Hootens.com Class 3A Rankings

Week 11, 2024

1. Fordyce (10-0)

2. Bismarck (10-0)

3. Mansfield (8-2)

4. Prescott (9-1)

5. Booneville (9-1)

6. Osceola (8-1)

7. Rivercrest (9-1)

8. Charleston (6-4)

9. Rison (9-1)

10. Newport (8-2)

11. Walnut Ridge (7-3)

12. McGehee (6-4) 

13. Salem (7-3) 

14. Glen Rose (7-3)

15. Fouke (7-3)

16. Melbourne (8-2)

17. Atkins (7-3)

18. Mayflower (8-2)

19. Harmony Grove OC (6-4)

20. Jessieville (8-2)

Not Ranked:

1-3A: Cedarville (2-8), Greenland (4-6), Hackett (2-8), Lavaca (5-5), West Fork (3-7).

2-3A: Episcopal (0-10), Mountain View (4-6), Quitman (5-5), Yellville-Summit (4-6).

3-3A: Harrisburg (1-9), Hoxie (4-6) Manila (1-9), Piggott (0-10)

4-3A: Cutter Morning Star (1-9), Danville (3-7), Magnet Cove (6-4), Paris (3-7), Perryville (7-3),  Two Rivers (0-10)

7-3A: Centerpoint (6-4), Horatio (2-8), Parkers Chapel (1-9), Smackover (4-6)

8-3A: Barton (4-6), Drew Central (2-8), Lake Village (1-9), Palestine-Wheatley (4-5), Dumas(4-6)

HOOTENS.COM GAME OF THE WEEK

8-3A (3) McGehee (6-4) at 3-3A (3) NEWPORT (8-2): McGehee fell to Fordyce 30-10 in Week 10, locking the Owls into a third-place finish in the 8-3A behind Rison and Fordyce. The McGehee defense held a Fordyce offense that is averaging nearly 50 points a game to its lowest scoring output of the season. Newport beat Harrisburg 42-7 last week. QB Luke Reynolds (10-15 passing, 188 yards, 3 TDs; 6-24 rushing, 1 TD), RB Tonio Phillips (9-77 rushing) and WR Demetric Denton (3-91 receiving, 1 TD) led offense. Jack Sampson (9 tackles, 2 TFLs) and Denton (2 tackles, 1 forced fumble, 2 INTs) anchored the defense. It's notable that Newport has never beaten McGehee in a playoff matchup. They played each other in 2017 and 2018 in the second round. 

LAST WEEK

Hootens.com correctly predicted 22 of 24 games from Week 10 (92 percent).

WEEK 11 PREDICTIONS (Favored team highlighted and CAPS)

TOP OF THE BRACKET

7-3A (1) Bismarck (10-0): Has a first-round bye.

2-3A (4) ATKINS (7-3) at 2-4A (3) Perryville (7-3): Atkins beat Mayflower 29-22 behind QB Cole Crawford (145 yards, 1 TD) and Jaden Martin (3 rushing TDs). Daeton Adame (10 tackles) anchored the defense. Perryville shut out Magnet Cove 41-0. QB Connor Frith (7-10 passing, 248 yards, 4 TDs), WR Ethan Evans (3-99 receiving, 1 TD) and WR Wyatt Drennan (52 receiving, 1 TD). Wyatt Machen (6 tackles, 3 sacks, 4 TFLs) led the defense. Perryville and Atkins were in the same conference from 2014 to this year so both teams are familiar with each other. 

7-3A (5) Centerpoint (6-4) at 3-3A (1) OSCEOLA (8-1): Centerpoint fell to Prescott 19-0 last week, but the Knights held Prescott to a season-low in points after shutting the Curley Wolves out in the first half. Osceola beat Manila 35-8 last Friday to claim the outright 3-3A conference title. RB Jeremiah Jacobs (7 carries, 63 yards) led a Seminoles offense that averaged 8 yards a carry. Centerpoint will have to deal with a bus ride of more than 250 miles to play in northeast Arkansas, an area Osceola fans refer to as Seminoles Nation. Centerpoint overcame that travel hurdle 3 seasons ago when they made the trip to Osceola in the first round in 2021 walking away with a 29-14 win.

