Class 3A Week 11 Rankings and Playoff Selections

1. ↔ 1. Mansfield (8-2; did not play)
2. ↔ 2. Atkins (9-1; beat Danville 52-16) 
3. ↑  4. Fordyce (7-2; beat McGehee 34-14)
4. ↑  6. Prescott (9-1; beat Centerpoint 44-14)
5. ↑  7. Bismarck (8-2; beat Horatio 55-20)
6. ↑  3. Smackover (8-2; beat Cossatot River 66-0)
7. ↑  9. Glen Rose (7-3; beat Jessieville 49-12)
8. ↑  5. Walnut Ridge (8-2; beat Hoxie 41-0)
9. ↑ 11. Newport (8-2; beat Melbourne 49-14)
10. ↔ 10. Rivercrest (8-2; beat Osceola 32-25)

11. ↑ 12. Melbourne (7-3; lost to Newport 49-14)
12. ↓   8. Helena (6-3; beat Lake Village 30-20)
13. ↑ 14. Lake Village (7-3; lost to Helena 30-20)
14. ↓ 13. Charleston (6-4; beat Lavaca 42-12)
15. ↑ 18. Osceola (6-4; lost to Rivercrest 32-25)
16. ↓ 15. Quitman (8-2; beat Mountain View 31-21)
17. ↑ 19. Cedarville (7-3; beat Greenland 29-16) 
18. ↓ 16. Rison (6-3; did not play)
19. ↑ 20. Lavaca (6-4; lost to Charleston 42-12)
20. ↑ NR Perryville (6-4; beat Conway Christian 35-34)

NOT RANKED:

1-3A: Paris (4-6), West Fork (2-8), Greenland (4-6)

2-3A: Yellville-Summit (3-7), Mountain View (5-5), Riverview (1-9), Marshall (0-10), Salem (3-7)

3-3A: Harrisburg (5-5), Manila (0-10), Piggott (1-9), Palestine-Wheatley (3-7), Hoxie (5-5)

4-3A: Conway Christian (1-9), Two Rivers (0-10), Cutter Morning Star (4-6), Danville (4-6), Jessieville (3-7)

7-3A: Harmony Grove Ouachita County (3-7), Centerpoint (6-4), Parkers Chapel (4-6), Horatio (1-9), Cossatot River (0-10)

8-3A: Dumas (1-8) Drew Central (2-7), McGehee (4-5)

WEEK 11 PREDICTIONS (favored teams in ALL CAPS and highlighted in orange)

TOP OF THE BRACKET

FIRST-ROUND BYE No. 1 2-3A Newport (8-2)

No. 4 3-3A Hoxie (5-5) at No. 3 7-3A SMACKOVER (8-2): Hoxie came back to Earth the past 2 weeks with consecutive losses to Rivercrest and Walnut Ridge by a combined 82-7. The Mustangs use a ground-and-pound attack led by junior Colby Bullard, sophomore Gauge Snyder and sophomore Harper Fears. All 3 have rushed for at least 400 yards this season and combined for 18 rushing scores. Smackover survived the 7-3A gauntlet with its own 3-headed monster of Kieundre Billingley (838 yards), Madison McElroy (732 yards), and Trason Parlor (374 yards), who will be back next year. Plenty of young talent in this matchup with Smackover having the better offense, so they get the nod to advance. 

No. 5 2-3A Salem (3-7) at No. 1 4-3A ATKINS (9-1): This might have been a semifinal matchup the past few years, but here we are with a first-round matchup after 2024 state champion Salem beat Riverview to clinch the last playoff spot in the 2-3A. Atkins has won 9 in a row after dropping the opener to Heber Springs. Senior Brelan Criswell has rushed for 1,479 yards and 18 touchdowns and is one of the top backs in 3A. Salem must stop the Red Devils’ rushing attack to have a chance, but we don’t see that happening. Atkins rolls to the second round. 

No. 3 3-3A Osceola (6-4) at No. 3 8-3A LAKE VILLAGE (7-3): Both teams dropped to the No. 3 seed after competing for their respective conference titles until Week 10 losses. Osceola has senior Kylan Bragg leading the offense; the Beavers counter with talented senior Arlando Wilson Jr. (1,283 rushing yards and 18 touchdowns). Lake Village averages 303 rushing yards per game and will be tough to stop. Osceola shut down Walnut Ridge in Week 9 and will need the same game plan to slow down Lake Village. Lake Village gets the edge as the home team. 

