Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette
Mounties stop Wildcats
Rogers High beats Springdale Har-Ber in back-and-forth game.
ROGERS — Marion Slater wasn’t about to let this one slip away, and the Rogers High linebacker made sure of it.
With a seven- point lead and needing a defensive stop, Slater and the Mounties came up with two huge plays in the final minutes to help Rogers claim a 49-42 win against Springdale Har-Ber on Friday in Whitey Smith Stadium.
In an offensive shootout that went back-and-forth from the opening kickoff, the deciding play came down to the Rogers defense. With Har-Ber in possession of the ball near midfield and facing third down and six, Slater crashed through to tackle Har-Ber’s Hudson Brewer for a 1-yard loss.
With the game hanging in the balance, Har- Ber went for it on fourth down and seven, and Slater came up with another big play, this time with help from Damon Voak and slung Wildcats’ quarterback Drue McClendon down for a 7-yard loss with just over two minutes left.
Rogers (5-2, 2-2 7A-West) was able to run out the clock and claim a huge conference win heading into the final game of the regular season next week. The loss was equally huge for Har-Ber, which saw its winning streak snapped at four games and clinging to hopes of securing the No. 2 playoff seed in the West.
The game was an offensive show by both teams. Rogers piled up 498 total yards and Har-Ber (4-5, 4-2) finished with 364, including 350 on the ground.
Rogers led 28-21 at halftime after Mounties quarterback Christian Francisco led his team on a fourth consecutive scoring drive of the first half. After a Har-Ber touchdown, Rogers kickoff returner Kade Seldomridge returned the ensuing kickoff 46 yards to midfield with just over four minutes left in the half.
Francisco made huge plays in the drive, and the Mounties converted three fourth-down plays to keep the chains moving. Rogers benefited from a big pass interference penalty late in the drive, then scored the goahead touchdown with just two seconds left in the half when Francisco hit Seldomridge on a 5-yard scoring pass in a crowd of defenders and a 28-21 lead.
Rogers was looking to add to its lead to start the second half when Yahir Munoz kicked and recovered an onside kick to start the second half, but the Mounties were unable to take advantage when Francisco was stopped just inches short on fourth down and 12.
Har-Ber tied the game on the following drive as Brewer carried five of the six plays, getting the score on a 3-yard run with 8:15 left in the third quarter. It was one of four touchdowns in the game for the Har-Ber sophomore.
The Wildcats then twice took the lead. After forcing the only punt of the game, Har-Ber was on the board again as Brewer tore off a 38-yard run and then capped the 50-yard drive with a 2-yard scoring run for a 35-28 lead.
Rogers did not flinch. Francisco hit Seldomridge for 40 yards on the Mounties’ second play to get Rogers inside the Har-Ber 30. Then later on fourth down and 13 from the Har-Ber 15, Francisco found Seldomridge again for a 15-yard scoring strike and the game was tied again at 35-35.
But only briefly.
It took Har-Ber just one play to retake the lead as McClendon kept on first down and raced 65 yards to put the Wildcats back on top 42-35. That would prove to be HarBer’s final points as Rogers shut the Wildcats out in the second half.
Rogers drove 76 yards in 10 plays to tie the score at 42-42. Francisco completed 6 of 8 passes on the drive including an 18-yarder to Noah Goodshield to move the ball to the Har-Ber 1, where Francisco kept for the score with 11:07 left.
After stopping Har- Ber on a fourth and 9 play near midfield, the Mounties put together the game-winning drive. Francisco kept for 18 yards on first down, then hit Gavin Pitts for 23 yards to the Har-Ber 10. Two plays later Francisco hit Goodshield for an 8-yard score, which proved to be the game-winner with 5:41 left.
Har-Ber was able to move from its own 29 to just across midfield as Brewer twice picked up key first downs. But the Wildcats threw their only pass of the second half, which was incomplete and the Mounties came up with the two big defensive stops to preserve the win.
FOUR DOWNS
• Francisco finished a stellar night for the Mounties, completing 29 of 47 passes for 364
yards and six touchdowns. He also ran for 97 yards and one touchdown. Seldomridge caught 9 passes for 159 yards and Pitts also caught 9 for 89.
• Brewer finished the night with 240 yards, pushing him over the 1,000-yard mark for the season to go along with four touchdowns
• Charlie Spoonhour, who guided multiple teams to NCAA tournament berths as a college basketball coach, was among a group of former Rogers High athletes honored at halftime for the selection to the school’s 2020 Hall of Fame class. Spoonhour died in 2012 at the age of 72.
• Next week: Both teams are scheduled to close the regular season next week. HarBer will host Fayetteville, and Rogers will be at crosstown rival Heritage. Both games are scheduled for 7 p.m. kickoffs.