Hootens.com Rankings
Class 4A, Week 13, 2012
Copyright Hooten Publishing, Inc.

1. Stuttgart (10-1)
2. Nashville (10-2)
3. Highland (12-0)
4. Prairie Grove (11-0)
5. Warren (9-3)
6. Ozark (10-2)
7. Booneville (8-3)
8. Heber Springs (7-4)
9. Dollarway (10-2)
10. Malvern (9-3)
11. Pottsville (10-2)
12. Pea Ridge (10-2)
13. Dardanelle (9-3)
14. CAC (7-4)
15. Newport (8-4)
16. Mena (6-6)
17. Arkadelphia (9-2)
18. Farmington (7-4)
19. Lonoke (6-5)
20. Valley View (7-4)
21. Star City (8-3)
22. Hamburg (6-5)
23. Monticello (5-6)
24. Gosnell (5-6)
25. Gravette (4-7)
26. Maumelle (4-7)
27. Pocahontas (7-4)
28. Crossett (4-7)
29. Arkansas Baptist (3-7-1)
30. Dumas (3-7)
31. Lincoln (5-5)
32. Ashdown (3-7)
33. Bauxite (2-8)
34. Southside Batesville (4-5-1)
35. Jonesboro Westside (4-6)
36. Subiaco Academy (4-6)
37. Clinton (2-8)
38. Cave City (2-7-1)
39. Pulaski Robinson (2-8)
40. Dover (1-9)
41. Gentry (2-8)
42. DeWitt (1-9)
43. Berryville (1-8)
44. Brookland (3-6)
45. Lake Village (1-9)
46. Trumann (0-10)
47. Waldron (0-10)
48. Marianna (0-9)

HOOTENS.COM GAME OF THE WEEK
No. 2 Nashville at No. 4 Prairie Grove
These teams play for the fourth time (all in the past decade), with Nashville winning the past two 49-12 in the second round in 2009 and 49-14 in the 2006 quarterfinals. Prairie Grove stunned the Scrappers 23-12 in the second round in 2003, the final game at Nashville for former coach Billy Laird.
Prairie Grove advances to the quarterfinals for the first time since losing at Nashville in 2006. The undefeated Tigers won the 1-4A title this season, their first league title since 2005. Prairie Grove gave up just 29 points in its opening 10 games, but Pottsville scored 28 points a week ago. The Apaches led Prairie Grove 28-12 in the third quarter, before Prairie Grove rallied and made a key fourth-down stop in the final three minutes. Senior running back Weston Bartholomew ran 18 times for 127 yards and three touchdowns last week, including the game-winner with a minute left. The Tigers shutout seven opponents this year and held Lincoln to a safety. Only two Prairie Grove defensive starters weigh more than 200 pounds. "They are explosive offensively, very athletic and experienced," Nashville coach Billy Dawson said. "I like to watch them play, because they take care of business every week. They are very physical."
Nashville outscores its opponents 28 points weekly. The Scrappers won eight straight games since losing to Arkadelphia 56-42 in Week 4. Coach Billy Dawson links the improvement to Nashville's offensive line. "We talk about our skill kids all the time," Dawson said. "But our line has grown up." Seniors Jalen Whitmore (5-11, 290), a three-year starter, and Juan Quintero (5-10, 215) hold the tackle slots, while senior Cayden Conrad (5-10, 225) plays center. Senior Colton Whisenhunt (6-0, 255) and junior Cameron Alexander (6-3, 300) man the guard positions. Alexander has 26 pancake blocks, and Whisenhunt 10. Senior quarterback Joel Hendry thrives behind the massive offensive line, completing 193 of 297 passes (65 percent) for 3,325 yards and 44 touchdowns, with just eight interceptions. Senior JaKaree Gaines has rushed 120 times for 1,192 yards and 14 TDs and caught 22 passes for 301 yards and two scores this fall. Seniors Lavonte Thomas (45 catches, 932 yards and 16 TDs), Donyell King (43 catches, 757 yards and 10 TDs) and TeSean Green (40 receptions, 581 yards and eight TDs) provide threats on the perimeter.
Senior linebacker Jacolby Crow paces Nashville with 92 tackles and five sacks, while linebacker Kyle Lawrence has 59 tackles and 3.5 sacks. Junior end Treveon Muldrow (52 tackles, two sacks) and junior tackle Tyler Parker (56 tackles, 7.5 sacks) control the defensive front.
Nashville is 19-2 in playoffs under Billy Dawson, with the only losses in quarterfinals to eventual state finalist Dollarway 16-12 in 2008 and at eventual state champion Shiloh Christian 51-49 in 2009.

LAST WEEK
Hootens.com correctly predicted five of eight games (63 percent). For the season, Hootens.com has correctly predicted 262 of 310 games (85 percent).

