The 2017 4A-1 District coaches poll has been released, as revealed by the annual Hooten's Arkansas Football magazine.
With the Blackhawks being the top ranked team from our district in the Hooten's 4A State Poll, you might think that well hey, Pea Ridge might or ought to be the favorite to win the conference crown in '17. Well, think again. The coaches from the 4A-1 have picked Prairie Grove to win their third straight crown, with the 'Hawks pegged to finish in the runner-up position.
I thought about that for awhile (I'm picking the Blackhawks all the way) and after a bit of thinking, I can understand why the local poll came out that way. I remembered something my old high school used to tell us "If you want to be the best, you have to beat the best."
Prairie Grove has not lost a league game since 2014. The Tigers only lost one game in all of last year, and that was to Warren, the team that beat Pea Ridge in the state final in 2016.
Here we are in 2017, with the current Blackhawk squad having athletes who have never tasted victory playing Prairie Grove High School. In 2014, Pea Ridge ran the table and swept through conference schedule undefeated, whipping the Tigers on their own field to break their streak of conference titles.
That loss to Pea Ridge in 2014 spurred the Tigers to work with vengeance and since that titleless year in 2014, they have compiled an amazing 26-3 record, whipping our 'Hawks by comfortable margins both times they played.
This year, the Tigers are coming to Pea Ridge for the league game, and if the 'Hawks are going to lay claim to being the district's best, they will have to go through Prairie Grove. With an offensive backfield rated by nearly every prognosticator or sports writer as being the best one in the state, and with an offensive line that head coach Stephen Neal sees as having the confidence and ability to be very good, things look good for the prospects of Pea Ridge returning to the top of the heap.
Now, should the 'Hawks beat the Tigers here in Blackhawk Stadium, it might well be that the feat will be historical. For all my record checking and digging, it would seem that the 'Hawks have never beaten the Tigers in Pea Ridge. Since 2000, the 'Hawks have beaten Prairie Grove only twice and both times on the Tiger field. In their 2-9 mark since the year 2000, the 'Hawks beat the Tigers 27-24 in a huge upset that sent Pea Ridge into the playoffs in 2005 and then upset Prairie Grove 28-20 in 2014 which was the next time that the Blackhawks qualified for the playoffs.
Of course, the fact that the Blackhawks have never beaten Prairie Grove at home since 1999 is not unique. The fact is, the 'Hawks haven't beaten Gravette in Pea Ridge either. In the Pea Ridge/Gravette matchups, the home team has not won since 2009. The first time the 'Hawks beat the Lions in this millennium was at Gravette in 2012. They lost at home in 2013 but beat Gravette there in 2014 by a 21-19 count. After getting upset in 2015 at home 22-12, the 'Hawks came back to crush the Lions in 2016 46-16.
Maybe this year will be the year, for the first time, that Pea Ridge sends the Tigers and Lions home with a road defeat.
Back to the conference coaches picks, it seems just like more of the "same old, same old." The conference preseason picks are nearly the same every year with the coaches, for the most part, picking the upcoming campaign to be like the last one.
Prairie Grove is picked to win, again, with the 'Hawks actually receiving their highest ever 4A preseason conference prediction of second place. Even though the 'Hawks have knocked off Shiloh in their last four showdowns, this year is the first year the 'Hawks are actually picked to defeat the private school boys from Springdale.
Picked third is Shiloh, the lowest preseason ranking they have had since I can remember, not counting their disastrous experiment in playing 5A football. Shiloh is ranked 15th in the state 4A poll, also a new low for them.
The fourth place predicted finisher again this season is Gravette. They have gotten the fourth seed for the past three seasons, were the fifth seeds in 2012 and 2013, and the second and third seeds in 2010, and 2011. In other words they make the playoffs every year, an enviable record.
Over the past few seasons, the 4A-1 has developed into a kind of have and have not situation. The top four teams (Prairie Grove, Pea Ridge, Shiloh and Gravette) have battled among themselves for league supremacy with Gentry, Huntsville, Lincoln and Berryville fighting it out to see who will claim the fifth playoff seed.
This year, the coaches see the Gentry Pioneers coming in to claim the fifth spot. They have most of their starters back and will be the most improved in an overall improving conference. Should any of the big four take them lightly, they could break into the upper tier with an upset win.
Picked sixth by the coaches is Lincoln, but I just don't think that will happen. The Lincoln coaching staff lost two of their six staff members via resignations and the board and administration decided to save money and not replace them. With one of the departing coaches being former head coach Don Harrison, it seems the school is telling their athletes that they aren't worth it. One board member was quoted as saying he was tired of paying for losing. So much for getting the kids pumped up. I think they may wind up in the cellar.
Picked seventh is Huntsville, last year's fifth place finisher. Hurt by graduation, the Eagles lack size, speed and numbers but I think they will beat Lincoln and maybe Berryville. No higher than sixth is my prediction.
Bringing up the rear is perennial cellar dweller Berryville. One of the biggest schools in the state in 4A, the Bobcats haven't been to the playoffs in 11 years. Since 2010, they have averaged less than two wins per season. They have a new coach in Doug Schott. Sometimes a new coach can come in and shake things up and get better results with radical changes so maybe they will do better.
4A-1 Football coaches poll
Prairie Grove^(7-0 last year)
Pea Ridge^(6-1 last year)
Shiloh^(5-2 last year)
Gravette^(4-3 last year)
Gentry^(0-7 last year)
Lincoln^(2-5 last year)
Huntsville^(3-4 last year)
Berryville^(1-6 last year)
A chat with coach Stephen Neal
I had a chance to sit down with second-year head coach Stephen Neal to ask him what fans can expect from the 2017 edition of the Pea Ridge Blackhawks. I also got to hear a lot about what drives Coach Neal's philosophy and how things that athletes experience as members of the 'Hawks have a lot to do with how they may turn out as citizens once they leave the school and head into their futures. All that next week in The TIMES.
Kudos to Blackhawk
representatives
I know an individual from Bentonville who works with the Bentonville coaching staff and talks with the athletes over there. Somehow Pea Ridge came up in his conversation with some of their athletes and the Tiger athletes were effusive in their praise of the Blackhawks who attended some football camps with them. They remarked that Pea Ridge had some of the nicest guys in the camps. Now while I really like these high poll rankings and the respect others give to the 'Hawks for their prowess in the field, I have to say that hearing those kind of compliments relating to the character of our athletes, well, that is especially good to hear.
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Editor's note: John McGee is an award-winning columnist and sports writer. He is the art teacher at Pea Ridge elementary schools and writes a regular sports column for The Times. The opinions expressed are those of the author. He can be contacted through The Times at [email protected].
Sports on 07/19/2017