STUTTGART — No team all season had an answer for Stuttgart’s offense until Elkins made the trip to Arkansas County on Friday.
The Ricebirds fell 55-21 in the Class 4A semifinals at Ned Moseley Stadium as the Elks advanced to the state championship for the second straight season
Stuttgart (12-1) didn’t score until the final five seconds of the third quarter after the Elks had taken a 27-0 lead. The 10-yard touchdown pass from junior quarterback Cain Price to sophomore tight end Caiden Sims sparked the Ricebird offense, but too late to change the outcome.
Head coach Josh Price said the Ricebirds simply didn’t execute on offense.
“They’re a very good defense,” Price said. “We just weren’t doing what we were supposed to do. We were blocking stuff wrong up front, dropping balls, throwing errant passes. Just no efficiency on offense, just did not play very well. They’re a very good football team, and they kicked our butt in all three aspects of the game.”
Independent reporting for Pine Bluff & Jefferson County since 1879.
Elkins (13-1) scored one play into the fourth quarter, though Stuttgart sophomore Tyquan Hall returned the ensuing kickoff 95 yards for a touchdown. Price threw a second touchdown pass, this one for 54 yards to senior Jeremiah Jackson, on the Ricebirds’ next possession, but Elkins intercepted passes on each of Stuttgart’s final two drives.
Stuttgart held Elkins to 7 points on its first six possessions, but a 4-yard touchdown pass from senior quarterback Ben Napier to junior Treyton Whittle 18 seconds before halftime started a streak of six consecutive scoring drives by the Elks. Stuttgart didn’t stop Elkins again until the Elks kneeled out the clock at the end of the game.
The teams combined for 42 points in the fourth quarter after combining for 34 in the first three.
The Ricebirds’ defense forced two fumbles in the first half. Junior linebacker Ethan Boyd recovered one of them and made three tackles for loss in the defense-heavy first half.
Price said the first half turnovers were a big part of Stuttgart’s early defensive success.
“They quit turning the ball over is the main thing,” Price said. “We just missed tackles and didn’t do a very good job of getting lined up sometimes.”
Elkins leaned on its rushing offense, finishing the night with 342 rushing yards and six touchdowns.
Senior running back Connor Hamm carried the ball 29 times for 166 yards and four touchdowns, with junior Austin Born adding 118 yards and two touchdowns on 11 carries.
Senior Hunter Smith rushed for 62 yards. Born and Smith had most of their carries in the second half.
Cain Price completed 20 of 40 passes for 265 yards and two touchdowns. Most of his yardage came in the second half, including a stretch of eight straight completions. His touchdowns came on two of the final three passes of that streak.
Senior receiver Quarterion Johnson was his favorite target, catching seven passes for 69 yards.
The Ricebirds’ season ended a week earlier than they had hoped, but it featured a conference championship and an undefeated regular season one year removed from missing the playoffs.
Price said the loss hurts, but the season was otherwise a great one for Stuttgart.
“That’s the thing that sucks so much about high school football: There’s 48 teams in Class 4A, and only one’s going to end the way you want it to end,” Price said.
“That’s just the reality of it, so that part of it sucks. Other than that, it was a fun year, and I’m proud of our kids for coming back after not making the playoffs last year.”
Elkins will face Dardanelle in the Class 4A state championship game next week.