Arkansas football historian Leland Barclay contends Daniel Lunney must have been sacked 100 times as a sophomore.

“Toughest quarterback I ever saw,” Barclay said.

Lunney believes he was sacked 34 times during a three-game stretch.

But a year later, it was all worth it.

“We were young. I think we started 11 sophomores that year (1996),” Lunney said. “It just so happened that we had a real small senior class, like seven or eight seniors that year. It was unfortunate for them have to go out like that.”

The ’96 Rebels finished 1-9.

“I think we were in seven or eight games,” Lunney said. “We were in the games; we just couldn’t get over the hump. The inexperience really showed that year.”

The following spring, Lunney’s dad, Barry Lunney Sr., chucked the wing-t in favor of the spread offense.

The former Southside coach, who won four state titles during a 16-year run, hit the old 5A-West with something they didn’t see coming.


“We fully committed that off-season,” Daniel Lunney said. “It definitely caught people off guard.”

Lunney threw for 3,555 yards and 37 touchdowns in 1997, his junior season, as Southside went from worst to first with a resounding 38-10 rout of Cabot in the state championship game.

Today, Daniel Lunney joins his dad and older brother Barry Lunney Jr. as members of Southside’s 2019 Hall of Fame class.

“To go in with my dad and brother, that makes it just that much more special,” Lunney said. “Playing for my dad and winning a state championship was really special.”

In addition to Lunney, former Mavericks football standout Tim Alexander (1974-76) and longtime volleyball coach Steve Haaser are being inducted into the school’s Hall of Fame.

Lunney still found himself on the ground a lot that fall of ’97. But the touchdown passes, the wide-open spaces for receivers, proved more than opponents could handle.

“People weren’t ready to defend it,” Lunney said. “We had some really good receivers, but I took a physical beating, too, because we didn’t really know how to scheme things up with the blocking. I was sacked a lot, but I was throwing for a lot of yards.”


That summer, Terry Moss transferred from Northside to Southside. He ended up setting a single-season receiving record.

“Terry had an incredible year,” Lunney said. “Nathan Mendenhall was a really tall receiver; teams couldn’t cover him. Josh Jackson, he was our slot receiver. He caught some, too.”

Lunney being inducted into the Hall of Fame is a “tribute to the whole team.”

Lunney finished with 7,777 career passing yards and 79 touchdowns. He said he was honored to be included into the hall.

“It’s awesome, especially a place as special as Southside High School. Not just football, but all the sports,” Lunney said. “You think about all the athletes that have come through to do some big things after Southside.”
