Until the beginning of the third quarter of last year's season opener against the School of the Osage Indians, Joe Schlemeier figures he had taken about one meaningful varsity snap as a Fulton Hornet quarterback.
With his team down 48-0 at halftime, Schlemeier was being asked to navigate the second half, and maybe more, depending on the severity of the shoulder injury to the Hornets' senior starter, Jake Matthews.
Schlemeier didn't orchestrate some miraculous comeback - Fulton ended up losing the game 54-0 - but the experience of that, and the three preceding games he started were pivotal. The starting snaps laid a foundation for the junior, who starts the Hornets' 2012 season opener tonight at Osage. Kickoff is at 7.
To help the tornado-stricken people of Dumas and surroundings, donations can be made to the Delta Area Disaster Relief Fund, care of the Delta Area Community Foundation, P.O. Box 894, Dumas, AR, 71639, or through the Arkansas Community Foundation, 700 S. Rock St., Little Rock, AR, 72202.