Class 7A last four is a Central thing

This year's Class 7A semifinal round is an all-Central Arkansas affair with four 7A-Central Conference teams.

The four major counties in Central Arkansas are represented -- North Little Rock in Pulaski County, Bryant in Saline County, Conway in Faulkner County and Cabot in Lonoke County.

It's the first time since the Arkansas Activities Association expanded to six classes in 2006 that the semifinals in Class 7A will feature four teams from the 7A-Central Conference.

Tonight, Bryant (11-0) will host Conway (8-3) and Cabot (8-3) travels to North Little Rock (10-1) in rematches of Week 11 games from Nov. 6.

Bryant Coach Buck James, who has led the Hornets to two consecutive Class 7A state championships, said the 7A-Central has been the best conference in the state, and having four teams in the semifinals this season proves it for him.

"The proof is in the pudding," James said. "There's good athletes in this conference. I'm not surprised by it at all."

Before arriving at Conway in 2018, Keith Fimple coached at several 7A-West Conference schools. He noted the dominance of schools such as Fort Smith Southside, Fayetteville and Bentonville. But in his third year as Conway's coach, he's a believer in what the 7A-Central has done on the field.

"It's a really good conference," Fimple said. "It's every week. From top to bottom, you have great coaches and players."

J.R. Eldridge is the newest of the four remaining semifinal coaches to the 7A-Central. He was at Arkadelphia from 2011-19 in the 4A-7 Conference and led the Badgers to consecutive Class 4A state titles in 2017 and 2018.

But it didn't take Eldridge long to realize how competitive the 7A-Central was and wasn't surprised to see Cabot go up to 7A-West Conference champion Bentonville a week ago and win in the quarterfinals to assure the conference of four semifinal teams.

"Our conference has great coaches and great athletes," Eldridge said. "I felt like in the Cabot-Bentonville game, Cabot had a real shot to win that game, in my opinion.

"You've got four teams that have a shot."

However, while being complementary of the 7A-Central's play this season, Cabot Coach Scott Reed said there's still work to do for teams such as his.

"The truth is, it's been Bryant and North Little Rock in this conference," said Reed of the Hornets and Charging Wildcats, who have played in the past two Class 7A state championship games. "It hasn't been anyone else yet. We still have another big step to take."

Cabot can take that next step with a victory tonight at North Little Rock to reach its first state championship game since 2013.

The Panthers trailed 31-17 at Bentonville last Friday but came back in the second half to stun the Tigers 38-34 to reach the semifinals.

"It's the biggest win we've had in the two years I've been here, no doubt," Reed said.

However, the Panthers are hoping to avenge a 48-31 loss at North Little Rock three weeks ago.

That mission begins with preventing North Little Rock senior quarterback Kareame Cotton (1,575 passing yards, 15 touchdowns, 7 interceptions; 716 rushing yards, 15 touchdowns) from getting loose.

"We have to do a better job of stopping the run," Reed said. "The quarterback [Cotton] and their running backs are able to run the ball well. We don't need them to run the ball like they did in the first game."

Eldridge said that the Charging Wildcats will have to find a way to beat the Panthers for a second time, as they look to limit senior quarterback Tyler Gee (2,912 yards, 30 touchdowns, 13 interceptions) and the high-powered offense.

"They do a good job of getting the ball to their playmakers," Eldridge said. "We've got to do the same thing [as the first meeting] and play hard."

Bryant enters the semifinals with a state-best 28-game winning streak. The Hornets put up 70 points against the Wampus Cats in a 70-33 victory Nov. 6 in Bryant.

James said the Wampus Cats are playing well offensively in the playoffs and that facing them for a second time will be a tough challenge. Attempting to stop Conway, James said, begins with their senior quarterback Ben Weese, who has thrown for a state-high 3,450 yards with 41 touchdowns and 9 interceptions.

"They score a lot of points," James said. "They're very good at what they do. They've got a talented quarterback. They've got good wide receivers. Their offensive line is good at pass protection. We have to step up."

When Conway faced Bryant in the regular season, Fimple compared Bryant senior quarterback Austin Ledbetter (2,709 yards, 37 touchdowns, 4 interceptions) to Pro Football Hall of Famer John Elway. The Wampus Cats' leader still feels that way and knows that his team will have to do a better job of stopping the state's No. 1 team tonight.

"That Friday night, we did some good things, but we made some errors that we feel cost us," Fimple said. "Bryant made a lot more plays that night. But that one will mean nothing when it comes to this Friday."

Unfortunately for Fimple, he will not be on the sidelines tonight for Conway. Fimple tested positive for covid-19 earlier this month and missed last week's win against Little Rock Central and will miss tonight's game against Bryant. Offensive coordinator Mark Kelley, who is in his first year at Conway after leading Searcy to a Class 6A state championship last season, will be Conway's acting head coach for a second week in a row.

"We're very fortunate to have someone with head coaching experience who's been through it," said Fimple, who is expected to be out of quarantine Saturday.

The Class 7A state championship game will be at noon Dec. 5 at War Memorial Stadium in Little Rock. Bryant is looking to reach its third consecutive state championship game.

"It's our goal," James said. "It's been our focus. It's what we strive for."

North Little Rock has played in the Class 7A state championship game the past four seasons, winning it all in 2017 under former coach Jamie Mitchell. Eldridge hopes he can lead the Charging Wildcats back to War Memorial Stadium.

"It would be awesome," Eldridge said. "Every year is different. This year has been different because of all of the different factors. They have put in a lot of hard work and they have bought into a new system this year."

Reed, who won four state championships at El Dorado (2009-11, 2013), said leading Cabot to the state title game would be great for the program.

"It would reiterate what we've been talking about here," Reed said. "I think we'll be ready to play."

Conway hasn't played in a state championship game since 2003, the longest drought of the four remaining Class 7A semifinalists.

"Everything is for my kids," Fimple said. "This is my first class that were 10th-graders when I came in. To get to a state championship game would be unbelievable for this program and this community."