2-3A (3) Melbourne (8-2) at 1-3A (3) CHARLESTON (6-4): Melbourne beat Mountain View 31-14 last week behind QB Wyatt Buchanan (17-24 passing, 120 yards, 1 TD; 12 carries, 63 yards), RB Carson Medina (16 carries, 103 yards, 1 TD) and WR Malcolm Hammack (3 catches, 34 yards, 1 TD). Fernando Ventura (13 tackles, 1 TFL) and Brycen Young (12 tackles, 2 TFLs) anchored the defense. Charleston beat Greenland 44-13 with QB Carter Little (11-18 passing, 234 yards, 4 TDs; 1 rushing TD) and WR Emiliano Gaona (2 catches, TD) leading the offense. Gaona (fumble recovery) and David McKamie (22-yard fumble recovery for TD) led the defense. The teams last met when opening the season against each other in 2018 and 2019. Charleston won 37-14 in 2018; Melbourne won 28-24 in 2019.

3-3A (5) Hoxie (4-6) at 8-3A (1) FORDYCE (10-0): Hoxie fell to Walnut Ridge 35-0 last week despite a productive effort from Prechton Wilkerson (25 carries, 101 yards). Dylann Barnhill (10 tackles) anchored the defense. Fordyce beat McGehee 30-10 last week to claim the outright 8-3A conference titles last week and remains No. 1 overall in the 3A rankings. Freshman QB Cadillac Ellison (85-128 passing, 1,723 yards, 20 TDs; 399 rushing, 6 TDs) leads on offense. The Fordyce defense is holding opponents to 9.7 PPG this year. Fordyce beat Hoxie 34-26 in the first round of the 2011 playoffs, the last time they met in the postseason.

8-3A (5) Palestine-Wheatley (4-5) at 4-3A (2) JESSIEVILLE (8-2): Palestine-Wheatley beat Lake Village 35-18 to earn a playoff spot for the second time since 2017. Jessieville beat Cutter Morning Star 54-32 last Friday. QB Dalton Ellison (97 yards rushing, 2 TDs), RB Jacob Graves (231 yards rushing, 3 TDs) and RB Jacob Marquez (77 yards rushing, 2 TDs) helped the Lions secure a second-place finish in the 4-3A conference. This will be the first time these teams have met in the playoffs.

4-3A (4) Magnet Cove (6-4) at 1-3A (2) BOONEVILLE (9-1): Magnet Cove fell to Perryville 41-0 last week, the first time it has been shut out since 2018. The Panthers finished the season fourth in the 4-3A conference. Booneville beat Lavaca 49-6 behind QB Jace Washburn (82 yards passing, 1 TD), RBs Conner Lentz (8 carries, 117 yards, 2 TDs) and Hunter Warren (15 carries, 106 yards, 1 TD) and WR Rhett Nietert (1 catch, 69 yards, 1 TD). Clayton Green (5 tackles) and Seth Wilson (4 tackles) led on defense. This will be the first time these teams have played each other in the playoffs.

1-3A (4) Lavaca (5-5) at 2-3A (2) MAYFLOWER (8-2): Lavaca fell to Booneville 49-6 last week. Auston Hamilton (7 tackles) and Alex Townley (6 tackles) led Lavaca's defense defense. Mayflower fell to Atkins 29-22 last week despite solid efforts from QB Tre Cockerham (9-14 passing, 104 yards, 2 TDs), RB Devon Davis (28 carries, 133 yards, 1 TD) and WR Kam Willis (5 catches, 86 yards, 2 TDs). Teegan Adams (12 tackles) and Marcus Phillips (10 tackles) anchored the defense. Lavaca beat Mayflower 43-37 in the second round of the 2009 playoffs

BOTTOM OF THE BRACKET

4-3A (1) Glen Rose (7-3): Has a first-round bye.

8-3A (4) Dumas (4-6) at 7-3A (3) HARMONY GROVE OUACHITA COUNTY (6-4): Dumas beat Drew Central 16-7 last week behind QB Darnail Walker (11-17 passing, 85 yards, 1 TD) and Rashad Moore (16 carries, 108 yards, 1 TD) leading the offense. Jordan Kinney (9 tackles) led the defense. Harmony Grove Ouachita County beat Parkers Chapel 56-6 last Friday, the 4th time in the past 6 games the Hornets have scored 50 points or more. QB Damien Burns (2 TD passes; 1 rushing TD), Colton Fogle (2 TD catches) and Damariyon Billingly (1 TD rushing) led the offense. Zach Walker returned an interception for a TD. This is the first time these teams have played each other in the playoffs.