No. 5 4-3A Jessieville (3-7) at No. 1 1-3A MANSFIELD (8-2): Jessieville struggled in the season’s second half with 4 consecutive losses, but senior quarterback Jacob Graves has been electric (1,204 rushing yards, 1,176 passing yards, 27 total touchdowns). Jessieville will have to play keep-away from Mansfield and limit possessions to have a chance. The Tigers’ trio of Jeremiah Burton (959 yards), Silas Burton (1,064 yards) and Colton Moore (768 yards) lead a rushing attack averaging 368 yards per game. The Tigers’ quest to repeat starts at home with a win over a scrappy Jessieville squad. 

No. 5 1-3A Paris (4-6) at No. 2 7-3A BISMARCK (8-2): Paris won its last 2 games to clinch a playoff berth. A 35-33 win over Greenland was the biggest win of the season. The offense has figured some things out in the second half of the season, scoring at least 19 points in its last 7 contests. Bismarck’s 2 losses this season came against Nashville and Prescott, which isn’t bad company. Bismarck is one of the most complete teams in the field, especially on offense with junior dual-threat quarterback Cayden Burch and junior running back Clayton Martinez. Junior Parker Hughes leads the Lions defense. Bismarck is too good and too talented to drop this one, with a potential second-round matchup against defending champion Mansfield looming. 

No. 4 7-3A Centerpoint (6-4) at No. 2 8-3A HELENA (6-3): Centerpoint took care of business against the teams it was supposed to beat but struggled against the heavy hitters in the 7-3A. Senior QB Anthony Valdex passed for 939 yards and 11 touchdowns; Centerpoint uses 4 running backs, with Ely Welch (443 yards) and Braxton Martin (363 yards) leading the way. Helena had the 8-3A conference title stripped from it in Week 9, but had a  nice bounceback win over Lake Village in Week 10 with junior Isaiah Brown (962 rushing yards, 11 TDs) playing big on both sides of the ball; Keveahn Brown had 593 yards on 74 rushes. Helena is one of the toughest places to win, so the Cougars get the nod.

No. 4 8-3A McGehee (4-5) at No. 2 3-3A RIVERCREST (8-2): Rivercrest outlasted Osceola to clinch the No. 2 seed and a share of the conference championship. Lexx Latham rushed for more than 200 yards against the Seminoles to finish with 1,255 yards and 16 touchdowns. Lathan Bolden made 13 tackles. McGehee will try to shorten the game with its rushing attack, led by one of the state’s longest-tenured coaches in Marcus Haddock, who will have his team ready. If the Owls can keep Latham bottled up, they have a shot, but the Colts get the edge with their high-powered offense. 

BOTTOM OF THE BRACKET

FIRST-ROUND BYE No, 1 7-3A Prescott (9-1)

No. 4 1-3A Lavaca (6-4) at No. 3 2-3A QUITMAN (8-2): Quitman may be one of the best teams people aren’t talking about after winning 8 games under first-year head coach Trenton Corley. Senior quarterback Jack Sexton passed for 2,047 yards and 20 touchdowns and rushed for 627 yards and 14 touchdowns, while throwing 2 interceptions in 215 pass attempts. Sophomore Jaydan Owens (40-871 receiving) is a threat. Lavaca stumbled down the stretch after playing Mansfield close on Sept. 25. Lavaca scored 18 total points in losses to Cedarville and Charleston. The defense will be tested once again by Quitman’s passing attack. The Bulldogs are the pick because of Sexton. 

No. 5 7-3A Parkers Chapel (4-6) at No. 1 8-3A FORDYCE (7-2): Parkers Chapel used 14 returning starters to turn a winless team in 2025 into a playoff team this season, a big accomplishment for the Union County school. The Trojans don’t have to travel too far for their playoff game, but it will be an uphill battle against Fordyce, which features 2 of the state’s top playmakers — Micah Gamble and Jamartez Stroud — contributing on both sides of the ball. Gamble and Stroud have combined for 37 touchdowns on offense and 16 interceptions on defense. The Trojans are building something and will celebrate a playoff berth, but Fordyce is playing for a return trip to War Memorial Stadium.

