Hootens.com Rankings
Class 2A, Week 6, 2011
Copyright Hooten Publishing, Inc.

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

HOOTENS.COM GAME OF THE WEEK
No. 3 Junction City at No. 4 Bearden

The stakes are high again at Rogers Field with the 8-2A title and top playoff seed likely on the line. Both teams have already beaten No. 7 Strong. Bearden whipped Strong 37-14 two weeks ago. Junction City beat Strong 28-6 last week. Both teams play championship defense. Seven Junction City defenders have recorded 20 or more tackles. Junction City held Strong to 126 total yards, and junior QB/S Shaquille Hunter tied a school record with four interceptions, returning two for TDs. Bearden held Strong to 208 total yards. Junior HB Romunskee Flowers paces the Junction City Wishbone with 456 yards and four TDs. Bearden all-state quarterback Defonta Lowe has rushed for 517 yards (9.5 ypc) this fall. Senior LB Blane Word leads the Bearden defense with more than 40 tackles. The overall series is tied at 22-22-2, according to Bearden historian Jackie Bevill. Bearden has won three of the past four meetings, but Junction City's victory came in the 2009 state championship game when it beat Bearden 24-14.

TV SHOW
Hooten's Arkansas Football airs 7:30 p.m. Thursdays on KARZ (Z42 in Little Rock), Suddenlink Cable 22 in Northeast Arkansas and On Demand in Northwest Arkansas (Cox Ch. 644).

LAST WEEK
Hootens.com correctly picked 18 of 21 (86 percent) games involving Class 2A teams. Hootens.com is 114-31 (79 percent) for the season.

WEEK 6 PREDICTIONS (favored team in ALL CAPS followed by point spread)
3-2A
Cross County at SALEM (8): No. 12 Salem (5-0) poised for its best year since starting football in 1975. It posted school-best nine wins in 2000 and seven wins in 1976 and 2001 (modern playoff era 1969-current). The Greyhounds trailed for the first time this season at rival Walnut Ridge last week but led 20-6 at halftime and won 32-22. Sophomore J.J. Gray, who ran for 245 yards vs. Cedar Ridge, picked up 108 yards last week at Walnut Ridge.
Cedar Ridge at MCCRORY (28): Defending league champion McCrory ran for 560 yards and put up 54 points a week ago at Marked Tree.
Walnut Ridge at MARKED TREE (3): Marked Tree wins a shootout, stays in hunt for playoff berth.
MAGNET COVE (18) at Augusta: Magnet Cove won this non-conference matchup 35-6 last year. Bigelow visits Magnet Cove next week with the 5-2A title on the line.
E. POINSETT COUNTY is open.

4-2A
J.C. WESTSIDE (35) at Hartford: J.C. Westside stays in playoff contention with games against Magazine, Hackett and Danville to close out the regular-season schedule.
Mountainburg at DANVILLE (10): The second-ranked Little Johns got three turnovers last week to force No. 1 Magazine into its first four-quarter game of the season. Moutainburg will miss injured all-league RB Zach Ross.
Union Christian at HACKETT (19): No. 15 Hackett plays Mountainburg next week, probably for the No. 3 playoff seed. Hackett senior RB Dylan Yazel has amassed 1,335 yards (21.2 yards per touch) and scored 14 TDs this fall.
Western Yell at MAGAZINE (42): Magazine lost all-state QB Ryan Chambers (broken leg) for the season last week on a freakish play. Chambers had broken free when Danville's Blake Noakes dove and slapped Chambers' shoe with his hand. Chambers' legs entangled and he broke his leg six inches above the ankle. "We just lost the best player in the state, to me," Coach Josh Jones said. Twin and leading receiver Cory Chambers shifts to QB. The Magazine defense allows 213 yards and 11.8 ppg, led by senior LB Josh Dority (56 tackles). Dority racked up 19 stops at Danville.
Decatur at CONWAY CHRISTIAN (25): Conway Christian has not lost since Week 2 (to Quitman 46-43) and should ride a seven-game winning streak into its Week 9 game at Magnet Cove.