WEEK 13 PREDICTIONS (favored team in ALL CAPS followed by point spread)
TOP HALF OF THE BRACKET
OZARK (6) at Booneville: These traditional rivals play for the 75th time (Booneville leads the series 46-24-4). Ozark and its 26 seniors beat Booneville 27-6 in this year's opener. The teams also met twice in the same season in 1987 when Ozark won 27-8 in the regular season and 6-0 in the playoffs. The Hillbillies only losses this year where to Prairie Grove 30-6 in Week 4 and at Pea Ridge 14-7 in Week 7. Versatile senior QB Jonathon McKenzie ran for 98 yards and a TD and passed for 94 yards and a score in last week's 33-12 win over Mena. Senior Toby Richard, who missed two months with a separated shoulder, caught four passes for 87 yards and a TD and ran 52 yards for a score, while junior running back Bubba Elder ran for 81 yards and two TDs. Senior linebacker Ethan Hawkins paces Ozark with 130 tackles, while outside linebacker Brandon Brokeshoulder has almost 100 stops.
Booneville's stout rushing attack and stingy defense fuel its run to the quarterfinals. Junior linebacker Damon May paces Booneville with 79 tackles, but junior lineman Dalton Gray impresses opponents with his tenacity. Gray has 55 tackles (44 solos) and five sacks this fall. Gray drove a defender 10 yards off the ball on Jacob Jones' 25-yard TD run in last week's 41-20 win over Newport. Booneville junior QB Cody Harrel has rushed for almost 1,200 yards this fall. "It's the same ole Booneville and Ozark," Ozark coach Jeremie Burns said. "There'll be no surprises because we know each other so well. It'll come down to execution."
Heber Springs at HIGHLAND (10): These are former conference rivals (in the former 2AAA from 1998-2005), with Highland winning all eight contests. Highland returns to the quarterfinals for the first time since losing at eventual state champion McGehee 19-14 in 1999. Rebel coach Spencer Hill preached practice on Thanksgiving during the off-season, reminding the players every day. The Rebels whipped Dollarway 34-24 last week. Senior cornerback Michael Copeland intercepted three passes and returned a fumble 47 yards for a score last week. Senior QB Sterling Stowers has rushed for almost 1,600 yards and 24 TDs and passed for almost 1,600 yards and 22 scores this season, while senior running back Jordan Brewer has rushed for 1,293 yards and 17 TDs. "Stowers is a runner and thrower, but they have some different weapons offensively. They can hurt you in a lot of ways," Heber Springs coach Steve Janski said.
Heber Springs returns to the quarterfinals for the first time since going consecutively from 2008-2009. The Panthers finished fourth in the 2-4A this fall, losing to top seeds Stuttgart, Dollarway and Newport by an average of 43-17. But the improved Panthers won at Star City 33-7 and Pea Ridge 42-21 in the playoffs. They trailed Pea Ridge 21-6 at halftime last week before shifting receiver Clint Ligon to running back. Ligon ran eight times for 117 yards and caught four passes for 88 yards in the second half. Ligon (more than 1,000 total yards this fall) lines up at QB, running back and receiver. Ligon and fellow seniors Derrik Fisher and Ethan Bly stepped up as leaders over the past two months. Bly, an inside linebacker, broke his leg early in the season and didn't return to full strength until Week 8. Junior QB Michael Kramer has passed for almost 1,600 yards and 14 TDs this fall.

BOTTOM HALF OF THE BRACKET
Warren at STUTTGART (8): A battle of conference champs. Warren has never lost to Stuttgart with Bo Hembree as coach, beating the Ricebirds 28-13 and 35-31 in the regular season in 2004 and 2005, then winning 35-0 in the 2006 semifinals and 46-37 in the second round of the playoffs in 2007. But Stuttgart physically dominated Warren in a preseason scrimmage. The Ricebirds won the 2-4A title this fall with a defense surrendering less than 12 points weekly. Stuttgart jumped on Dardanelle 40-0 in the second quarter last week, coasting to a 54-0 decision. Stuttgart senior QB Dontrell Brown has passed for 1,200 yards and 12 TDs this fall.
Warren advances to the quarterfinals for the first time since losing to Nashville by 10 points in third round in 2007. Warren junior QB Drake Jones has passed for 1,508 yards and 15 TDs this fall, while sophomore Justin Gorman has passed for 1,084 yards and 12 scores. Sophomore Kilay Cox caught the game-winning 52-yard TD pass against Malvern last week, and Cox has rushed for 1,536 yards and 20 TDs this fall.
NASHVILLE (11) at Prairie Grove: Hootens.com Class 4A Game of the Week.