Hootens.com Rankings
Class 2A, Week 7, 2012
Copyright Hooten Publishing, Inc.

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

HOOTENS.COM GAME OF THE WEEK
No. 15 Mountainburg at No. 7 Hackett
Mountainburg has not been tested since a Week 1 (48-20) loss to Class 3A Cedarville. The Dragons are huge up front led by senior tackle/noseguard Stephen Stearman (6-5, 305), who terrorized Hackett last year in a 35-32 Mountainburg win. Senior flanker Frank James got the cast off his hand last week and responded with 14 carries for 138 yards, two receptions and recorded eight tackles at linebacker in a 35-12 win over Hector. Two weeks ago, senior QB Nathan Jones completed 18 of 26 passes for 285 yards and two TDs against J.C. Westside. Hackett counters with a small (one player over 200 pounds) but quick defense paced by senior MLB Aaron Ramey. Junior QB William Thomas has completed 73 percent of his passes for 1,200 yards. Leading receiver Tanner Sweeten, a former 8-man star at Arkoma, Okla., has receptions for more than 500 yards.

TV SHOW
Hooten's Arkansas Football airs 8:30 a.m. Saturdays on KARZ 42 (Little Rock) and Fox 24 (Fayetteville/Fort Smith) and 11 p.m. Sundays on KAIT 8 (ABC, Jonesboro), featuring the top players and teams from across the state.

LAST WEEK
Hootens.com correctly picked 22 of 26 games (85 percent) involving Class 2A teams. Hootens.com has picked 155 of 183 (85 percent) games this season.

WEEK 7 PREDICTIONS (favored team in ALL CAPS followed by point spread)
3-2A
McCrory at SALEM (6): Salem had to replace four of five starters up front, but the new offensive line has gelled, opening holes for its junior backfield of dual-threat QB Dillon Turner, fullback Augustus Freeman and TB J.J. Gray. McCrory all-state RB Logan Best ran 22 times for 153 yards (three of carries for 116 yards) and a TD last week in a 20-6 loss to EPC, despite EPC using a spy to track Best most of the night.
Marked Tree at WALNUT RIDGE (18): No. 11 Walnut Ridge skilled players not all slight receivers. Senior all-league FB Tyler Clement (5-9, 220) is a dandy runner in the Bobcats' misdirection offense. He ran for more than 80 yards against EPC. Walnut Ridge hammered Cross County 48-6 last week.
Cedar Ridge at E. POINSETT COUNTY (42): No. 5 EPC stout on both sides of the football, averaging 377 yards and 36 ppg, while giving up 201 yards and 12 ppg. Junior tackle leader Tristan McDaniel (75 stops) collected 21 tackles last week while spying on McCrory's Logan Best.
Cross County at AUGUSTA (1): Must win for both teams trying to stay in playoff picture.

4-2A
Mountainburg at HACKETT (3): See Game of the Week.
HECTOR (6) at Union Christian: Hector junior TB Gus Nichols has rushed for a team-high 650 yards. Senior QB Logan Riley has completed 57 precent of his passes for 900 yards, and leading receiver Hunter Davis has 539 receiving yards and seven TDs. UC junior Brett Calhoun leads the Eagles in rushing (365 yards) and tackles (70).
MAGAZINE (35) at Hartford: Magazine makes it four in a row after 0-3 start. Hartford owns 24-game losing streak, dating to Week 10, 2008. The Hustlers did not field a team in 2009.
Western Yell at DECATUR (35): Decatur has posted back-to-back wins over J.C. Westside 41-28 and McDonald County, Mo. JV 48-0. Decatur did not field a team in 2009.
Johnson County Westside is open.

5-2A
BIGELOW (28) at Poyen: Bigelow's defense has held every opponent this fall to less than 250 total yards. Senior linebackers Jake Koy and Jake Starks racked up 25 and 24 tackles, respectively, last week vs. Mountain Pine. Senior RB Terrell Dunlap (530 rushing yards in 2012) ran four times for 136 yards in the first quarter last week. Poyen loves to hit, but players ejected for the second week in a row.
CONWAY CHRISTIAN (16) at Quitman: No. 14 Conway Christian wins a shootout. CC's pass-catch tandem of Tanner Stevenson to Andrew Dather almost unstoppable. Stevenson passed for 281 yards and three TDs last week in a 48-13 win over Mount Ida. Finally healthy again (missed four games), Dather caught caught nine balls for 259 yards.
Cutter M Star at MOUNT IDA (1): Mount Ida has struggled with injuries to QB Dustin Elder and RB Josh Hall (ankle). The Lions could not defend the pass last week in a 48-15 loss at Conway Christian. Cutter rallied to beat Poyen 13-12 last week.
MAGNET COVE (39) at Mountain Pine: Last week, Quitman slowed Magnet Cove's leading rusher Adam Davidson, but senior QB Adam Efird rushed 13 times for 95 yards and three TDs as No. 12 Magnet Cove won 34-12. Efird has completed 50 percent of his passes for 600 yards.

