Hootens.com Rankings
Class 2A, Week 9, 2012
Copyright Hooten Publishing, Inc.

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

HOOTENS.COM GAME OF THE WEEK
No. 6 Salem at No. 4 E. Poinsett County
A week ago. Walnut Ridge was supposed to be Salem's stiffest test since beating Class 3A Mayflower 34-28 Week 3. But Salem mercy-ruled Walnut Ridge 44-6 with 465 yards of offense, including 175 rushing yards from junior RB J.J. Gray. All-conference junior QB Dillon Turner completed 10 of 15 passes for 102 yards and two TDs. Salem's fantastic front spearheads a defense that has allowed 31 points in seven (of eight) wins (4.4 ppg). EPC counters with a speedy Spread attack that averages 7.4 yards per rushing play, 19 yards per pass play and 39 ppg. Sophomore QB Aaron Scales has completed 61 percent of his passes for 1,022 yards and 17 TDs with just two interceptions. The EPC defense allows 181 yards and 11.8 ppg, led by junior safety Tristan McDaniel's 99 tackles. EPC defeated Walnut Ridge 42-40 Week 5.

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

LAST WEEK
Hootens.com correctly picked 19 of 24 games (79 percent) involving Class 2A teams. Hootens.com has picked 197 of 232 (85 percent) games this season.

WEEK 9 PREDICTIONS (favored team in ALL CAPS followed by point spread)
3-2A
Augusta at WALNUT RIDGE (35): No. 10 Walnut Ridge keeps a grip on third place in the league, bouncing back after giving up 465 yards in a 44-6 loss to Salem.
Cedar Ridge at MCCRORY (21): McCrory senior RB/LB Logan Best (4.0 GPA) has rushed for 1,100 yards with more than 200 yards receiving this season despite battling injuries. Extensive highlights of McCrory's win last week at Marked Tree can be seen at www.hootens.com
MARKED TREE (2) at Cross County: Cross County had managed 18 points in five league games before scoring 38 last week on Cedar Ridge. Senior all-state wingback Darius Ivy still running hard for Marked Tree, which likely locks up the fourth playoff seed with a win. Extensive highlights of Marked Tree's game last week against McCrory can be seen at www.hootens.com
SALEM (8) at E. Poinsett County: See Game of the Week.

4-2A
HACKETT (8) at J.C. Westside: Hackett's trip to the 7-2A last week did not go well, allowing 500 yards in a 47-34 loss at Dierks. J.C. Westside moved into a tie for third place in the 4-2A last week with a 12-8 win at Magazine, its first win over the Rattlers since 2008.
Hartford at WESTERN YELL COUNTY (1): Two evenly matched teams. WYC has scored 48 points in six league losses. Hartford has managed 34 points in six league losses.
MOUNTAINBURG (21) at Magazine: No. 15 Mountainburg locks up the second playoff seed, at least, with the win. The Dragons would play host to a winnable first-round game against the No. 4 team from the 6-2A.
Union Christian at DECATUR (2): Decatur bounces back from a 25-20 loss at Hector. Decatur still fighting to make playoffs for first time since 1997 and will likely need to win next week against Magazine to get there.
Midland JV at HECTOR (15): Hector bottled up Decatur's Victor Urquidi pretty well last week and notched it biggest victory (25-20) in five years for first-year head coach Mark Taylor.

5-2A
Cutter M. Star at BIGELOW (21): No. 16 Bigelow finds the end zone more often this week after rolling up 314 yards last week at Magnet Cove but had just six points to show for it after three interceptions. Cutter likely loses its last two in the regular season but could still earn its first playoff berth since 2009. Highlights of Magnet Cove's win last week over Bigelow can be seen at www.hootens.com
MAGNET COVE (6) at Conway Christian: Conway Christian senior QB Tanner Stevenson (1,689 passing yards this fall) completed 15 of 15 attempts last week for 279 yards and three TDs in a 22-point win over Cutter Morning Star. Magnet Cove counters with a secondary that has intercepted 21 passes this season, the most in more than a decade at the school. Senior QB Hunter Linam, who also plays cornerback, completed 12 passes for 217 yards and a TD and he ran for two more TDs in last week's 20-6 win against Bigelow. Highlights of Magnet Cove's win last week over Bigelow can be seen at www.hootens.com
POYEN (10) at Mountain Pine: A week after notching the first win in the Coach Vic Barrett era, the Indians make it two in a row.
MOUNT IDA (7) at Quitman: Mount Ida keeps playoff hopes alive and hands reeling Quitman its fourth straight loss.

