Hootens’ Arkansas Football Rankings

Class 2A, Week 3, 2024

Copyright Seventy Seven's Football Publishing, LLC.

1. Carlisle (2-0)

2. Conway Christian (3-0)

3. Junction City (1-2)

4. Des Arc (2-0)

5. Marked Tree (2-1)

6. Bigelow (1-2)

7. Mineral Springs (0-2)

8. Poyen (2-1)

9. Cross County (2-1)

10. Hector (1-1)

11. East Poinsett County (0-2)

12. Murfreesboro (0-2)

13. Mount Ida (1-1)

14. England (1-2)

15. McCrory (2-0)

16. Earle (0-2)

17. Gurdon (1-2)

18. Lafayette County (1-1)

19. Baptist Prep (2-0)

20. Mountainburg (1-1)

Not ranked:

1-2A: Mountain Pine (1-2), JC Westside (1-1), Magazine (1-1)

2-2A: Izard County Consolidated (0-3), Marianna (0-1)

3-2A: Spring Hill (1-1), Dierks (2-1), Foreman (0-3)

4-2A: Bearden (1-1), Hampton (1-1), Hazen (0-2), Clarendon (0-2)

HOOTENS.COM GAME OF THE WEEK

NO. 1 CARLISLE (2-0) at No. 4 Des Arc (2-0): The Carlisle Bison like to spread the field with its dynamic offense while the Des Arc Eagles do one thing very well — run the football. 

Carlisle was open last week after beating then-No. 1 Junction City 41-20 in Week 1. Freshman QB Ty Tanksley passed for 204 yards. The Bison rushed for 150 yards in the second half after trailing 7-6 at halftime. Kicker Jimmy Cham hit 2 first-half field goals – 27 and 21 yards. 

Des Arc beat Class 4A Bald Knob 34-12 on Friday. Daviyon Bell rushed 7 times for 111 yards and 2 TDs. He also returned a kickoff 75 yards for a TD. 

Carlisle Coach Gary Wilson said he knows it will be a tough game against the rival Eagles. 

“There is nobody else on our schedule that runs the Flexbone,” Wilson said. “They don’t just run it; they do a really good job of it. The coaches do a great job calling it. We’ll have to stop the run.”

Des Arc Coach Brandon Barbaree said the Bison present a challenge because they are the most athletic team he’s seen this year. 

“We are going to do what we do and be who we are,” he said. “We will have to play a clean game and make tackles in space. It should be a heck of a game.”

LAST WEEK

Hootens.com correctly predicted 19 of 24 games involving Class 2A teams and has correctly predicted 54 of 63 games (86 percent) for the season.

WEEK 3 PREDICTIONS (favored teams in ALL CAPS)

2A NONCONFERENCE

MOUNT IDA (1-1) at Bearden (1-1): Mount Ida is coming off a 31-28 loss to 3A Jessieville. QB Dakota Beech rushed for 101 yards and 2 TDs; RB/LB Ben Woodfield rushed for 102 yards and a TD and had 10 tackles. LB Beau Weston had 9 tackles. Bearden lost to D’Arbonne Wood, La., 49-21. Triston Olvey, Kemari Nettles and TyQuavion Davis scored TDs for Bearden. Hunter Stringfellow led defensively with 8 tackles. “This week gives us the opportunity to see where we match up with another 2A opponent,” Bearden Coach Brandon Austin said. 

MCCRORY (2-0) at Hazen (0-2): McCrory beat Clarendon 38-6. Jaicen Castro led McCrory with 9 tackles. Caden Ayers rushed for a TD and caught a TD pass. Leevi Tucker had a rushing TD and returned an INT for another. “We will have to play really good to beat Hazen,” McCrory Coach Cade Campell said. “It’s always a tough game, especially when playing at Hazen.” The Hornets have scored 3 touchdowns in 48 minutes of play. Two were by QB JJ Pinkney and the other came on a pass from Pinkney to Noah Adkins against Conway Christian in Week 0. “We’re going to have to stop the run,” Hazen Coach Joe Besancon said. “That’s been tough on us the last couple of weeks. We’re just not real big up front.”

2A-3A NONCONFERENCE

Marianna (0-1) at CLASS 3A PALESTINE-WHEATLEY (1-1): Marianna fell to Barton 22-6 on Friday night. Palestine-Wheatley was off last week after beating Class 2A Cross County 34-21. The win was the first for Tyler Paschal as head coach of the team and it came against his dad, Van Paschal, the head coach of Cross County.

NO. 10 HECTOR (1-1) at Class 3A Danville (1-1): QB Drew Newport (208 passing, TD; 54 rushing, TD) and Landon  Darter (4-56 rushing, TD) led Hector to a 20-14 win over Class 3A Yellville-Summit.

