Greenwood Football Coach Rick Jones Leaving For Role At Missouri

[ooyala player_id=”e32b1952e526440e8cfb2c72937dad7e” auto=”true” width=”1920″ height=”1080″ pcode=”c3cHE6YMneRET89rDvIWFLO0U5lj” code=”U4c2g2ajE6goKBIo_6HLaOqvoiAPCi1A”]

GREENWOOD, Ark. (KFSM) – Rick Jones built Greenwood into one of the premier football programs in the state of Arkansas but after eight state titles he’s headed to the SEC.

Jones will be a senior consultant to the head coach at Missouri for Eli Drinkwitz, who is an Arkansas native. Drinkwitz was hired at Missouri in December.

During his tenure with the Bulldogs, Jones led Greenwood to eight state title, three runner-up finishes and compiled a record of 185-26. Jones had been the head coach of the Bulldogs since 2004.

Greenwood had a pair of three-peat runs under Jones as they won titles in 2005-2007 and then again 2010-12. Jones also led the Bulldogs to back to back titles in 2017 and 2018 while he had runner up finishes in 2004, 2015 and 2016.

Greenwood Athletic Director Dr. Dustin Smith stated that “Rick has long been the standard in the state among football coaches. I can never put into words the impact he has made in so many lives, including my own. Rick has been an incredible ambassador for the Greenwood Bulldogs and it will be impossible to totally measure his successes. He has been a friend, a mentor, a coach, and a voice of reason to so many. He will certainly be missed in Greenwood, but I am excited to follow this next chapter of his life.”

John Ciesla, Superintendent of Greenwood Schools added, “On behalf of the Greenwood School District, we are incredibly proud of the contributions that Rick and Mona have made to our football program, our school, and our community. We are excited for Coach Jones and his family and know he will make an immediate impact in his new position.

Doc Crowley Named New Booneville Football Coach

BOONEVILLE (KFSM) – When Scott Hyatt stepped down as the Booneville football coach after 13 seasons, there might have been a few questions surrounding the future for the Bearcats.

None of those questions were around who the next head coach would be. Less than a week after the job came open, the school has found their replacement as Doc Crowley was officially named to the position on Tuesday night at the school board meeting. Booneville athletics director Josh Walker confirmed the hire.

“It’s a dream come true. It’s something I always wanted to be,” Crowley said. “Both of my parents graduated from here and it’s something I’ve wanted for a long time.

Crowley had been the Bearcats’ offensive coordinator for the past seven seasons and the promotion was widely expected. Booneville went 8-3 and won the 3A-1 title in 2019 while the Bearcats won a pair of state titles in the past seven seasons (2013 & 2018).

Hyatt leaves pretty big shoes to fill as he had a 123-36 record with the Bearcats and led the team to a pair of perfect seasons.

“Coach Hyatt was great,” Crowley said. “He did so much for me and did so much for this program. We’re very thankful for him but we’ll just continue on what he had going and we’ll just keep on keeping on.”

Scott Hyatt Steps Down As Booneville Coach

BOONEVILLE (KFSM) – Winning on Friday nights has been a regular occurrence in Booneville but now they’ll have to try to continue those winning ways with a new head coach.

After 13 seasons on the sidelines, Scott Hyatt has stepped down as the Bearcats coach and will take an administration role with the school Hyatt led two perfect seasons (2013 and 2018) and had a career record of 123-36 at Booneville. During his tenure, Hyatt averaged 9.5 wins per season and had just one losing season.

Booneville athletics director Josh Walker said that offensive coordinator Doc Crowley will take over as interim coach until the school board makes a long term decision. The next board meeting is scheduled for Tuesday (Jan. 14.)

The Bearcats went 8-3 this season and were upset in the second round of the 3A playoffs by Hoxie.

 

Harrison Leaves Lincoln After Five Seasons

[ooyala player_id=”e32b1952e526440e8cfb2c72937dad7e” auto=”true” width=”1920″ height=”1080″ pcode=”c3cHE6YMneRET89rDvIWFLO0U5lj” code=”g3dnYwajE6jqAfq6mZbSGbQcoqQNp99l”]

LINCOLN (KFSM) – Don Harrison roamed the Lincoln sidelines for the past five seasons but now the Wolves are looking for a new leader.

