Hootens.com Rankings
Class 2A, Week 5, 2012
Copyright Hooten Publishing, Inc.

1. Junction City (3-1)
2. Bearden (2-2)
3. Carlisle (3-0)
4. Rison (2-2)
5. E. Poinsett County (4-0)
6. Gurdon (4-0)
7. Hackett (4-0)
8. Mineral Springs (3-1)
9. Norphlet (3-1)
10. Salem (4-0)
11. Walnut Ridge (3-0)
12. Parkers Chapel (2-2)
13. McCrory (2-1)
14. Magnet Cove (3-1)
15. Strong (2-2)
16. Conway Christian (3-1)
17. Mountainburg (3-1)
18. Mount Ida (2-2)
19. Dierks (3-1)
20. Bigelow (3-0)
21. Murfreesboro (3-1)
22. Quitman (2-2)
23. Magazine (1-3)
24. England (3-1)
25. Marked Tree (2-2)
26. Hazen (2-2)
27. Des Arc (2-2)
28. Cross County (2-1-1)
29. Foreman (3-1)
30. Clarendon (1-3)
31. J.C. Westside (2-2)
32. Hampton (0-2)
33. Augusta (2-2)
34. Brinkley (0-4)
35. Spring Hill (0-4)
36. Woodlawn (0-4)
37. Decatur (1-3)
38. Poyen (0-4)
39. Union Christian (0-4)
40. Cutter M. Star (3-1)
41. Hector (2-2)
42. Palestine-Wheatley (1-3)
43. Mountain Pine (0-4)
44. Cedar Ridge (0-4)
45. Hermitage (1-3)
46. Lafayette County (0-4)
47. Western Yell County (0-4)
48. Marvell (0-4)
49. Hartford (0-4)

HOOTENS.COM GAME OF THE WEEK
No. 6 Gurdon at No. 8 Mineral Springs

Gurdon senior TE/DE Ed Hood (6-5, 210) leads an improving defense that limited explosive Dierks last week in a 41-21 victory. Junior Mason Clark is playing well at linebacker, and sophomore cornerback Alonzo Leeper could develop into one of Gurdon's better D-backs in recent memory. Junior QB Austin Kirkpatrick has passed for more than 500 yards this fall. Mineral Springs counters with one of the bigger front lines in 2A football spearheaded by senior DT and top recruit Derrick Muldrew (6-2, 315). The Mineral Springs offense features senior TB Rashad Williams, who is running less this fall and staying on the field more after an injury-shortened 2011 season. Williams ran 10 times last week in a 50-42 come-from-behind win over Redwater, Texas. A year ago, Williams played only 10 snaps in a the 20-13 loss to Gurdon.

TV SHOW
Hooten's Arkansas Football airs Saturday mornings at 8:30 on KARZ 42 (Little Rock) and Fox 24 (Fayetteville/Fort Smith), featuring the top players and teams from across the state.

LAST WEEK
Hootens.com correctly picked 21 of 25 games (84 percent) involving Class 2A teams, nailing the point spread on three of four 7-2A games. Hootens.com has picked 111 of 132 (84 percent) games this season.

WEEK 5 PREDICTIONS (favored team in ALL CAPS followed by point spread)
3-2A
Cedar Ridge at MARKED TREE (6): Winless Cedar Ridge allows 38 ppg. Marked Tree senior RB Darius Ivy has rushed for more than 300 yards. Senior DL Hunter Hood leads Marked Tree in tackles.
E. POINSETT COUNTY (5) at Walnut Ridge: No. 11 Walnut Ridge ran in the first half last week at McCrory where the game was tied at 14-14 at halftime. In the second half, Walnut Ridge QB Zach Crisler took advantage of soft coverage to pass the Bobcats past McCrory 42-14. No. 5 EPC held Cross County to less than 200 yards, recorded eight sacks, forced two fumbles and intercepted a pass in 35-0 blowout. All-league LB Byron Scales paces EPC with 54 tackles. EPC's better athletes play in its secondary where Jammar Sturdivant, Trevor McDaniel and Quin Young have an interception apiece.
McCRORY (2) at Cross County: Penalties and turnovers hurt McCrory last week in a 42-14 loss to Walnut Ridge. Cross County RB Dylan Hudson ran for more than 100 yards last week at EPC.
SALEM (15) at Augusta: No. 10 Salem beat Augusta 67-32 last year. The unbeaten Greyhounds face a season-defining stretch Weeks 7 through 9 vs. McCrory, Walnut Ridge and EPC.