4-3A (5) Paris (3-7) at 1-3A (1) MANSFIELD (8-2): Paris beat Two Rivers 42-0 last week to earn a playoff spot for the first time since 2021. QB Josh Honea (7-12 passing, 103 yards, 1 TD) and Jestin Churchman (15 carries, 106 yards, 2 TDs) led the offense. Mansfield beat West Fork 42-8 to claim its first outright conference title since 2010. Daniel Burton (7 carries, 253 yards, 3 TDs) and Jeremy Strozier (6 carries, 88 yards) led the offense. Burton added 5 tackles on defense, while Strozier also had 5 and a tackle for loss. Both teams know each other well having been conference opponents several times over the years, and Paris will have the shortest travel time (just under an hour) of any first-round 3A matchup.

8-3A (3) McGehee (6-4) at 3-3A (3) NEWPORT (8-2): See Hootens.com Game of the Week, above.

1-3A (5) West Fork (3-7) at 2-3A (1) SALEM (7-3): West Fork, coming off a 42-8 loss to Mansfield, makes its first playoff appearance since 2021. Salem beat Quitman 68-35 behind QB Jackson Taylor (14 carries, 128 yards, 3 TDs), RB Kaden Brink (26-265 rushing, 3 TDs) and RB Caleb Leisenring (11-154 rushing, 3 TDs) as the Greyhounds produced 633 offensive yards. West Fork makes the 160-mile trek with a drive time of 3 hours and 20 minutes up to Salem. This is the first time these teams played each other in the playoffs.

2-3A (5) Quitman at 7-3A (2) PRESCOTT (9-1): Quitman fell to Salem 68-35 last week despite the efforts of QB Jordon Moore-Payne (20-33 passing, 273 yards, 3 TDs), WR Devin Boyce (5 catches, 78 yards, 2 TDs) and WR Jarmare Lovelace (5 catches, 71 yards, 1 TD). Prescott shut out Centerpoint 19-0 last week. QB Decari Prater (15-78 rushing, 1 TD) and D’Wayne White (12-77 rushing, 1 TD) led the Curley Wolves. Quitman will travel 150 miles with a 2-hour, 22-minute drive time to Prescott. This will be the first time these teams have played each other.

7-3A (4) Fouke (7-3) at 3-3A (2) RIVERCREST (9-1): Fouke beat Smackover 55-53 last week. QB Terrell Robinson (6-10 passing, 190 yards, 2 TDs; 2 rushing TDs), RB Joshua Scoggins (8-55 rushing, 1 TD) and RB Dylan Sprayberry (23-250 rushing, 3 TDs; 3-111 receiving, 2 TDs) led the Panthers. Rivercrest beat Manila 54-16 last Friday with RB Terry Gentry (3-78 rushing, 1 TD), WR Buddah Harris (2-76 receiving, 1 TD) and WR Jakavion Williams (3-78 receiving, 2 TDs) leading on offense. Nolan Williams (8 tackles) and Andrew Lomack (8 tackles) anchored the defense. Fouke will have to contend with a 316-mile bus trip to Wilson. This is the first time these teams have met in the playoffs.

3-3A (4) Walnut Ridge (7-3) at 8-3A (2) RISON (9-1):

Walnut Ridge shutout Hoxie 35-0 last week. RB Enrique Perez (12 carries, 77 yards and 2 TDs), QB Jersie Cunningham (88 yards passing, 2 TDs; 12 rushes, 45 yards, 1 TD) and Jace Blake (5 carries, 85 yards; 2 catches, 70 yards) led the Bobcats offense to the win. Rison beat Barton 56-28 last week. It was the third time in four games the Wildcats have scored 40 or more points. After only grabbing 3 wins last season, the Wildcats bounced back winning 9 in the regular season this year and finishing 2nd in the conference. Walnut Ridge will travel nearly 200 miles with a 2 hour and 45 minute drive time for the first round matchup in Rison. The Bobcats have faced this situation before and came out on top traveling to and beating Rison 62-40 in the first round of the 2012 playoffs eventually making it to the semi finals that year.