The Wolves went 23-29 under Harrison but his best two seasons were his final two as Lincoln went 8-3 in 2018 and followed that up with a 5-5 mark in 2019 but dropped their final three games to miss out on the playoffs.

“He changed the outlook of our program but sometimes things just happen,” Lincoln athletics director Deon Birkes said. “(Harrison) did a really good job of bring excitement back to our program when we really needed it.”

Lincoln is dropping to class 3A for the 2020-21 cycle as the Wolves will join the 3A-1 conference with the likes of Greenland, West Fork, Charleston, Mansfield, Lavaca, Hackett and Cedarville.

“We are going to move as quickly as possible but we are going to be thorough with it because our kids deserve it,” Birkes said. “We’d like to have someone hired by the end of January but we are going to do what is best for Lincoln.”

2019 All-5NEWS High School Football Team

[ooyala player_id=”e32b1952e526440e8cfb2c72937dad7e” auto=”true” width=”1920″ height=”1080″ pcode=”c3cHE6YMneRET89rDvIWFLO0U5lj” code=”BwMHEwajE6ZIoR6ciKknKo9wGPjtzCr-“]

While some outlets and media sites might put out a list of players from just one classification or even lump players from divisions, we at 5NEWS wanted to put together a list that picked the best of the best from the Football Friday Night viewing area.

With nearly 60 football playing schools in our market, narrowing down the list certainly wasn’t easy and a lot of good players have been left off but here are the student-athletes we thought stood out the most during the 2019 high school football season.

[ooyala player_id=”e32b1952e526440e8cfb2c72937dad7e” auto=”true” width=”1920″ height=”1080″ pcode=”c3cHE6YMneRET89rDvIWFLO0U5lj” code=”UwdnEwajE6xwVsLvy8OYk7q9WNwM6JSm”]

Quarterback – Eli Reece, Shiloh Christian
Reece led the Saints to the 4A state championship game, 14 wins and threw from more than 4,000 yards and more than 40 touchdowns. With many games put out of reach, the majority of Reece’s stats came in the first half as Shiloh accounted for 760 points this season.

Running Backs – Preston Crawford, Bentonville & Jay Burns, Har-Ber
The 7A-West is never hurting for talent in the backfield and this year it was headlined by Crawford and Burns. For Bentonville, Crawford was the work horse and eclipsed the 1,000 yard mark and did a majority of his damage came before halftime as the Tigers outscored opponents by nearly 300 points in 2019. Burns was the big play weapon for the Wildcats as he ran for nearly 1,300 yards with 17 touchdowns and added four more scores in the passing game.

Receivers – Connor Flannigan, Fayetteville; Hunter Wood, Har-Ber; Truitt Tollett, Shiloh Christian
The trio of receivers certainly made life much easier for their quarterbacks. Flannigan posted rare back-to-back 1,000 yard receiving seasons and went for 66 catches and 15 touchdowns for the Purple Dogs this season. Wood hauled in 15 touchdowns along with 68 catches for 1,103 yards for the Wildcats. Tollett had one of the best years ever when it comes to Arkansas high school football as he made more than 130 catches for 2,000 yards and 30 touchdowns, which ties the all-time state record for scoring catches in a season.

Tight End – Bryant Burns, Ozark
The position is becoming ever more rare in high school football but the Hillbillies had one of the best in the state. In addition to being a game changer on the defensive side of the ball, Burns hauled in four touchdown catches and is signed to play at Army next season.

Offensive Line
Jadon Muskrat, Bentonville West
RJ Long, Rogers
Slade Skeets, Charleston
Ethan Pirraglia, Booneville
Lawsyn Jackson, Ozark

All Purpose: Jaiden Henry, Van Buren
Henry did a little bit of everything during his first season with the Pointers. Whether it was returning a kickoff for a touchdowns in the season opener against Siloam Springs, his big plays at receiving or game clinching interceptions as a defensive back, Henry was a big reason the Pointers were back in the playoffs.

