HOOTENS 7A RANKINGS AND PREDICTIONS
Hooten’s Arkansas Football Rankings
Class 7A, Week 0, 2024
Copyright Seventy Seven’s Football Publishing, LLC
1.  Fayetteville (0-0)
2.  Bryant (0-0)
3.  Conway (0-0)
4.  Bentonville (0-0)
5.  Pulaski Academy (0-0)
6.  Cabot (0-0)
7. Bentonville West (0-0)
8.  Little Rock Christian (0-0)
9.  Rogers (0-0)
10.  North Little Rock (0-0)

HOOTENS.COM GAME OF THE WEEK – THE SALT BOWL
No. 2 BRYANT (0-0) vs. Class 6A No. 2 Benton (0-0), 7:30 p.m. Friday at War Memorial
Stadium
BRYANT returns 16 starters after losing to Bentonville at home in the Class 7A Semifinals.
The Hornets won five consecutive state titles from 2018-2022. Class 6A Benton
returns eight players on the offensive side of the ball and seven on defense after
reaching the semifinals for the seventh time in ten years. Eight miles separate these
Saline county foes and their rivalry has become one of the most anticipated high school
football matchups in the country. They meet for the 50 th time Friday. The 2024 edition
also marks the 25 th anniversary of the game being dubbed as “The Salt Bowl” and being
played at War Memorial Stadium in Little Rock. This game has could come down to the
wire as both teams begin the 2024 season with championship hopes in their respective
classifications. Bryant Senior Quarterback Jordan Walker returns for his third season
after passing for over 2500 yards and 33 touchdowns as a junior. Benton Coach Brad
Harris acknowledged that Bryant has one of the best running back groups in the state
led by senior Notre Dame commit Daniel Anderson and senior Myron Thrash, Jr.
Bryant Coach Quad Sanders pointed out in the offseason to the Hooten’s staff that
Anderson “has learned to run more physical” and Thrash “has developed his outside
running”. Coach Harris also mentioned Bryant’s defensive line “looks like what they
have always been” up front. Benton counters with All-State Quarterback Drew Davis. Davis threw for over 3,000
yards in 2023 and a school-record 42 touchdowns. He only threw 2 interceptions in 243
pass attempts. Coach Harris told the Hooten's staff in the offseason that Davis “would
go down as one of the better quarterbacks ever at Benton.” Senior All-State receivers
Maddox Davis and Elias Payne caught 15 and 12 touchdowns respectively in 2023.
Coach Sanders also said of Benton that “their three-front defense likes to move around
and cause confusion.”
For Benton, Coach Harris feels the key to victory is “to control the line of scrimmage
against them because of their depth and numbers.” He also noted that a key for Benton
could be to “take advantage of their good returning skill players (Benton) and play with
some tempo.”
For Bryant, Coach Sanders made mention of Benton’s skill players as well. He said
“they have a slew of wideouts that can get in space and be dangerous.” When asked for
the key to victory, Coach Sanders said they will need to “establish the run”. His
thoughts behind the importance of the run game was to build some plays off of that. “If
we do that – we can open up other stuff.” He also noted that defensively they would
need to “minimize the big plays.”

WEEK 1 PREDICTIONS (favored team in ALL CAPS and highlighted in yellow)
7A WEST
Thursday August 29
Tulsa Union (OK) at No. 4 BENTONVILLE 
Bentonville rounded out 2022 and 2023 with Class 7A runner-up finishes. The Tigers
only have eight returning starters on offense and defense combined (2 on offense, 6 on
defense). Head Coach Jody Grant’s son Trevor Grant, who owns an offer from
Missouri State, will take over at quarterback.
Union quarterback Shaker Reisig and running back Jordan Schelling are among the top
skill players in the Tulsa metroplex. The Redhawks are considered one of the top teams
in Oklahoma’s largest classification. Coach Kirk Fridrich was inducted into the
Oklahoma Coaches Association Hall of Fame this offseason. He has won 5 state titles
at Union.

No. 1 FAYETTEVILLE at Cabot
Defending Class 7A State Champion Fayetteville will start UNLV Head Coach Barry
Odom’s son Garyt Odom at quarterback. Odom is committed to UNLV and moved to
Fayetteville in the winter. He helped his former team in Nevada, Class 5A Faith
Lutheran, to a runner-up finish in 2023. He is joined by another UNLV commit at
linebacker, Parker Meese, who transferred from IMG Academy in Florida. All-State
receiver Jaison DeLamar returns. As well. He is a University of Arkansas baseball
commit.
Cabot counters with junior quarterback Maddox McCroy. McCroy earned the starting
job as a sophomore in 2023 before an injury against Bentonville West kept him
sidelined through week 10. Senior running back Keegan Vest rushed for over 1,000
yards and 11 touchdowns in 2023. Coach Scott Reed told the Hooten’s staff in the
offseason that “the offensive line likes to block for him, because he’ll fight to get every
inch.”
Class 6A No. 1 GREENWOOD at Bentonville West
Three of Bentonville West’s first four games are to be played against defending state
champions. (Greenwood, Muskogee (OK), and Fayetteville). They return a ton of
experience at the skill positions and Defensive Coordinator John Thompson’s son Tre’
Thompson takes over at quarterback in 2024. Greenwood won its 11 th state title in 2023
and returns All-State quarterback Kane Archer who owns offers from Arkansas,
Michigan, Missouri, Ole Miss, Texas A&M, and Arizona.

