It’s that time of the year, everyone. High school football games kicked off throughout the state of Arkansas Nov. 29 and there was plenty of great action taking place.
The No. 1 team in the Natural State remains Bryant then followed by Greenwood followed by Conway, which suffered their first loss of the season a few weeks ago, and then Little Rock Parkview.
Here’s the complete breakdown of Arkansas’ elite high school football teams, heading into the 2024 AAA state championships, as we see it.
Bryant’s Jordan Walker / Photo by Tommy Land
Senior quarterback Jordan Walker has been arguably the state’s top passer all season long, completing 108-of-180 passes for 2,145 yards, 36 touchdowns and just three interceptions. Onto the state final round for the Hornets.
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Greenwood junior quarterback Kane Archer. / Photo by Tommy Land
Nobody has played better under center in the state of Arkansas than Kane Archer of Greenwood. The quarterback has thrown for 3,559 yards, a ridiculous 54 touchdowns and just one mere interception. Archer might have an argument when it comes to Player of the Year, regardless of state.
Since a Sep. 20th loss to Lee’s Summit North, Bentonville has won nine straight games. The latest victory was an impressive 36-34 win over Conway (see below).
Parkview’s lone loss of the season is a 30-10 decision to No. 1 team in Bryant. The Patriots continued in the playoffs with a 44-14 win over Valley View last week.
Trey Harris ran for more than 100 yards Friday night in Conway’s win over Bentonville. / Photo by Ted McClenning
The Wampus Cats don’t drop too far in our rankings after what could be labeled a surprising, 36-34, loss to Bentonville.
This Pulaski Academy team’s only three losses have come against Bryant (twice) and Conway. Both of those clubs are ranked No. 1 and No. 2 in these rankings. The Bruins season came to a close after a 41-7 loss to Bryant last week.
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Griffin Mason has proven himself as one of the state’s top running backs this season, carrying the rock 259 times for 1,626 yards and scoring 17 touchdowns. Now they will face off against No.2-ranked Greenwood on Saturday.
Another week and another Elks’ win to remain undefeated. Elkins rolled to a 45-31 victory over Malvern last week in the third round of the playoffs. Now they’ll take on Mills University Studies this week.
The Panthers offense has shown up all season long, but it would be its defense not being able to slow down Shiloh Christian last week. Benton’s season ended with a 45-32 loss.
It was an offensive explosion last week for Farmington when they upended Hot Springs Lakeside in a 59-55 thriller.
The Comets just keep winning and their latest victory was a 47-40 decision over Warren last week.
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The Badgers made their way back into the rankings after winning nine straight games, including two shutouts. Only two losses have come to Camden Fairview and Lake Hamilton.
Valley View’s season has come to a close after a 44-14 loss to Little Rock Parkview last week.
We leave Hot Springs Lakeside right where they’re at after a heartbreaking 59-55 loss to Farmington last week.
The Lions pulling off a 33-29 upset win over Prescott a few weeks ago vaulted them into our rankings last week. Bismarck finished the regular season at 10-0 and continued its winning ways last week with a 28-17 victory over Seminole.
The Southerners just keep on finding ways to win and did so once again last week in a 24-7 loss to Monticello.
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Dardanelle made its debut in the rankings a few weeks ago, but its season came to a close last Friday in a 35-27 loss to Arkadelphia. .
The Bombers ever since losing 37-13 to Shiloh Christian have responded with a five-game winning streak. Wins have come over Russellville, Siloam Springs, Lake Hamilton and Van Buren. Mountain Home’s win streak ended in a 42-0 loss to No. 2 Greenwood.
The Rockets suffered their first loss of the season against a very good Benton team, 42-0. Catholic season ended with a 42-14 loss to Mountain Home.
Tyson Bradden has done a nice job taking care of the football and producing plenty of points. The senior has thrown for over 1,400 yards and 20-plus touchdown passes this season. Robinson’s season ended with a 21-17 loss Lakeside.
Fayetteville is ranked No. 2 in the state in the latest SBLive/SI Top 25 Arkansas high school football rankings. / Photo by Justin Manning
The Bulldogs’ season ended with a 39-32 loss to Pulaski Academy.
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Rogers bounced back from a loss to Fayetteville a few weeks ago with three straight victories to end the regular season and into the playoffs.
Back to back losses to Greenwood and Mountain Home had us dropping Lake Hamilton down the ranks a bit. Lake Hamilton came up with a big win over Jonesboro, 41-27, to open the postseason. Lake Hamilton lost to Benton, 57-14.
Yes, the Wolverines have eight losses to their name this season, but were able to pickup an impressive 38-22 victory over Little Rock Christian last week. Bentonville West lost to Bentonville last week, 53-28.
Putting together a very tough regular season schedule had paid off for the Panthers. Cabot’s season ended with a 43-0 loss to Bryant.
Be sure to Bookmark High School on SI for all of the latest high school football news.
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— Andy Villamarzo | villamarzo@scorebooklive.com | @sbliveark
FAYETTEVILLE — The signing of two kickers out of the NCAA transfer portal by the University of Arkansas on Sunday came into clearer focus late that night when highly touted freshman Scott Starzyk announced via social media he was entering the portal.
Starzyk was joined on Monday by defensive tackle Kevin Oatis as the considerable exodus continued for first-year Coach Ryan Silverfield.
The Razorbacks have as many as 30 scholarship players in the portal, and a small handful have already announced their destinations.
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The portal period opened on Friday and it will stay open through Jan. 16. The most recent announcements came from receivers Kam Shanks and Krosse Johnson and defensive back Quentavius Scandrett on Saturday, then long snapper Ashton Ngo, defensive back Ahkhari Johnson and Starzyk on Sunday.
“I’m officially in the NCAA transfer portal,” Starzyk posted to X late Sunday. “Thank you to all the fans at Arkansas for a great year. And thank you to the staff who have supported me during my time at the university.”
Arkansas landed Tennessee transfer Max Gilbert out of the portal on Sunday as well as Braeden McAlister, a kickoff specialist, from Georgia State.
Gilbert, a rising junior from Memphis, made 14 of 19 field goals (73.7%) this season, with a long of 53 yards. He has made 34 of 45 (75.6%) through two years as a starter.
Starzyk, the No. 1 kicker of the 2025 class by Kohl’s Kicking, had a strong freshman season while leading Arkansas with 89 points. The 5-10, 172-pounder from The Woodlands, Texas, made 14 of 18 field goals (77.8%) and converted all 47 of his extra-point tries. He was 2 of 3 from 50-plus yards, including a make from 53 yards on his first career field goal in the opener against Alabama A&M.
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With senior punter Devin Bale out of eligibility, the Razorbacks will lose a large chunk of their key special teams performers. Bale and Blake Ford, who is also in the portal, shared kickoff duties. Starzyk did all the place kicking and Ngo all the snapping, while Shanks was the Hogs’ top punt returner and running back Rodney Hill the lead kickoff returner.
Razorback transfers with known commitments are offensive line starter E’Marion Harris, a former standout at Joe T. Robinson who is expected to sign with Oklahoma, defensive end Justus Boone (Wisconsin), defensive tackle Ian Geffrard (Texas) and linebacker Tavion Wallace (Kentucky).
Brett Barrouquere is a staff writer with the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. A reporter and editor for more than 30 years, he’s worked a little bit of everywhere, mainly in the South. His most recent stop before Arkansas was in Baltimore, Maryland, as a night and breaking news editor. He’s a New Orleans native and has two daughters.