Defensive Line: Melvin Kumwenda, Fayetteville; Jordan Hanna, Greenwood; Vaka Tuifua, Poteau; Michael Powell, Clarksville
Stats for the big guys up front don’t always reflect how dominant they are on Friday nights. Kumwenda was an anchor for the Purple Dgs and finished with 36 tackles, four sacks and seven quarterback hurries. Greenwood’s Hanna led the way with nine sacks and 16 tackles for a loss while adding 20 more quarterback pressures. Tuifua anchored the line of the Oklahoma 4A state champion while making 54 tackles, 25 of which were behind the line of scrimmage and added 10 sacks for the Pirates. Powell was the ultimate run stuffer as he had 32 tackles, three for a loss, three sacks and added five QB hurries while recovering three fumbles.

Linebackers: Jonas Higson, Bentonville West; Quade Mosier, Fayetteville; Cole Joyce, Bentonville; Gabe Jensen, Alma
Higson was second on the Wolverines with both 59 tackles and nine stops for a loss while also adding another weapon to the West offense. Mosier was an anchor for the Purple Dogs with 71 tackles, three sacks and added seven quarterback hurries. Joyce was one of the tops players in the state with 104 tackles, three sacks and a pair of forced fumbles. Jensen led the way for the Airedales with 88 stops, 59 of which were solo.

Defensive Backs: Logan Workman, Greenwood; Jajuan Boyd, Har-Ber; Tyler Holmes, Mansfield; Montay Parks, Northside
Workman was all over the field for the Bulldogs as he had 70 tackles from the secondary to go along with an interception and three pass breakups. Boyd made 46 stops and picked off four passes for the Wildcats defense and found the end zone three times. Holmes was a nightmare for opposing offenses as he picked off eight passes, make 76 tackles and forced three fumbles for the Tigers. Teams might have tried to pick on Parks in the Northside secondary to avoid the other half of the defense but it didn’t work out as he had 57 tackles and seven interceptions.

Kicker: Jackson Stewart, Greenwood
Kickers are people too and Stewart was close to automatic for the Bulldogs. He booted 62 extra points, six field goals with a long of 41, pinned five punts inside the 20 and accounted for 15 touchbacks on the kickoff squad.

Coach: Jeremie Burns, Ozark
Burns led the Hillbillies to the 4A semifinals for the first time since 2012, won the 4A-4 title with a perfect league record and posted 12 wins.

2019’s Top 10 Plays From Football Friday Night

[ooyala player_id=”e32b1952e526440e8cfb2c72937dad7e” auto=”true” width=”1920″ height=”1080″ pcode=”c3cHE6YMneRET89rDvIWFLO0U5lj” code=”JvcDQwajE6HwFrskmGc1VA_TVbOARnng”]

[ooyala player_id=”e32b1952e526440e8cfb2c72937dad7e” auto=”true” width=”1920″ height=”1080″ pcode=”c3cHE6YMneRET89rDvIWFLO0U5lj” code=”hydTQwajE6Jpz_B7Knj6QCSZ0gwN3kSE”]

Rusty Bush Named Head Football Coach At Alma

[ooyala player_id=”e32b1952e526440e8cfb2c72937dad7e” auto=”true” width=”1920″ height=”1080″ pcode=”c3cHE6YMneRET89rDvIWFLO0U5lj” code=”Via214aTE6W4zuXGaNNgR8JINhZFZBx-“]

ALMA (KFSM) – There’s a new head Airedale in town. In a press conference Thursday afternoon, Alma named Rusty Bush as their next head football coach. The longtime Fort Smith Northside assistant replaces Doug Loughridge, who stepped down at the end of the season to take over as AD.

Bush is a football lifer. After playing for Fordyce, he attended Henderson State. While he didn’t play football in college, Bush was a student assistant, then graduate assist for the Reddies. After graduating, he was hired as the offensive coordinator at Benton. After four years, he moved on to coach running backs and then defense at El Dorado.

In nearly 15 years at Northside, Bush focused on defense, serving as linebacker’s coach. Alma will be his first crack at a head coaching gig.

Vian Falls To Metro Christian In State Title Game

[ooyala player_id=”e32b1952e526440e8cfb2c72937dad7e” auto=”true” width=”1920″ height=”1080″ pcode=”c3cHE6YMneRET89rDvIWFLO0U5lj” code=”o1bHF3aTE62RfxxkJP9VtZkjD1r5GdAs”]

VIAN, OKLA (KFSM) – It was a battle of pass versus run, and ultimately the aerial attack of Metro Christian was too much for Vian. The Wolverines fall to a 42-34 to Metro Christian, giving the Patriots their first ever state title.

