Kilay Cox set the tone early and often for the Warren Lumberjacks, who weren't going to be denied their third state championship Saturday afternoon.
The senior running back rushed for 214 yards and 5 touchdowns on 35 carries in Warren's 48-14 rout of Mena in front of 7,518 at War Memorial Stadium to win the Class 4A state championship.
Cox, 5-8, 165 pounds, scored on runs of 14, 2, 1, 8 and 1 yards as the Lumberjacks -- who led 35-0 at one point -- outgained the Bearcats 471-266.
"We had to ground and pound," said Cox, who has received interest from the University of Central Arkansas, Henderson State and Ouachita Baptist. "That's what we do."
Warren Coach Bo Hembree said Cox is the best running back he's coached in his 16-year tenure at the Bradley County school.
"I know he's not very big, but somebody's going to get a steal," Hembree said. "They're going to have four years of a guy who has great character, great heart and who is strong and runs hard."
Warren (12-3), the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette's preseason No. 1 team in Class 4A, won its first state championship since 2002 and third overall. The Lumberjacks ended a two-game losing streak in state championship games after losing to Nashville in 2006 and Booneville last season.
"Fifteen weeks is a grind," Hembree said. "It's been a long season, but our kids have really worked hard. I'm really excited for them. We're going to enjoy it."
Mena Coach Tim Harper, who led the Bearcats (12-3) to their first state championship game since 1976, said Warren controlled the line of scrimmage, which allowed Cox to enjoy one of the best games of his career.
"They whipped us on both sides of the football," Harper said. "I can't say enough about our kids' resolve all year. Unfortunately, we ran up against a great football team today."
Senior wide receiver and safety Jaylon Marshall, an Arkansas State oral commitment who caught 5 passes for 106 yards and 1 touchdown and intercepted 2 passes, said the Lumberjacks had a sense of urgency this season after losing to Booneville in last season's title game.
"We really focused," said Marshall, one of 17 Warren seniors. "The whole team was basically seniors. This is our last go-around. We had to tighten up our offense and defense."
Justin Gorman, another senior, completed 17 of 21 passes for 206 yards and 1 touchdown. Classmate Darveon Brown, another ASU oral commitment, added seven catches for 58 yards.
The Lumberjacks drove 86 yards in nine plays on their first scoring drive to take a 7-0 lead. Cox's 39-yard run and Gorman's 12-yard pass to Brown set up Cox's 14-yard touchdown run.
Cox scored from 2 yards and 1 yard in the second quarter to give Warren a 21-0 lead with 1:01 left in the first half. Cox gained 148 of his 214 yards in the first two quarters.
Mena got the ball to start the second half, but senior quarterback Sage Kesterson was intercepted by Marshall at the Warren 45.
The Lumberjacks took advantage. Gorman's 16-yard pass to junior wide receiver Franklin Gilmore set up Gorman's 29-yard scoring pass to Marshall for a 28-0 lead with 10:28 left in the third quarter.
Kesterson was sacked by senior defensive lineman Wesley Cornish and fumbled, and senior defensive end LaFoy Smith recovered it at the Mena 30 to give the ball back to the Lumberjacks.
Warren made it 35-0 and invoked the Arkansas Activities Association's sportsmanship rule -- a running clock for the remainder of the game -- when Cox rushed 8 yards for his fourth touchdown at the 5:16 mark of the third quarter.
Kesterson completed 16 of 32 passes for 131 yards with 2 touchdowns and 2 interceptions. He threw scoring passes of 4 yards to senior tight end Luke Bowser and 33 yards to senior wide receiver Justin Castor in the fourth quarter.
Senior running back Jackson Daugherty was limited to 44 yards on 5 carries and had minus-2 yards receiving on 3 catches.
Sports on 12/14/2014