Booneville defense posts rare shutout
The only drama in the closing minutes of the Class 3A football final wasn’t whether Booneville would claim its second state championship in five years.
It was whether Booneville would record the first shutout in a state final since 2013, when Junction City beat Des Arc 60-0 in the Class 2A state championship.
Booneville — with 11 yards to spare — delivered on the defensive front to secure its fourth state championship, 35-0 over Osceola, on a windy, rainy Saturday afternoon at War Memorial Stadium in Little Rock.
Asked whether his Bearcats had played their best defensive game of the season, Coach Scott Hyatt said: “Against this caliber of opposition — absolutely.”
The Seminoles, averaging 421.2 yards per game, were throttled from the start.
Osceola (13-2) netted just 105 total yards through three quarters and finished with 152. Its final 48 yards came against Booneville reserves.
The game ended when Osceola sophomore quarterback Kam Turner was tackled near the Booneville sideline after scrambling 23 yards to the Bearcats’ 11.
“I knew we could play defense,” Hyatt said, searching for words to describe the dominance. “We were concerned coming into the game with their speed — if we could match up with them defensively. The kids played hard today. They played well.”
The Bearcats (15-0) collected 3 turnovers, including 2 interceptions, 1 sack and 5 other tackles for loss.
Perhaps the game’s biggest defensive play belonged to Booneville senior cornerback Ethan Dobbs, whose interception about 2 yards deep in the end zone preserved a 14-0 lead with three minutes remaining in the first half.
“I was so happy,” Dobbs said. “I was just mad that I slipped.”
Dobbs’ slip on the interception return meant Booneville’s possession began at its 2. The drive ended 98 yards later when senior running back Michael Hesson scored on a 1-yard run to give the Bearcats a 21-0 lead with 32 seconds remaining in the first half.
“It hurts,” Osceola Coach Robert Hooks said. “Knowing these kids, I thought they would come back and win this ballgame. Never did I think we would lose this way.”
Booneville’s first touchdown was set up by senior outside linebacker Jeremy Elliott’s fumble recovery at the Osceola 33 on the game’s third play from scrimmage.
Hesson ended another scoring threat with an interception at the Booneville 25 with 11:50 remaining in the game. The ground-heavy Bearcats parlayed that turnover into a 21-yard touchdown run by senior fullback Carson Ray for a 35-0 lead with 8:03 remaining.
Dobbs nearly had another interception in the first half and finished the season with seven.
“We just had a good secondary,” Dobbs said. “We kind of kept track of which side would have more interceptions, the right side or the left side. We just kept fighting.”
The Bearcats finished with a single-season, school-record 31 interceptions. They completed one more pass on offense.
“I can’t explain it,” said Hyatt, who led Booneville to the Class 4A state title in 2013. “I’ve never been on a team that intercepted that many passes. I attribute that to our defensive line getting pressure on the quarterbacks and them having to get rid of it too quick.”