UAPB Football To Open Historic Spring Season At Southern

Doc Gamble

The wait is over for the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff football team, as it will open its historic spring season this Saturday at Southern at 1:30 p.m.

The UAPB Sports Network radio broadcast begins at 1 p.m. on 99.3 FM The Beat, online at uapblionsroar.com/live, and on the free UAPB Athletics App. The game will also be video streamed on the ESPN App.

From coaching changes to Covid-19, to the fall season moving to 2021, to ‘spring’ practice in the fall, to major snow in February leading to last week’s game postponement vs. Texas Southern, Golden Lion football has made it to Saturday’s season opener.

Doc Gamble will make his head coaching debut with UAPB in the contest. Gamble is no stranger to the program, having spent the previous two seasons as assistant head coach and quarterbacks coach.

A total of six Golden Lion players earned 2021 Preseason All-SWAC honors, including four on the first-team. OL Mark Evans II and Atondre Smith anchored the left side of the line at tackle and guard, respectively, helping the offense rank in the FCS Top 25 in 2019. WR Harry Ballard III posted five 100-yard receiving games last season and ranked in the top five in receptions, receiving yards, and touchdowns. RS Tyrin Ralph tied for the league lead in punt return average (10.8 ypr) and averaged 27.9 yards per kickoff return.

A pair of players earned second-team All-SWAC honors. DE Xavier Mitchell started every game in 2019 and finished second on the defensive line in tackles (48), tied for the team lead in sacks (5.0), tied for second on roster in tackles for loss (10.0), and had one forced fumble and one pass breakup. DB Shawn Steele tied for seventh in the SWAC in interceptions (three), and tied for the conference lead in pass breakups (18).

Junior quarterback Skyler Perry will lead the offense, coming off a 2019 season in which he passed for 784 yards and eight touchdowns in splitting time at the position. He tied a career high with three touchdown passes in back-to-back games at Alabama A&M and vs. Langston.

That core leads 14 starters returning (eight offense / six defense) against a Southern team that has won the SWAC’s Western Division each of the past two seasons. The Jaguars opened the spring season with a 24-21 win at Alabama State last Friday night.