The 2017 high school football season ended Friday night at War Memorial Stadium in Little Rock with Foreman defeating Mount Ida 24-21 to earn its first Class 2A state championship.
The game capped three weekends of championship games in Little Rock.
Two weeks ago in Class 5A, Pulaski Academy won its fourth consecutive state championship under Coach Kevin Kelley. The Bruins became the first team since Barton (Class A) in 1986-1989 to win four titles in a row.
Greenwood and Pulaski Academy won state championships after being named preseason No. 1 in Class 6A and Class 5A, respectively, by the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette.
North Little Rock, with third-year coach Jamie Mitchell in charge, capped a 13-0 season with a wild 44-37 Class 7A state championship victory over Bentonville on Dec. 2. It was the first 7A championship for a central Arkansas school since Little Rock Central won the AAAAA title in 2004.
Arkadelphia, led by Coach J.R. Eldridge, won its first state championship since 1987 when the late John Outlaw guided the Badgers to that title. The Badgers defeated defending state champion Warren 28-27 on Dec. 9 in the Class 4A final.
In Class 3A, Rivercrest dominated Junction City 48-14 for its third state championship.
The Class 7A final (11,341) drew the largest crowd of the six championship games, while the 3A final (3,892) had the smallest announced attendance. In all, 41,227 attended the championship games, with an average crowd of 6,871.
Since the Arkansas Activities Association increased to six classifications for the 2006 football season, this year marked the third-highest total attendance at War Memorial Stadium. Only the 2014 (52,686) and 2015 (45,271) sets of games drew more combined fans.
Here is a recap from the six state championship games:
CLASS 7A
NORTH LITTLE ROCK 44, BENTONVILLE 37
ATTENDANCE 11,341
MVP Brandon Thomas, North Little Rock
North Little Rock (13-0), the 7A-Central Conference champion and No. 1 team in the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette's overall top 10, overcame a 14-0 first-quarter deficit and held off Bentonville's last-minute attempt to tie the game.
Bentonville backup quarterback Easton Hughes attempted to spike the ball with two seconds left to give the Tigers another down, but officials ruled time had expired.
Sophomore running back Brandon Thomas led North Little Rock with 199 yards and 2 touchdowns (24 and 8 yards) on 23 carries. Junior running back Oscar Adaway finished with 91 yards and 1 touchdown on 15 carries.
Senior quarterback David Chapple was 7-of-15 passing for 91 yards with 1 touchdown and 2 interceptions.
For Bentonville (10-3), senior quarterback Nathan Lyons completed 16 of 30 passes for 248 yards with 1 touchdown and 2 interceptions before leaving the game with a head injury. Sophomore running back Preston Crawford rushed for 150 yards and 2 touchdowns on 16 carries, while senior wide receiver Kamron Mays-Hunt caught 9 passes for 95 yards.
CLASS 6A
GREENWOOD 52, PINE BLUFF 14
ATTENDANCE 8,686
MVP Connor Noland, Greenwood
Greenwood was in the Class 6A state championship game for the third consecutive season. This time the Bulldogs were not going to be denied, as they routed Pine Bluff.
It was Coach Rick Jones' seventh state championship at the Sebastian County school.
Senior quarterback Connor Noland completed 20 of 27 passes for 304 yards with 4 touchdowns and 1 interception.
Noland, who has orally committed to play football and baseball at the University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, threw scoring passes of 49 and 9 yards to junior wide receiver Peyton Holt, 45 yards to senior running back Kenny Wood, and 22 yards to senior wide receiver Kade Orlicek.
Greenwood (13-0), the Democrat-Gazette's No. 1 team in Class 6A for the entire season and 6A-West Conference champion, won its first state championship since 2012 and eighth overall.
The Bulldogs lost in the 6A state title game to Pine Bluff in 2015 and Russellville in 2016.
Pine Bluff (11-2) was led by sophomore quarterback Tyler Foots, who threw for 80 yards, 1 touchdown and 3 interceptions, and ran for 51 yards and a score.