No. 3 1-3A CEDARVILLE (7-3) at No. 3 4-3A Perryville (6-4): Coach Spencer Adams might have produced the surprise team of 2026 after conference coaches picked Cedarville to finish last in the conference. A 21-6 win over Lavaca proved the Pirates were for real. Their 3 losses came to playoff teams, and the offense has scored at least 29 points in 6 games. This will be one of the most even first-round matchups. QB Tanner Frith (1,082 rushing, 8 TDs; 914 passing, 10 TDs) has been the catalyst for Perryville, which has won 5 games in a row after a 3-game losing streak. The Mustangs have the home-field advantage, but something says Cedarville’s Cinderella season is not done yet. Odds are this is a 1-score game when the clock hits zero. 

No. 5 8-3A Rison (6-3) at No. 1 3-3A WALNUT RIDGE (8-2): Coach Jeff Blake brought a conference championship to Walnut Ridge for the first time in 49 years behind a dangerous Single-Wing offense. Jace Blake (1,482 rushing yards, 18 TDs), Jasper Callahan (755 rushing, 12 TDs) and senior Carter Morse (509 rushing, 9 TDs) form a dangerous trio. The Bobcats’ reward for a conference title is a very good Rison team that stumbled down the stretch defensively against the top of the 8-3A. Offensively, the Wildcats averaged 43.3 points per game and scored 48 points or more 4 times this season. This is the toughest matchup for a No. 1 seed and Rison could pull off the upset. But the Bobcats are on a mission, and their defense does enough to get them a hard-fought win at home. 

No. 5 3-3A Palestine-Wheatley (3-7) at No. 2 2-3A MELBOURNE (7-3): An intriguing matchup of teams with high aspirations for a conference championship at the midway point of the season. The Bearkatz continued their run by winning 6 games in a row until they ran into Newport last week. Melbourne quarterback Abe Cooper is a weapon with Mason Wren and Benaiah Spray as his favorite targets. Palestine-Wheatley started 0-7 after forfeiting its first 4 games for playing an ineligible player. That included a forfeited Week 4 win over Hoxie, so making the playoffs was an uphill battle. Tyler Paschal led his team to 3 wins to end the season and earned the final playoff spot over Harrisburg. This will be a battle between 2 good teams. A Patriots win is not out of the question, but the Bearkatz are at home, and Cooper’s arm leads them to victory. 

No. 4 2-3A Mountain View (5-5) at No. 2 4-3A GLEN ROSE (7-3): Glen Rose lost 3 games to teams that won or finished second in their respective conferences. Gage Hood has 37 total touchdowns and 2,201 total yards this season. Glen Rose has a balanced offense with Hood at QB and will be a tough out in the postseason. Mountain View was picked to finish sixth by conference coaches and had a chance to earn the No. 3 seed before losing to Quitman last week. Mountain Home has recorded 4 shutouts and only allowed 8 points in its other win. Coach Curtis Sims has Mountain View headed to the playoffs for the first time since 2020 in its third season back playing 11-man football. The Beavers get the win over the upstart Yellow Jackets.

No. 4 Cutter Morning Star (4-6) at No. 2 1-3A CHARLESTON (6-4): The Tigers clinched the No. 2 seed with big-time performances by Finn Schmaltz and Lukas Burleson in the 42-12 win over Lavaca last week. Ricky May’s squad has won 5 of its final 6 games, and the young Tigers are ready for the playoffs. Coach Josh Brown has Cutter in the playoffs for the second consecutive year after winning its final 4 games. Junior quarterback Jacob Smith (2,321 passing yards, 25 TDs) has been dynamic down the stretch. Smith’s favorite target, Kingstyn Hollingsworth, has 929 receiving yards and 12 touchdowns. Cutter will have to be “chaotic” on defense to get past the Tigers. Charleston has the tradition; CMS is one of Garland County’s best-kept secrets. Both rosters have good young talent, but Charleston doesn’t lose many playoff games at home. Cutter is in its seventh playoff game; Charleston is in its 109th. Charleston grinds out an opening-round win.