6-2A
CARLISLE (18) at Des Arc: The two combined for 110 points last week in blowout victories. Carlisle closes the regular season at England, likely for the No. 2 playoff seed. That second seed will play host to the No. 4 seed from the 5-2A and a difficult second-round draw.
HAZEN (8) at England: No. 9 Hazen controlled the line of scrimmage and beat Carlisle 16-14 two weeks ago. England plays at Carlisle next week in the regular-season finale to determine Top 3 playoff seeding. Sophomore QB Tyrik Harris triggers an England offense that Coach Terry Farmer has shut down at halftime five of the past six weeks in blowouts. Senior linebackers Hollis Hankins and Curtis Rogers pace an England defense that has allowed 79 points (some against reserves) over the past six weeks.
CLARENDON (2) at Marvell: Clarendon trailed England 31-0 in the second quarter last week and lost by the same score. The winner gets out of the 6-2A basement.
PAL.-WHEATLEY (6) at Brinkley: P-W all but secures playoff berth.

7-2A
MURFREESBORO (21) at Foreman: Foreman did not fire a shot last week in a 52-0 loss to Mineral Springs. On the other end of the spectrum, Murfreesboro senior QB Peter Saygnaphy accounted for five TDs in a 72-32 win over Spring Hill. Murfreesboro sits in second place behind Gurdon, but the Rattlers travel to Dierks Week 10.
Spring Hill at DIERKS (21): Dierks RBs Andy Tedder and Kirby Allen both went over 100 yards rushing, and Adam Bradshaw passed for another 214 yards last week in a 47-34 win over 4-2A front-runner Hackett.
Gurdon at BEARDEN (1): Can No. 2 Bearden put back-to-back wins together against quality opponents? The 8-2A Bears have won five straight after holding off Rison 26-20 last week for an emotional win. Bearden ran just 24 plays but big-played Rison with an 88-yard TD pass and 100 yards on three kick returns. Gurdon, the 7-2A front-runner, was idle last week. Gurdon junior QB Austin Kirkpatrick has passed for 735 yards and 11 TDs with three interceptions. He has run for another 604 yards and seven TDs. Senior TE/DE Ed Hood paces the receivers with 15 receptions, seven of those for TDs. Highlights of Bearden's win last week over Rison can be seen at www.hootens.com
MINERAL SPRINGS (13) at Lafayette County: Mineral Springs gets 13-point forfeit from conference opponent Lafayette County.

8-2A
Strong at RISON (12): Incredible numbers from the Cleveland County Herald after Rison's 26-20 loss at Bearden last week. Rison was 9-0 all-time when an opponent ran fewer than 30 plays (Bearden ran 24). Rison was 150-5-1 all-time when it rushed for over 300 yards (319 vs Bearden). Of Coach Clay Totty's 40 losses in 15 years at Rison, it was just the fifth time for the Wildcats to lose when the opponent rushed for less than 60 yards (57 for Bearden). Highlights of Rison's game last week at Bearden can be seen at www.hootens.com
Hampton at NORPHLET (28): Norphlet looks like it will end up as the No. 4 playoff seed. Norphlet scored 14 unanswered points in the second half last week to get out of Strong with a critical 34-26 win. Senior QB Mike Tipton completed 16 of 23 passes for 171 yards and three TDs.
JUNCTION CITY (45) at Hermitage: Junction City has won 15 conference games in a row. Junction City historian Wayne Pumphrey reports that senior QB Shaq Hunter set three records last week in a 50-point win over Parkers Chapel. He passed for 270 yards and completed five TD passes last week. He has passed for 22 career TDs. Senior LB Hayden Smith has recorded a team-high 63 tackles this season.
Woodlawn at PARKERS CHAPEL (20): Senior night at Parkers Chapel where the Trojans play their final game of 2012 and miss the playoffs for consecutive seasons.
Gurdon at BEARDEN (1): Can No. 2 Bearden put back-to-back wins together against quality opponents? The 8-2A Bears have won five straight after holding off Rison 26-20 last week for an emotional win. Bearden ran just 24 plays but big-played Rison with an 88-yard TD pass and 100 yards on three kick returns. Gurdon, the 7-2A front-runner, was idle last week. Gurdon junior QB Austin Kirkpatrick has passed for 735 yards and 11 TDs with three interceptions. He has run for another 604 yards and seven TDs. Senior TE/DE Ed Hood paces the receivers with 15 receptions, seven of those for TDs. Highlights of Bearden's win last week over Rison can be seen at www.hootens.com