4-2A
HACKETT (42) at W. Yell County: Hackett extends WYC's losing skid to six games, dating to Week 9, 2011. Hackett whipped WYC 56-0 a year ago.
Hartford at MOUNTAINBURG (39): Air Mountainburg features senior QB Nathan Jones, who's completing 59 percent of his passes for 1,116 yards and nine TDs with one interception. Jones playing defense for the first time since the ninth grade and returned an interception last week vs. J.C. Westside. Dardanelle JV beat winless Hartford 43-14 last week.
Hector at MAGAZINE (2): Hector has won two straight after losing 10 in a row. No. 23 Magazine won its first game of 2012 last week by downing Union Christian 30-7.
J.C. WESTSIDE (12) at Decatur: J.C. Westside more physical and appears on its way to playoff berth for first time since 2009. A third playoff win in school history a real possibility. Senior RB and leading rusher Taylor Houston (5-6, 200) hard to handle.
Union Christian at TALIHINA, OKLA. (14): Undefeated Talihina dresses more than 30. UC allows 429 yards and 39 ppg.

5-2A
Bigelow at MOUNT IDA (2): Bigelow amassed 353 yards last week but managed just 21 points. On three occasions, Bigelow penetrated Quitman's 10-yard line and did not score. The Bigelow defense has allowed just 28 points this year led by senior linebackers Jake Starks, Jake Hoy and Tim Gunn. Mount Ida could not begin to slow down Magnet Cove last week in a 36-point loss, while Mount Ida RB Josh Hall rushed for only 52 yards on a tender ankle.
CONWAY CHRISTIAN (36) at Mountain Pine: Conway Christian QB Tanner Stevenson passed for 288 yards and four TDs last week in a 40-13 win over Poyen. Conway Christian rolled up 480 yards despite losing two fumbles and an interception.
Cutter M Star at QUITMAN (5): Facing its measuring stick, Quitman stood tall last week by pushing Bigelow to overtime before losing 21-14. Quitman, with an improved front line, led 14-0 late in the third quarter.
MAGNET COVE (35) at Poyen: No. 14 Magnet Cove looks like it will defend its 5-2A title after ripping Mount Ida 48-12 a week ago. After four weeks, the Panthers may be the most improved team in 2A football. Poyen ended its scoreless run by putting up 13 points last week at Conway Christian.

6-2A
Brinkley at HAZEN (28): Young Hornets may be most talented group in a young conference, making Hazen a team to watch in 2013-14.
CARLISLE (38) at Clarendon: Air Carlisle averages 11 passes per game with senior QB Chris Hart completing 65 percent of his attempts. Senior LT Clayton Fields (6-1, 290) anchors a line with four new starters this fall.
ENGLAND (32) at Pal.-Wheatley: England sophomore QB Tyrik Harris maturing quickly. He completed 16 of 25 passes for 320 yards and three TDs last week in a 53-14 blowout of Brinkley.
Marvell at DES ARC (56): Des Arc getting healthy again. Marvell drops 20th in a row.

7-2A
Foreman at DIERKS (8): No. 19 Dierks rebounds from a 20-point loss to Gurdon. Gurdon pressured Dierks into three interceptions. Foreman junior FB Eddie Batey ran for 104 yards and two TDs last week in a 34-26 win over Spring Hill. Sophomore Jordan Hardwrick ran for 142 yards and passed for 87 yards.
Gurdon at MINERAL SPRINGS (2): See 2A Game of the Week.
NORPHLET (6) at Murfreesboro: Matchup of two fine athletes at QB: Norphlet senior Mike Tipton and Murfreesboro senior Peter Saygnaphay. Tipton has the better supporting cast. Norphlet's All-8-2A receiver Vincent Hegler returned two punts for TDs last week against Hermitage.
SPRING HILL (2) at Lafayette County: Lafayette County has cancelled the rest of its season and will forfeit the rest of its games.

8-2A
BEARDEN (18) at Parkers Chapel: No. 2 Bearden improving weekly since its Week 1 reality check, a 34-6 loss to Class 3A No. 10 Camden Harmony Grove. Senior DE Markel Johnson recorded 10 tackles and two sacks last week in a 48-8 win over Woodlawn. Parkers Chapel reeling after back-to-back losses, including a 49-14 defeat at Rison. Rison intercepted four Parkers Chapel passes, returning one for a TD.
Hampton at JUNCTION CITY (35): The top-ranked Dragons win their 13th straight in conference action. Senior LBs Hayden Smith and Will Houston lead Junction City with 39 tackles apiece.
RISON (35) at Hermitage: Rison special teams rocked Parkers Chapel last week by blocking a punt, recovering two kickoff fumbles and returning a punt 65 yards for a TD. Rison tackled Parkers Chapel senior RB Philip Hay five times for losses and limited the Arkansas State commit to 70 yards on 17 carries. Rison junior Devonta Jones blocked the punt and recovered a fumbled kickoff.
STRONG (17) at Woodlawn: Strong moved the ball better than Bearden and Rison did against Junction City, but the young Bulldogs managed just 12 points in a 49-12 loss to the top-ranked Dragons.
NORPHLET (6) at Murfreesboro: Matchup of two fine athletes at QB: Norphlet senior Mike Tipton and Murfreesboro senior Peter Saygnaphay. Tipton has the better supporting cast. Norphlet's All-8-2A receiver Vincent Hegler returned two punts for TDs last week against Hermitage.