From 0-5 to the state championship game.
It's not the typical path for a team that is playing at this time of the year, but the Arkadelphia Badgers are back in the Class 4A state championship game thanks to a nine-game winning streak and three playoff victories over top seeds.
Arkadelphia, which entered the Class 4A playoffs as a No. 3 seed from the 7-4A Conference, has defeated three No. 1 seeds on the road, all in the past three weeks -- Warren (8-4A) in the second round, Stuttgart (2-4A) in the quarterfinals and Shiloh Christian (1-4A) in the semifinals.
The Badgers won the 2017 Class 4A state championship by knocking off Warren 28-27.
However, the Badgers lost their first five games this season. They went 0-3 in nonconference play -- losing 16-14 to Sylvan Hills, 56-17 to Benton, 35-28 at Wynne -- then dropped their first two 7-4A games at Nashville, 28-23, and to Joe T. Robinson at home, 42-14.
"A lot of those games, we were real close," Arkadelphia junior quarterback Cannon Turner said. "We were one or two plays away from winning. So, if we kept coming back to work, we would get over that hump. Once we got some momentum, we really started rolling."
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Arkadelphia Coach J.R. Eldridge said the Badgers made too many uncharacteristic mistakes early in the season, which helped lead to the first five losses.
"We had to adjust for them," Eldridge said. "Our entire offensive line hadn't played a snap of varsity football until this year. So, there were so many factors. We had injuries early. But all of those things are part of football."
Eldridge, who is 70-32 in eight seasons with the Badgers, was confident that his team could pull together after their rough start.
"We talked a lot about belief," Eldridge said. "If we kept coming back to work and believed in each other and believe in what we were doing, then eventually, things would pay off.
"We were able to narrow our focus on doing the little things right, continue to come back to work and keep believing. Don't listen to any negativity. Just focus on what we need to focus on."
Arkadelphia (9-5) will get a rematch against Robinson (12-2) at 6:30 p.m. Saturday at War Memorial Stadium in Little Rock. The Senators were the last team to defeat the Badgers, who went on to finish 5-2 in the 7-4A and earn a first-round victory over Gosnell before winning three in a row on the road.
Robinson Coach Todd Eskola has called the Senators' series with the Badgers a healthy rivalry in the 7-4A Conference. He isn't putting too much stock in his team's victory against the Badgers on Sept. 28 in Clark County, though.
"It's been a whole season since we've played them," Eskola said. "They're a totally different team now. We're a totally different team now. I think both teams are playing really well. They're the defending state champs.
"They do a tremendous job down there. It's going to be about which team executes and takes care of the football."
Despite winning its first state championship since 1987 last season, Arkadelphia wasn't going to settle. Not with Eldridge in charge.
"Every year, we have high expectations," Eldridge said. "I don't think that will change or will ever change. I think having high expectations is good.
"You can set yourself up for disappointment. But at the same time, being disappointed may make you more hungry. I've been really proud of our coaching staff and our team for being able to do that."
Eldridge hopes the Badgers have one more victory left in them, which would be their 10th in a row to end the 2018 season and more importantly, the school's fourth state championship and second in a row.
"The biggest thing for us is making sure that we have a great week of practice so our guys come out on Saturday and they're not distracted," Eldridge said. "They realize that it's another football game, but at the same time, they do the things we've talked about to get back to this point. Continuing to believe and continuing to get back to work. They're playing with that energy that I feel like has helped us in this run."
Sports on 12/07/2018