5-2A
QUITMAN (33) at Hector: Quitman averages 41.6 ppg. Magnet Cove beat Hector 55-0 last week.
Mountain Pine at BIGELOW (28): Bigelow faces Magnet Cove next week with the 5-2A title on the line. Bigelow rode the top seed last year to the quarterfinals, while Magnet Cove reached the semifinals with the No. 2 seed. Winless Mountain Pine travels next week to No. 3 Junction City.
MAGNET COVE (18) at Augusta: Magnet Cove won this non-conference matchup 35-6 last year. Bigelow visits Magnet Cove next week with the 5-2A title on the line.
Two Rivers at POYEN (1): Poyen wins, stays in contention for fifth and final playoff seed.
Decatur at CONWAY CHRISTIAN (25): Conway Christian has not lost since Week 2 (to Quitman 46-43) and should ride a seven-game winning streak into its Week 9 game at Magnet Cove.

6-2A
CARLISLE (12) at England: England's 34-30 defeat last week at Des Arc takes some luster off this clash. Des Arc rallied past England with 314 rushing yards. Carlisle sophomores Bo Weddle and Deron Ricks ran wild a week ago in a 60-6 blowout of Clarendon.
DES ARC (15) at Pal.-Wheatley: Des Arc sophomore Jalen Holloway ran 20 times for 170 yards last week in a 34-30 win over England. Palestine-Wheatley showed some spark on defense last week at Hazen but remains winless.
Hazen at NORPHLET (2): Norphlet catapults 12 spots to No. 18 after out-slugging Parkers Chapel 45-33 last week. With wins over Hampton and Parkers Chapel, Norphlet has positioned itself to earn a Top 4 playoff berth and stay away from a first-round trip to Magazine. Junior QB Michael Tipton leads 14 hungry Leopards. Tipton passed for 291 yards and five TDs and ran for another 150 yards and two TDs last week in a 45-33 win over Parkers Chapel. No. 3 Junction City beat Norphlet 26-3 Week 2. Hazen senior Matt Tenison (690 yards) paces a potent rushing attack.
Marvell at CLARENDON (30): Clarendon (1-4) keeps playoff hopes alive against winless Marvell.

7-2A
GURDON (38) at Foreman: Gurdon is atop the league standings with Spring Hill. Those two meet next week at Gurdon. Gurdon sophomore QB Austin Kirkpatrick works behind a veteran line. The Go-Devils forced two key turnovers in holding Mineral Springs to 13 points last week, the Hornets' lowest output since losing to Bearden (51-0) in the second round of the 2009 playoffs.
HORATIO (8) at Dierks: These two will light up the scoreboard. Dierks' strong-armed sophomore QB Adam Bradshaw split duties Week 1 but has taken most of the snaps since. Bradshaw completed an efficient 10 of 19 passes for 148 yards and two TDs in a Week 4 42-8 win over Murfreesboro. Bradshaw passed for 282 yards and two scores last week in a two-point loss to Spring Hill.
Murfreesboro at MINERAL SPRINGS (14): Big rivalry game, but Murfreesboro hobbling to 2-2 start. Senior RB Brannon Buck returned from an ankle injury two weeks ago but the Rattlers managed just 129 total yards last week in a 44-16 loss to Horatio.
Spring Hill at MOUNT IDA (1): Improving Mount Ida led Mineral Springs late in the game two weeks ago and flogged Foreman 41-14 last week. Spring Hill senior RB Kevin Aaron ran for 135 yards and Hendrix Routan for 139 yards last week, and the Bears needed all of them in a 26-24 win over Dierks.

8-2A
Junction City at BEARDEN (2): See 2A Game of the Week.
PARKERS CHAPEL (9) at Woodlawn: Parkers Chapel (2-3) up and down, looking for leadership from its nine seniors. But junior RB Philip Hay continues to make plays. Hay exploded in the second half last week for 158 rushing yards and two TDs in a 45-33 loss to Norphlet. Woodlawn lost at Hampton 44-0 last week.
Hazen at NORPHLET (2): Norphlet catapults 12 spots to No. 18 after out-slugging Parkers Chapel 45-33 last week. With wins over Hampton and Parkers Chapel, Norphlet has positioned itself to earn a Top 4 playoff berth and stay away from a first-round trip to Magazine. Junior QB Michael Tipton leads 14 hungry Leopards. Tipton passed for 291 yards and five TDs and ran for another 150 yards and two TDs last week in a 45-33 win over Parkers Chapel. No. 3 Junction City beat Norphlet 26-3 Week 2. Hazen senior Matt Tenison (690 yards) paces a potent rushing attack.
HAMPTON is open.