Flannigan brothers leave Springdale seeing double

SPRINGDALE — Connor Flannigan had one request after he was pushed hard in the end zone but still caught the ball for a touchdown near the end of the first half.

“Throw me the ball, throw me the ball, throw me the ball,” Flannigan shouted while he celebrated the score with his teammates.

Flannigan’s frustration was understandable after he was targeted twice and caught one pass last week in a loss to Bentonville. But Flannigan, who caught 102 passes a year ago, caught two touchdown passes and added a long run to set up a score Friday while leading Fayetteville to a 45-20 victory over Springdale at Jarrell Williams Bulldog Stadium.

Connor’ twin brother, Brooks Flannigan, also had a big night at defensive back for Fayetteville, which moved to 4-4 overall and 3-2 in the 7A-West Conference. Brooks Flannigan had an interception to set up his brother’s touchdown pass in the second quarter. He also blocked a punt, caught a two-point conversion pass, recovered an onside kick and did a good job of guarding Ladarius Wonsley, an explosive player for Springdale.

“This was one of the better games I’ve had in my career,” Brooks Flannigan said. “Everything was clicking out there. Connor, he definitely balled out. He showed them why he’s the best receiver in the state of Arkansas.”

The game was sloppy and “there’s a flag on the play” was heard more often from the press box than the band. But Fayetteville pulled together after losing badly at home last week 55-14 to Bentonville.

Springdale hurt its chances for postseason play by losing 27-17 on its home field last week to a Rogers team that was 0-6. Springdale’s troubles continued Friday, leaving the Red Bulldogs with just two more chances against Bentonville and Van Buren to avoid being left out of the playoffs, most likely, with Rogers Heritage. The Van Buren game could be decisive for Springdale, which fell to 3-5 and 1-4.

There have been times over 100 years where Fayetteville and Springdale have met to decide conference championships. But this is not one of those years.

There were fewer than 50 fans on the Springdale home side five minutes before kickoff, including one section where only four people sat. Fayetteville had more on the visitors’ side, but the overall attendance was still poor on a cold but dry night in late October.

Maybe fans have given up, but the players certainly haven’t. Springdale just couldn’t get anything going offensively in the first half when the Red Bulldogs trailed 16-0.

One of the highlights for Springdale came after Brooks Flannigan blocked a punt. But a Springdale player scooped up the ball and ran for a first down toward midfield. The series ended with an interception by Tyler Barnes.

Fayetteville struggled with penalties and went backward from the Springdale 3 to the Springdale 24 after consecutive penalties. But Springdale was called for a facemask penalty and Fayetteville eventually took advantage when Connor Flannigan caught a 3-yard touchdown pass from Hank Gibbs despite being interfered with at the back of the end zone.

The Flannigan brothers continued to show out in the second half when Connor caught a 36-yard touchdown pass from Gibbs. He then threw to Brooks for the twopoint conversion and a 24-0 lead.

Springdale scored some points in the second half before Connor Flannigan broke off a long run to set up Fayetteville’s final score.