Class 2A Week 13 Rankings, Matchups and Selections
Class 2A Rankings
Week 13, 2025
RK-PV Team (Record; Week 12 Result)
1. ↔ 1. East Poinsett County (11-1; beat Poyen 61-20)
2. ↑ 3. Mount Ida (11-1; beat Carlisle 49-21)
3. ↑ 5. Cross County (10-2; beat Junction City 48-22)
4. ↑ 7. Des Arc (8-4; beat Mineral Springs 48-18)
5. ↓ 2. Junction City (10-2; lost to Cross County 48-22)
6. ↓ 4. Carlisle (10-2; lost to Mount Ida 49-21)
7. ↓ 6. Poyen (7-5; lost to East Poinsett County 61-20)
8. ↔ 8. Mineral Springs (5-7; lost to Des Arc 48-18)
9. ↔ 9. Hampton (9-2)
10. ↔ 10. Hector (9-2)
11. ↔ 11. Bearden (6-5)
12. ↔ 12. Bigelow (4-7)
13. ↔ 13. Conway Christian (5-6)
14. ↔ 14. McCrory (6-5)
15. ↔ 15. Gurdon (6-5)
16. ↔ 16. Spring Hill (5-6)
17. ↔ 17. Murfreesboro (5-5)
18. ↔ 18. Foreman (4-6)
19. ↔ 19. Earle (5-5)
20. ↔ 20. Magazine (6-4)
NOT RANKED:
1-2A: Mountain Pine (1-9); Johnson County Westside (0-9), Bigelow (4-6), Mountainburg (5-5)
2-2A: Izard County (1-9), Marked Tree (1-9) and Marianna (1-8)
3-2A: Lafayette County (2-8), Dierks (4-6)
4-2A: Baptist Prep (3-7), Hazen (3-7), England (3-7) and Clarendon (0-10)
HOOTENS.COM GAME OF THE WEEK
1-2A (1) Mount Ida (11-1) at 2-2A (1) EAST POINSETT COUNTY (11-1):
This is a rematch from last year’s state semifinal, won by EPC 54-33 en route to a second consecutive trip to the Class 2A title game. Mount Ida and EPC are the only two No. 1 seeds left in the bracket.
Mount Ida beat Carlisle 49-21 last week. Dalton Young rushed for 124 yards and a TD, recorded 6 tackles and returned an INT. for 45 yards for a TD. Dakota Beechy had 70 yards rushing and a TD, with 8 tackles. Jackson White rushed for 3 scores.
“Those guys are very talented,” Mount Ida Coach Mike White says of EPC. “They’ve been ranked No. 1 all year for a reason. We’re looking forward to an opportunity for a rematch on our end. We know we’re going to be the underdog, but that’s a good thing, as far as we’re concerned. I think it will give us some motivation, going up there and getting another shot at them.”
Mount Ida has not played in the state-title game since losing to Foreman in 2017. The Lions were state champions in 2016.
EPC beat Poyen 61-20 last week behind Eli Blagg (8-13 passing, 145 yards, TD; 3-45 rushing, TD), Dee Buchanan (14-155 rushing, 5 TDs), Jacob Gaines (16-180, 2 TDs) and Quincy Perry (3-82 receiving, TD).
The Warriors are trying to get to the state finals for the third consecutive season. They lost to Bigelow in 2023 and Conway Christian last year. EPC had never played in the state-title game before 2023.
“The good thing is that we’re at home,” EPC Coach Brandon Powell says. “It’s a really tough matchup for us. They run the veer option. They run it really well. They don’t hide what they are doing. What Coach White does over there is he formations you to death. We’ve got to be lined up right. We’ve got to stay disciplined on defense.”
Powell says his team likes to spread out the defense.
“We’ll take what you give us,” Powell says. “Hopefully, our athletes make good plays.”
This matchup pits the 2 top-ranked 2A teams, but it should not be considered The 2-2A is the toughest conference in the Class 2A with Des Arc and Cross County playing in the other semifinal. However, don’t count out Mount Ida against EPC. Anything can happen this time of year.
LAST WEEK
Hootens.com correctly predicted 3 of 4 games (75 percent) last week and has correctly predicted 157 of 190 games (83 percent) for the season.
TOP HALF OF THE BRACKET
2-2A (3) No. 4 Des Arc (8-4) at 2-2A (2) No. 3 CROSS COUNTY (10-2): Des Arc, the third seed from the 2-2A, will try to avenge a 24-14 loss to Cross County on Oct. 24. Des Arc advanced with a 48-18 win over Mineral Springs behind Jamie Collins (20-203 rushing, 2 TDs) and Hudson Goodman (2 TDs).
“It’s the semifinals, and there are 4 elite teams left in 2A,” Des Arc Coach Nick Smith says. “Once you get into that realm, it’s who makes the least amount of mistakes. Some are the obvious ones of turnovers and penalties. Some of them are execution within our own scheme — missed tackles, making sure that we’re staying gap sound on our defense. It’s the little things that are the game within the game that we, as coaches, not what the average fan sees in the stands.
“The most physical team that makes the fewest mistakes will win the game.”
Cross County won at Junction City 48-22 last week.
Braxton Armstrong and Caden Crawford combined to rush for 344 yards and 5 TDs. Kale Searcy rushed for a TD and passed for 2 more.
“They are tough,” Cross County Coach Van Paschal says of Des Arc. “We’re going to have to play well to win.”
Des Arc is looking to go back to the title game for the first time since 2020. Cross County has not reached a title game since winning the 1984 Class A title (17-7 over Rison) to finish 14-0.
BOTTOM HALF OF THE BRACKET
1-2A (1) Mount Ida (11-1) at 2-2A (1) EAST POINSETT COUNTY (11-1): See Hootens.com Game of the Week