Arkansas high school football Class 4A state semifinals: Harding Academy outslugs Elkins for title game trip

The Wildcats lost in the final last fall

It was a typical battle of two unbeaten heavyweights in Elkins Friday night, but it was Harding Academy who answered the final bell in a 41-27 victory over the Elks in the Classic 4A state semifinals.

The Widcats (14-0) began the scoring on their second drive of the game, as quarterback Owen Miller threw a 78-yard bomb to Kyler Hoover to put the Wildcats up 7-0, midway through the first quarter.

Harding’s next drive began at the Elks’ 49. Facing 4th-and-goal from the 4, they ran a little dazzle-dazzle reverse pass. This time Hoover threw a TD strike to Miller, making it 14-0.

Senior Da’Shawn Chairs then broke loose for runs of 20 and 15 yards, and caught a 20-yard pass to get the ball to the Harding 25. Quarterback Dizzy Dean got the Elks on the scoreboard with a 25-yard strike to Landon Martin.

The Wildcats then bounced back with back-to-back scoring drives, as Miller connected on a 63-yard TD pass to Jack Citty, followed by 28-yard strike to Hoover. Harding looked to be in command with a 28-7 lead with 10:31 left in the first half.

Elkins (13-1) then chipped into the lead with a 26-yard field goal from Dawson Mallis.

After Harding came back with a field goal, Elkins capitalized on an 80-yard drive that ended with Dean connecting with Chairs on a 4-yard touchdown, making it 31-17.

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The Wildcats added another field goal, but Elkins responded with a 51-yard scoring pass from Dean to Martin, cutting the lead to 34-24 heading into the halftime break.

Elkins came out of the intermission with the momentum and kicked a 31-yard field goal to get within seven points.

Elkins then drove into Harding territory on its next drive, looking to tie the score. But the Wildcats were able to pounce in an Elks fumble at the Harding 33.

Miller proceeded to hit Citty with a 19-yard pass to paydirt, putting Harding ahead by two scores on the first play of the fourth quarter.

Elkins tried to rebound late in the game, but Miller, who rarely plays on the defensive side of the ball, picked off an Elks pass to thwart a possible comeback.

3 Takeaways 

1

After losing to Malvern 64-39 in last season’s Class 4A state championship game, the focus for Harding Academy has been on getting back to Little Rock again this season. This will be the Wildcats fifth straight state title game. They won three consecutive 3A titles, prior to last season, when they were elevated up a classification.

“This is something that I really wanted for our team, especially after losing last year in the state finals,” Miller said. “I just wanted to see our seniors make it back to The Rock one last time. It was a very eventful game tonight. We just kept pounding on both sides of the ball, kept executing our gameplan.

Wildcats head coach Neil Evans said it means everything to see his seniors get one last shot at another state title. “It feels really good because these guys have worked so stinking hard, they love each other, and they trust in the game plan, so it feels really good for them to be rewarded,” he said.

2

As is to be expected, there were many tears shed on the Elkins sideline, as its core group of seniors finished their high school football careers. The Elks’ leading ballcarrier for the past four season, Da’Shawn Chairs, laid it all on the line against Harding, racking up yards on the ground and through the air, to keep Elkins in contention. Chairs even played in the defensive backfield in the second half. He also showed true sportsmanship midway through the third quarter, when one of the Wildcats went down with a leg cramp, Chairs rushed over to help the opposing player stretch out his leg.

Chairs’ 6-yard TD catch in the second quarter helped Elkins spur a comeback, as he proceeded to pump up the crowd on his way off the field. “We just had heart and we never gave up,” he said. “It’s hard to keep your smile and your hope when you are down 21, but we never lost hope. That’s just the kind of team we are.”

3

Elkins was 13-0 for the first time ever, prior to Friday night’s game, as they made history on several front. Head Coach Zack Watson credits that success to his senior class, who were just sophomores when he arrived.

These seniors this year just did an unbelievable job of laying the foundation and setting the expectations of this football program,” Watson said. “They showed all of our young guys that this is achievable and we’ve just got to keep working.

“It was a tough loss, no doubt. I just wish we could have come out and played up to the capability that I know we are capable of. Harding is a good ball club, that is well, coached and they play hard, physical football. We just did not make enough plays tonight, and put our kids in the position to make enough plays, to win this football game.”

--Steve Andrews