ROGERS at North Little Rock
Rogers has won a school-best 26 games over the past three seasons. They have
advanced to the quarterfinals each year during that stretch. All-State playmaker Jeff
Regan moves to quarterback where Chad Harbison has built the offense around him.
Senior running back Jontavious George returns for North Little Rock in 2024 after a
productive 2023 campaign. Coach Clint Reed told the Hooten’s staff in the offseason
that George “is our burner”.

BROKEN ARROW (OK) at Springdale Har-Ber
Har-Ber enters 2024 with 6 returning starters on offense and 5 on defense. Senior all-
conference receiver Hayden Wood had over 700 yards and 11 touchdowns last
season. Their offensive line is a team strength, anchored by junior center Rowan
Graham. Broken Arrow hosted Bentonville West and Fort Smith Northside in a pre-
season scrimmage.

FORT SMITH SOUTHSIDE (Class 6A) at Fort Smith Northside
Cam Massey had a 60 yard touchdown for Northside in their pre-season scrimmage at
Broken Arrow (OK). Jayden Youngblood and JaLeal Covin combined for over 100
yards rushing in the game. The Grizzlies were bit by the injury bug last year and hope
for a healthier 2024 campaign. Junior quarterback Blake Forsgren led Southside on
two scoring drives in their scrimmage against Alma. Junior offensive lineman Nick
Arnold is the lone returning starter for the Maverick offense.

LR Central (0-0) at SPRINGDALE (0-0)
Anthony Robinson enters year two at Little Rock Central. The former Little Rock Hall
and Arkansas State wideout told the Hooten’s staff in the offseason that “he expects
improvement and has them working to change the culture.” Central returns 7 starters
on offense in 2024 including senior Paxton Clegg at quarterback .
Coach Brett Hobbs enters year four at Springdale and switched offensive schemes
last season to the flexbone. Quarterback Jack Pounders returns after over 1,000 yards
of total offense and 14 touchdowns.

Class 6A SILOAM SPRINGS (0-0) at Rogers Heritage (0-0)
Doug Loughridge takes over at Siloam Springs and has the luxury of an experienced
quarterback to smooth the transition. Senior Dane Marlatt has 16 games under his belt
as a starter. The defense returns seven starters.
Rogers Heritage coach Eric Munoz enters year three with a plethora of returning
starters on both sides of the ball (6 on offense, 9 on defense). Defensive Coordinator
John Proffitt swapped to a 3-3-5 scheme last season and told the Hooten’s staff that it
is “good news to not need to do a lot of re-teaching with the players” this offseason.

7A CENTRAL
Class 6A No. 2 Benton (0-0) at No. 2 BRYANT (0-0) – War Memorial Stadium – See
Hootens.com Class 7A Game of the Week, above.
No. 3 CONWAY (0-0) at Class 6A Jonesboro (0-0)
It’s year two for Buck James at Conway. Jaydon Gaines is the only returning starter
for Mark Kelley’s Wampus Cat Offense. Central Arkansas Christian quarterback
Grayson Wilson, who is committed to Arkansas, takes over at quarterback.
Jonesboro enters year two with coach Tyler George at the helm. Junior quarterback Asa
Myers looks to rally a group of inexperienced skill players and a running back by
committee situation.

Class 5A No. 3 Joe T. Robinson (0-0) at No. 5 PULASKI ACADEMY (0-0)
Pulaski Academy has won 8 of the last 9 state titles in their classification. Coach
Anthony Lucas returns senior quarterback Brandon Cobb who threw for 4,300 yards
and 39 touchdowns last season. The dual-threat Cobb ran for over 500 yards and 5
touchdowns. Senior receiver Walden Culpepper had over 1,400 yards and 17
touchdowns in 2023. All-State nose-guard Peyton Adams leads the defense. He set a
state record with six sacks in a playoff game last year against El Dorado. Defensive
Coordinator Madison Taylor told the Hooten’s staff this offseason that “if you don’t
double-team him, he will be in the backfield all night.” Joe T. Robinson returns eight players on defense. Senior quarterback Tyson Braddon
transferred in from North Little Rock after amassing over 2,000 passing yards and 21
touchdowns last season. Senior running back Nick Abrams returns after totaling over
1,000 all-purpose yards in 2023. Abrams holds an offer from Arkansas State.

LITTLE ROCK CHRISTIAN (0-0) at El Dorado (0-0)
First game for new Little Rock Christian coach Dustin Grimmett. Junior quarterback
Kemp Keller has multiple in-state offers. Both El Dorado and Little Rock Christian
have great depth at running back. Healthy senior running back Ronny Anokye (offers
from Grambling State and Cornell) returns after rushing for 1300 yards and 12
touchdowns in 2022 but missing most of last season with a knee injury. Junior running
back Jackson Ward had nearly 1,000 yards last season with 8 touchdowns and holds
an offer from Arkansas State.
El Dorado counters with talented junior running backs Bretavion Brown and Jakori
Lumsey. Senior defensive back AJ Gilmore returned an interception for a touchdown
against Pulaski Academy last season and holds multiple offers (Louisiana-Monroe,
Tennessee-Martin, Arkansas-Pine Bluff, and Grambling State).

Cabot (0-0) vs No. 1 FAYETTEVILLE (0-0) - see 7A West note.

North Little Rock (0-0) vs ROGERS (0-0) - see 7A West note.

Little Rock Central vs SPRINGDALE (0-0) - see 7A West note.

Little Rock Southwest (0-0) is open