and speedy running backs Jamal Brumfield and Walton performing well, the Panthers are expanding the playbook and the points are flowing. With a short week to prepare for an offense his team has not seen and likely will not see again, Smeltzer feels some challenge to defend the Panthers.

"It's very tough, especially with going in against a different offense," Smeltzer said. "That really hurts us."

Although Rost expects the Spartans to load up the front against Palo Verde's running-intensive offense, Smeltzer is looking to an even sounder defensive theory -- don't play defense.

"We're going to have to keep the ball," Smeltzer said.

With quarterback Dylan Hinton improving every week and pacing an offense that has scored 67 points in the past two weeks, Cimarron might be able to fulfill Smeltzer's wish. No matter which team has the ball, they both expect some hard blows. Palo Verde drew students from Cimarron when it opened, and a rivalry still exists between the schools.

"It's tough. They're friends with all the Cimarron kids," Rost said. "It could be a game that decides a lot of things down the road."