Await unbeaten Elks

The challengers keep coming for Shiloh Christian, the defending state champions and No. 1 ranked team in Class 4A.

Last week it was Gentry, which fell to 6-1 after losing 48-20 to the Saints. This week it’s Elkins, which is 7-0 and 4-0 in the 4A-1 Conference. Shiloh Christian is 6-1 overall and 4-0 in the league.

Elkins is a surprise team with a first-year head coach and a sophomore who has emerged as one of the area’s best at running back. Zach Watson was the offensive coordinator last year at Greenwood, a dominant program in Class 6A. Watson knows how to create scoring opportunities and he’s helped by a capable staff, including Drew Morgan, a former standout receiver at Arkansas.

“Coach Watson is very knowledgeable and he knows how to win football games,” Shiloh Christian coach Jeff Conaway said. “He hired some good assistants and they’ve got some good, young athletes. They know how to get the ball in the hands of their best football players.”

Elkins’ best football player is Da’Shawn Chairs, who burst onto the scene in September when he rushed for 201 yards and scored five touchdowns in a win over Greenland. The Elks also have playmakers in quarterback Braedon Welch and receiver Aden Williams, who caught two of the four touchdown passes from Welch in last week’s 33-8 win over Green Forest.

Few teams can match the overall talent of the Saints, who started slow on a muddy field last week before winning at Gentry. Quarterback El Wisdom threw three touchdown passes and ran for two scores for the Saints, who pulled away in the second quarter. Wisdom ran for 128 yards and passed for 242 yards.

“The grass was tall and the surface was wet and it took awhile for our players to get our footing,” Conaway said. “Overall, I like where we’re at defensively and offensively.”