6-2A
BRINKLEY (2) at Marvell: Brinkley going through growing pains with new Pistol offense with several bad snaps last week. Marvell likes to throw it long and go get it.
Clarendon at PAL.-WHEATLEY (4): Patriots riding high after 30-20 mild upset of Des Arc. Clarendon dressing out 18 and struggling. Hazen had three 'backs go over 100 yards last week in a 48-14 win at Clarendon.
Des Arc at ENGLAND (10): England's confidence growing weekly with five straight wins. Des Arc junior Jalen Holloway (cast on arm) no longer at QB as injuries continue to gut promising season.
Hazen at CARLISLE (15): Big rivalry game. Carlisle shut out Hazen two of past four years and has dominated the series, winning 21 times since 1988. In 2009, Hazen beat Carlisle 26-18 in three overtimes to claim its first conference title since 1985. Over the past three weeks, starters for both teams have played about four total quarters in blowout wins. Carlisle senior QB Chris Hart running more bootlegs and passing out of Carlisle's patented Double Slot set. Hazen junior RB Alundis Mosby averages more than 100 yards per game. A week ago, he ran 13 times for 128 yards and a TD at Clarendon.

7-2A
Foreman at SIMMS (TX) JAMES BOWIE (1): Evenly matched on paper . Simms James Bowie runs the Wing T and Dead T and likes to blitz. Foreman counters with its total offense and tackle leader, Jordan Hardwrick, who torched Dierks two weeks ago for 72 yards rushing, 255 yards passing and five TDs.
GURDON (35) at Spring Hill: No. 6 Gurdon has the look of a title(s) team with good size and team speed and leadership at the QB position in Austin Kirkpatrick. The junior has accounted for 1,200 yards and 15 TDs this fall.
MINERAL SPRINGS (2) at Murfreesboro: Huge rivalry. Mineral Springs QB Kendrick Langston makes the Hornets go, and senior receiver Evante Evans emerged at RB last week while Rashad Williams was slowed by an ankle injury suffered Week 5 vs. Gurdon. Murfreesboro, led last week by senior Tyler Hodge (6-0, 250) at noseguard, played its best defense of the season in 21-10 loss at Gurdon. Senior LB Blake Hinds paces the Rattlers in tackles and intensity.
DIERKS (2) at Lafayette County: Dierks receives forfeit from Lafayette County. Dierks' hopes of beating Mineral Springs last week took a major blow when All-7-2A RB Remington Jester went down with an ankle injury.

8-2A
BEARDEN (8) at Norphlet: Bearden historian Jackie Bevill calls this Bearden's oldest rivalry and the 63rd meeting. Bearden has won 22 of the past 24 in the series. Bearden has been inconsistent this fall, especially on defense, giving up 189 yards two weeks ago to Parkers Chapel RB Philip Hay. Norphlet did not score until the fourth quarter against reserves last week at Rison in a 32-6 loss.
STRONG (42) at Hermitage: Strong made a fourth-down stand in the fourth quarter last week against Parkers Chapel to pull away for a 28-21 victory and stay in the playoff race.
JUNCTION CITY (45) at Woodlawn: The Dragons have won 13 league games in a row, third longest such streak in school history. Sophomore RB Jaqwis Dancy paces the Dragons with 72 carries for 589 yards and six TDs. Senior LB Hayden Smith leads Junction City with 51 tackles. JC held Spring Hill to 58 yards on 37 plays last week.
Hampton at PARKERS CHAPEL (2): Parkers Chapel eliminated the turnovers last week but lost a heartbreaker at Strong 28-21, putting the Trojans in danger of missing the playoffs for the second year in a row.
Pine Bluff JV at RISON (1) (Thurs): Rison improving weekly, running roughshod through the 8-2A since losing Week 2 to Junction City 28-9. Last week, Rison rushed for 367 yards in a 32-6 win over Norphlet, while holding the Leopards to 125 yards. Junior Jokenzie Broughton became the first Wildcat this fall to go over 100 yards with 121 yards in 18 attempts. Rison last played the Pine Bluff B team in 1974 and won 26-12. Rison advanced the the state semifinals in 1974 before losing to RB Donnie Bobo and the Atkins Red Devils, according to Rison historian Stan Sadler.