Arkansas Class 7A high school football team previews: First-year coach Eric Munoz trying to breathe life into Heritage program

The War Eagles haven't won a 7A-West Conference game since 2017.

SBLive is previewing the Arkansas high school football teams from the three largest classifications. Today, we feature the Rogers Heritage War Eagles from the 7A-West Conference.

By Steve Andrews 

ROGERS HERITAGE WAR EAGLES

HEAD COACH

Eric Munoz, 1st season

2021 AT A GLANCE

Overall record: 0-10

League record: 0-7, 8th in 7A West

Playoffs: Did not make playoffs.

KEY PLAYERS DEPARTED

RB Eli Craig The team’s leading rusher and on offensive leader. Signed to play at the University of Mary Hardin-Baylor in Belton, Texas.

WR Brady Laird The team’s leading receiver. Has signed to play baseball at Arkansas Tech.

PLAYERS TO WATCH

Senior QB Carter Hensley The returning starter has taken on a strong leadership role this summer.

Senior FB Chris Incao Will play a variety of roles in the offense.

Senior WR JJ Lockett The state triple jump champion switches from defense being a primary receiver.

Senior WR Tillman McNair Will likely see many targets this year.

Senior C Hunter Seals The 6-6, 310-pounder returns to anchor the offensive line.

Junior LB Jovany Garcia The returner has become the leader of the defense.

Senior LB Xavier Carroll Will bring some experience to the middle of the defense.

OUTLOOK

First-year Heritage head coach Eric Munoz comes from a championship pedigree. But the program he takes over is far from it. The War Eagles have not won a 7A-West Conference game since 2017 and have won just one game overall in the past two seasons overall.

The 2005 Springdale graduate won a state championship playing under legendary coach Gus Malzahn, before going on to coach under Malzahn at Arkansas State and Auburn. He has spent the past two seasons as the head coach at Brookland High school, near Jonesboro. He welcomes the challenge that Heritage presents.

“I think the No. 1 thing is just being competitive,” Munoz said. “If we can be competitive for four quarters, I think we’ve got a chance to beat anybody, so that’s the No. 1 goal. I’m not going to put goals out there that we are going to win five or 10 games, but we will be competing every game, and that’s the goal we are going to start with. I’ve been in sports my whole life, and as a competitor, I don’t ever want things just handed to me. I want a challenge and something that’s going to challenge me every day.”

The first thing Munoz has done is recruit some of the school’s athletes, who weren’t playing football, to join his program. With the new staff, some players have also been switched to position other than what they may have been played last year, in order to maximize the new offensive and defensive schemes. “That’s the thing that we’ve really got to do here is to develop these young kids and get our (roster) numbers up to where they need to be,” he said. “We are a 7A school, but our numbers aren’t where they need to be for a 7A school.

With returning senior quarterback Carter Hensley back under center, Heritage will operate from a run-first, play-action offense with multiple alignments and lots of motion. The 6-foot-4, 195-pound Hensley will call signals in shotgun and under center. “Carter showed a lot of leadership this summer, just buying in to what we’re doing,” Munoz said. “He’s got talent and some intangibles that you just can’t coach, and I’m excited to see him compete this year.”

Senior Chris Incao will be the primary fullback but will be used in a variety of ways. A pair of sophomores, Jonathan Johnson and the speedy Demarion Lockett, will carry the ball. Senior JJ Lockett, the state champion in the triple jump, has been shifted to offense this year and will likely be one of the team’s primary receivers, along with senior Tillman McNair. Munoz also recruited senior sprinter Derek Bradley to join the receiving corps. “He has come a long great as a receiver this summer, and I think he is going to really help us out,” the coach added.

Munoz likes the collection of offensive linemen he has competing for starting spots, which will be anchored by 6-foot-6, 310-pound senior center Hunter Seals. Seniors Hunter Griger, a pulling guard, and Kyle Wilder are competing with juniors Manuel Cruz and Stephen Kelly. State wrestling champ, senior Briar Goodwin, will likely play on both sides of the trenches, as will as junior Anthony Alvarez. “We’ve got a lot of guys up front that have the ability, but we just have to figure out who has the consistency to really help us out the most,” Munoz said.

The War Eagles will run out of a 3-4 defense with a lot of movement. “We definitely want to try to make teams run the football, because we feel like we can stop the run,” Munoz said. “And I know teams like to throw the ball around in this conference, so we need to cause havoc for those quarterbacks.”

Junior linebacker Jovany Garcia will be the verbal team-leader on the defense, along with senior LB Xavier Carroll. Munoz is also excited about a couple of young, talented sophomores, Christian Flores and a stout Terrail Myers.

The defensive backfield will include sophomores Danny Basurto and Max Howard, and senior Alex Saelzler, who have all made great strides this summer.

COACH SAID

"We want to get Heritage where they need to be, as far as a football program, and really put our own stamp on it. It all starts with a cultural change, setting our standards as a program and trying to live up to our standards each and every day. If we can do all those things to meet our standards, the wins will come." — Eric Munoz