Martin, Hornets maul Mounties

“This is our seventh year in a row to play around Thanksgiving. That’s an unbelievable feat.”

Bryant Coach Buck James

CLASS 7A

BRYANT 42, ROGERS 7

BRYANT — Fittingly, the drive for five began with five of a kind.

Junior tailback James Martin ran for five touchdowns and Bryant used another smothering defensive performance to beat Rogers 42-7 in the quarterfinals of the Class 7A playoffs on a cold Friday night at Hornet Stadium.

Adding to one of the greatest stretches of success in Arkansas high school football history, Bryant (10-0) recorded its 20th consecutive victory and 51st consecutive against an in-state opponent. The Hornets are seeking their fifth consecutive Class 7A state championship.

“This is our seventh year in a row to play around Thanksgiving,” said Bryant Coach Buck James, architect of the Saline County school’s jaw-dropping run. “That’s an unbelievable feat. My hat’s off to these kids. We’ve won what, 51, 52 games in a row? We just keep answering the bell. At some point, it probably comes to an end. But it’s been a great ride.”

Bryant, 7A-Central’s No. 1 playoff seed, will host conference rival Conway in next week’s semifinals. The Hornets beat the Wampus Cats 34-16 in the regular-season finale Nov. 5 at home, collecting seven turnovers in throttling Class 7A’s most prolific offense this fall.

Bryant followed the same script following a first-round playoff bye.

The Hornets bolted to a 28-0 halftime lead and limited the Mounties (9-3) to just 120 total yards on 40 plays through three quarters. Bryant had two interceptions. The first by standout junior safety Drake Fowler was near the Bryant 6 and set up a touchdown in the closing seconds of the first half.

“Doesn’t matter if you’re having a good night or a bad night, defense can show up,” James said. “We started 11 of these guys last year in the state championship game. It’s not like we’ve got guys out there that haven’t been in the fire. These guys have been in the fire. They’ve just got to keep doing their job.”

Bryant applied the Arkansas Activities Association’s sportsmanship rule – a running clock when the score differential reaches 35 points in the second half – after Martin’s fifth touchdown run (16 yards) with 5:10 remaining in the third quarter. Senior Stephen Fuller kicked the extra point for a 35-0 lead.

Martin had earlier scored on runs of 1, 1, 4 and 4 yards. Following Fowler’s interception, Martin’s second 1-yard touchdown run capped an eight-play, 70-yard drive. Fuller’s extra point made it 28-0 with one second remaining in the first half.

Sophomore quarterback Jordan Walker rushed 7 times for 107 yards and completed 11 of 17 passes for 105 yards. The bulk of Walker’s rushing yards came on draws or scrambles. Martin ran 16 times for 88 yards. The Hornets finished with a 451-203 advantage in total yardage.

Rogers junior tailback Jacob Jenkins ran 21 times for 121 yards. Junior quarterback Dane Williams completed 10 of 26 passes for 86 yards, including a 19-yard touchdown to senior wide receiver Tye Cunningham with 6:48 remaining in the game.

“I’m proud of the way our kids played,” James said. “I thought our defense played really good and we hit, really, on all cylinders on offense. I thought we ran the ball well. We threw it when we needed to. I thought we were effective.”

Rogers was the No. 4 seed from 7A-West.