From the start, it was clear this would be a clash of offensive styles. Metro completed its first four straight passes, but ultimately had to punt. After a Vian punt, the teams traded fumbles, and Metro took advantage. After a Wolverine turnover, quarterback Asher Link hit Aiden Currivean for a 36 yard score and an 8-0 lead.

In the second quarter, Metro struck again, with Link hitting Carson Callaway for a 37 yard score and a15-0 lead. Then, the Vian run game finally woke up. A bad Metro punt gave the Wolverines field position, and they capitalized, as Gray Cloud scooted in from 8 yards out for their first score of the night.

With less than a minute in the first half, Metro tried a fake punt, but Vian was ready. Again gifted with field position, the Wolverines quickly scored, with Javyn Wright doing the honors this time around. At halftime, the Wolverines trailed 15-13.

After a defensive stand to start the third, Vian struck with the big play. On third and short, Elijah Wright broke free for a 77 yard TD, and Vian led for the first time all night, 20-15. Then, things got wild.

Metro responded on their next possession with a 36 yard TD pass from Link to Currivean. The big play bug struck again, and Vian took the lead right back thanks to 78 yard run from Javyn Wright.

With Vian in the lead 28-22, Metro pulled off some trickery to get inside the five yard line with less than two minutes in the third. Link kept it himself for the short TD run, and after a missed extra point, all tied up at 28-28.

That’s how the fourth quarter would start, but not how things would end at all. Vian drove deep into Metro territory, but an untimely interception would be their undoing. The Patriots took advantage and marched down the field, capping things off with a ten yard QB keeper from Link to go up 35-28.

Things started to crumble from there. Link picked off Vian himself with 4:30 left, then took a keeper 65 yards to the house to put Metro up 42-28.

Vian scored with two minutes left to make it a one score game, but Metro recovered the onside kick and bled the clock. It was close, but Vian falls one win short of the ultimate goal.

Vian Plays For More Than A State Title

[ooyala player_id=”e32b1952e526440e8cfb2c72937dad7e” auto=”true” width=”1920″ height=”1080″ pcode=”c3cHE6YMneRET89rDvIWFLO0U5lj” code=”1hdmx3aTE688Csv-ZQZ6cTT2MCQgqPO4″]

VIAN (KFSM) – When driving in to into Vian, Oklahoma, you almost immediately notice two things: the Wolverine flags that line the streets, and the football stadium. It’s a town tied to its football team, and now, that team is one win away from history.

“It’s everything to this town, cause a lot of people back then, they had teams that were good, but never got it down,” says senior Elijah Wright,  “so us in the position to win it, it’s a big opportunity for us, but it’s a bigger opportunity for this town.”

Fellow senior Gray Cloud agrees.

“I’ve been playing at Vian since I was in kindergarten. It means everything to me, and it means everything to this town.”

Anywhere you go this week, you’ll hear about Vian football, says Wright.

“It’s something I haven’t been a part of so it’s crazy. There’s a  lot going on around town, and this town loves football.”

“Theres a lot of stuff going around town, and it’s December so everybody’s doing Christmas stuff and they want us to be a part of it, so that’s cool,” adds Cloud.

“Everybody’s congratulating you, but you can’t let it get to your head, cause we’ve still got to play. We can’t just be happy with making it, we gotta go out there and do our job and get it done,” says Wright.

And Saturday can’t come soon enough, Wright adds with a laugh.

“I’ll be getting a lot of sleep early in the week cause I know I won’t be able to at the end of the week.”

Vian is looking for their second title in school history, and the first since 1971. They’ll face Metro Christian, who’s gone wire to wire as the #1 team in the 2A and hasn’t lost all year.

“As far as coaching goes, this is the mountaintop of it all,” says head coach Gary Willis. “To see all the work they put in, you’re just real happy to see them get here and get the chance to go finish it.”

It all comes down to Saturday night in Edmond, kickoff set for 7 P.M.