Mountainburg (1-1) at CLASS 3A HACKETT (1-1): Mountainburg lost to Baptist Prep 28-21 in its most recent game, and Coach Zach Dean said turnovers played a big role, something it can’t afford against Hackett. “I know Hackett will be big, physical and athletic.” Ryan Allen (25-288 rushing, 2 TDs; 2-22 receiving, TD) led the Mountainburg offense.  Hayden McGill led the defense with 10 tackles and a sack.  Hackett lost to Class 4A Gentry 55-18 last Friday. QB Brycen Hamilton (15-28 passing, 216 yards, 2 TDs; 7-42 rushing, 1 TD), WR Matthew Garner (8-132 receiving, 1 TD; 5 KO returns for 110 yards) and Hagen Moses (2-51 receiving) led the offense. Ian Bennett (10 tackles), James Randolph (9 tackles) and Braden Rhyne (5 tackles, 1 forced fumble) were the top contributors.

EAST POINSETT COUNTY (0-2) at Class 3A Manila (0-2): EPC couldn’t keep up with a talented Rivercrest team, falling 56-32. Jacob Gaines rushed for 163 yards and 2 TDs. Tyrus Reel caught 3 passes for 51 yards and a TD. Dee Buchanan (7 tackles, 1 fumble recovery) led the defense. EPC Coach Brandon Powell said his team will have challenges with Manila. “They are big up front and have 2 good-looking skill guys,” he said. “I’m sure we will get their best shot.” 

Earle (0-2) at CLASS 3A BARTON (2-0): Brian Powell rushed 23 times for 208 yards and 3 TDs in Earle's 44-30 loss to Walnut Ridge. Clifton Wren led the defense with 13 tackles. Barton beat Class 2A Marianna 22-6 last Friday. The Bears have outscored their opponents 56-18 in 2 games. Earle Coach AC Coleman said Barton has a big line. “They seem well-disciplined in their 3-4 defense,” he said. 

CLASS 3A QUITMAN (1-1) vs. No. 7 Mineral Springs (0-2) (at Henderson State): Quitman evened its record with a 42-0 win over Class 2A Izard County. QB Jordon Moore-Payne (11-12 passing, 192 yards, 1 TD), RB Devon Boyce (6-82 rushing, 1 TD) and Bryson Thacker (3-83 receiving, 1 TD) led the Bulldogs. Mineral Springs has lost to Bismarck and 58-10 to Class 3A Fordyce.  “It’s going to be a fun atmosphere playing Quitman at HSU,” Mineral Springs Coach Jason Hathcock said. “Quitman will be another tough game for us. We just have to keep working to improve day by day.” Rahmaij Ware caught a 7-yard TD pass from Evan Erwin for the lone Mineral Springs TD. 

MURFREESBORO (0-2) at Class 4A Genoa Central (0-2): Murfreesboro had an extra week to recover from its 39-22 loss at Fouke in Week 1, and goes against Genoa Central, which moved from 8-man to 11-man ball this year. “Genoa is a team that has shown some positive signs the last 2 games,” Murfreesboro Coach Brad Chessir said. “I expect them to continue to improve. We have to find a way to get our swagger back going into the final week of nonconference play.”

Spring Hill (1-1) at CLASS 3A CENTERPOINT (2-0): Spring Hill lost 14-0 to Mount Ida 2 weeks ago in a game halted by weather at halftime and was off last Friday. Gavin Smith led the Bears with 21 yards rushing on 4 carries. Centerpoint defeated Fountain Lake 38-24 after trailing 12-8 at halftime. The Knights scored 2 TDs in 13 seconds in the third quarter to spark the rally. QB Drew Diggs (11-15 passing, 164 yards, 2 TDs), Beau McGough (17-95 rushing, 1 TD) and Bryce Harless (5-76 receiving) led the Knights. Spring Hill Coach Greg Smith said Centerpoint has a model program. “It’s a great example of how to build a program,” he said. “Those kinds of programs are what we want to be and want our kids to see. They do a great job using their kids, and the kids play hard.”

Class 3A Horatio (1-1) at  LAFAYETTE COUNTY (1-1): Horatio defeated Class 2A Foreman 26-22 to end the Lions' 10-game losing streak. Lafayette County lost to Class 5A De Queen 19-17 last week. The Cougars won the most recent matchup against Horatio 42-38. Lafayette County gave Class 5A De Queen a run for its money. The Cougars rallied from a 19-0 halftime deficit before falling 19-17, holding De Queen to 11 yards in the second half. Jaz’mond Raadford had 2 rushing TDs and caught a 31-yard TD pass. Elijah Martin, Ricardo Wimbley and Zakarian Lawson had 7 tackles each. Lafayette County coach Adrian Ivory said Horatio is well coached: “We will have to play well defensively and shut down their power running game to have a chance to win.”

BAPTIST PREP (2-0) at Class 3A LR Episcopal (0-2): Baptist Prep moved into the Top 20 after beating Mountainburg 28-21 last week. Sophomore WR Aaron Field caught 11 passes for 245 yards and 2 TDs. QB Nick Cummings was 15 of 21 passing for 277 yards and 3 TDs. Jacob Dunn and Levi Yeager each had 9 tackles. Baptist Prep Coach Riley Perkins said Episcopal’s coaches do a great job. “Coach Fortner was a great hire and definitely has them moving in the right direction,” Perkins said. “It will be a tough game due to the rivalry between the schools and the fact that Episcopal has a lot of talent at the skill positions."