CLASS 5A
PULASKI ACADEMY 37, LITTLE ROCK MCCLELLAN 36
ATTENDANCE 5,787
MVP Layne Hatcher, Pulaski Academy
Little Rock McClellan led for the majority of its Dec. 3 Class 5A state championship game against Pulaski Academy, but senior quarterback Layne Hatcher's 19-yard run with 6:03 left was enough to give the Bruins a fourth consecutive state championship.
Pulaski Academy (14-0) set the state record for most points in a season with 784. The previous record was 753 by Junction City in 2003.
Hatcher completed 29 of 50 passes for 411 yards with 3 touchdowns and 3 interceptions. He finished his career with a 41-1 record, his lone loss coming to East High School in Salt Lake City in Week 2 of the 2016 season.
Senior wide receiver Brett Lynch led the Bruins with 9 receptions for 145 yards and 2 touchdowns. Classmate Tra Johnson had 6 catches for 122 yards and 1 touchdown.
Senior running back Andre Campbell rushed for 87 yards and 3 touchdowns (1, 15 and 50 yards) on 9 carries to lead McClellan (10-4). Tyrse Lair, a senior quarterback, accounted for 134 yards, including 97 passing and 2 passing touchdowns.
CLASS 4A
ARKADELPHIA 28, WARREN 27
ATTENDANCE 7,398
MVP Cannon Turner, Arkadelphia
Arkadelphia's first state football title in 30 years included two key fourth-quarter plays and controversy near the end of the Class 4A state championship game Dec. 9 against Warren.
Sophomore quarterback Cannon Turner's 81-yard touchdown pass to senior tight end Alec Lewis, and senior cornerback Dillon Scott's interception with four seconds left lifted the Badgers to the victory.
With less than 10 seconds remaining and the Lumberjacks near the end zone, a 16-year-old Warren High School student ran onto the field. He was charged with disorderly conduct and criminal trespass, and received a citation. Warren was penalized 15 yards for unsportsmanlike conduct, then junior quarterback J'malachi Kinnard was intercepted by Scott in the end zone.
Junior running back Zion Hatley finished with 22 carries for 54 yards and a 5-yard touchdown run for Arkadelphia (14-1).
For Warren (13-2), junior wide receiver Treylon Burks accounted for 295 of the Lumberjacks' 506 offensive yards. He caught 4 passes for 178 yards and 2 touchdowns, rushed for 116 yards and 2 touchdowns on 18 carries, and was 1-of-4 passing for 11 yards. Defensively, Burks had a team-high 16 tackles and an interception.
CLASS 3A
RIVERCREST 48, JUNCTION CITY 14
ATTENDANCE 3,892
MVP Demilon Brown, Rivercrest
Rivercrest forced five turnovers in a rout of Junction City.
It was the first state championship since 2010 and third overall for the Colts (13-2).
The Colts' defense recovered three fumbles and had two interceptions as the Mississippi County school handled the Dragons, the Democrat-Gazette's No. 1 team in Class 3A and 6-3A Conference champions, for the majority of the game.
Junior quarterback Demilon Brown completed 4 of 5 passes for 43 yards with 3 touchdowns. He rushed for 62 yards and 1 touchdown on 12 carries.
The Dragons (13-1) were led by senior running back Hishmma Taylor, who rushed for 66 yards and 1 touchdown on 18 carries.
CLASS 2A
FOREMAN 24, MOUNT IDA 21
ATTENDANCE 4,123
MVP Kyren Batey, Foreman
Junior quarterback Kyren Batey rushed for 211 yards and 2 touchdowns on 21 carries and completed 1 of 3 passes for 36 yards to lead Foreman to its first state championship.
Senior Sam Gamble's 30-yard field goal gave Foreman (13-1) a 17-14 lead with 5:11 left in the second quarter. Batey's 20-yard run with 3:39 remaining in the fourth quarter sealed the Gators' victory.
Mount Ida (14-1) had rushing touchdowns of 24 yards by senior Cade Helms and 2 yards by junior Jonathan Lagrange. Senior Ridge Gibbs had a 60-yard touchdown pass to junior Cade Jackson.
Foreman avenged a 36-7 loss at Mount Ida on Oct. 13 with its state championship victory.
Mount Ida's 21-game winning streak ended with its loss to the Gators.
Sports on 12/17/2017