Shiloh Christian Falls In State Finals

[ooyala player_id=”e32b1952e526440e8cfb2c72937dad7e” auto=”true” width=”1920″ height=”1080″ pcode=”c3cHE6YMneRET89rDvIWFLO0U5lj” code=”Zldmx3aTE6EAvLaqzNhWTCV9gGkhOgeJ”]

LITTLE ROCK (KFSM) – Shiloh Christian and Joe T. Robinson went back and forth for the first half, but in the end, Robinson comes out as 4A state champs, downing the Saints 56-28. It’s a sweet redemption for the Senators after coming up short in last year’s state title game.

Shiloh Christian got on the board first, capping a 91-yard TD drive with a 35 yard pass from Eli Reece to Beau Carson. The Saints came up with a pick on the ensuing Robinson possession, but couldn’t capitalize.

The Senators then stormed right back, a 30 yard pass tying the game at 7-7 with  two minutes left in the first. Shiloh responded immediately,  via a Logan Raben touchdown run to put the Saints up 14-7 at the end of the first quarter.

After that Robinson went on a run. After a Shiloh fumble, a little Robinson trickery ends with a TD pass from Buddy Gaston to Martel Nunnally, and the game tied at 14-14.  Shiloh would turn the ball over again on the next possession, their third of the quarter, and again Robinson capitalizes, with Gaston finding Hunter Smith to make it 20-14 Senators. That’s where things stood at halftime.

Robinson picked up the second half right where they left off, a 5 yard touchdown pass putting them up 28-14. Then, disaster for the Saints. a 56-yard interception return for a touchdown made it 35-14 in the third quarter, and proved to be too big a hole. When the dust settled, Robinson was on top 56-28, clamming the 2019 4A state championship.

Waldron Football Coach Steps Down

WALDRON (KFSM) – After two seasons leading the Waldron Bulldogs, coach Jonathan Bates resigned this week. Waldron Superintendent Daniel Fielding said that Bates’ letter of resignation was accepted during the school district’s December Board meeting, and that the process of finding a new coach is underway.

In Bates’ two years as head coach, the Bulldogs went a combined 4-16, winning just two games each year. Waldron won 10 games under Ricky May the year before Bates’ arrival.

Prior to taking the job at Waldron, Bates spent one year as the head coach at Dierks, where he won just one game. before that year, Bates served as defensive coordinator at Paris.

 

Shiloh Christian Looks For Perfect End To Perfect Season

[ooyala player_id=”e32b1952e526440e8cfb2c72937dad7e” auto=”true” width=”1920″ height=”1080″ pcode=”c3cHE6YMneRET89rDvIWFLO0U5lj” code=”htaWd3aTE6eyGJsrZ4MX2OUuhx3o2lu2″]

SPRINGDALE (KFSM) – For a long time, all Shiloh Christian did was win. Their title in 2010 capped a magical run of three straight championships. Now, nine years later, the Saints are finally back.

“The winning is just a culture of Shiloh anyways, and so this year it’s like we finally met the expectation of that, and so we’re just gonna try and go win. It’s really special to everyone here,” says senior Keaton Carter.

Jeff Conaway is ready for his first head coaching appearance in a state title game.

“We know it doesn’t happen every year, even though we wish it would.”

It’s the moment seniors like Eli Reece and Truitt Tollett have been working towards.

“It’s been the goal ever since we started in seventh grade, every team is just trying to get to War Memorial, so we’re honored to be the team that gets back.”

“It’s been a long time coming, this senior class is really hungry for it.”

And, as they have all season, Shiloh will lean on this year’s special class of 24 seniors to lead the way, says Reece.

“All season we’ve stressed that this doesn’t need to be a coach led team, it needs to be a player led team, so our senior class has really taken it on this week.:

“We want them to lead as they always have, we want them to make sure their influence on others is positive,” adds Conaway.

And there wold be no better send off for the seniors than a state championship, according to coach.

“They’ve sacrificed a lot for this team, this program, over many many years here at Shiloh, and for them to go out on top would be great, they’ve earned it.”

“It’s been the goal for my whole high school career, and I’m finally here,” smiles Carter. Reece agrees.

“It’s a tremendous opportunity, and it’s what every guy dreams if, senior year, to finish in the state championship.”

It won’t come easy. Joe T. Robinson comes in at 13-1, and the Senators have more experience on this stage, having lost in the title game just last year.

The Saints are 14-0, and all but one game this season has been decided by at least tree touchdowns. They go for perfection Friday night at 7pm inside War Memorial Stadium in Little Rock.