LITTLE ROCK — Sweat mixed with tears streaked down Samuel Harvill’s face as teammates celebrated around him.
Harvill admitted he was exhausted. But even the black face paint couldn’t hide the joy of Shiloh Christian’s 61-40 win against Pulaski Academy in the Class 4A State Championship Game on Friday night in War Memorial Stadium.
“I’m pretty dang tired,” the four-year starter said.
The Saints (14-1) won their third consecutive Class 4A title, something the Shiloh program has never done, as quarterback Kiehl Frazier and a host of other playmakers helped the Saints overcome three first-half deficits.
Frazier, an Auburn commitment, earned his third straight state finals Most Valuable Player Award. The 6-foot-3, 212-pound senior again was dominant on the state’s biggest stage, completing 15 of 25 passes for 319 yards and four touchdowns.
Frazier also played extensively on defense, coming up with a key interception to stop a potential Bruins touchdown.
“Kiehl is a competitor, he obviously has a lot of God-given talent and ability,” Saints coach Josh Floyd said. “The main thing about Kiehl is he loves to win.”
Shiloh trailed 6-0, 13-6 and 20-13 before reeling off 21 straight points. Frazier was key to the offensive explosion, scoring on a 3-yard run, then hitting senior Zann Jones on a pair of long touchdown strikes and a 34-20 lead with 52 seconds left in the first half.
Jones broke the state’s career touchdown record of 54 in the game.
“We just stuck to our game plan,” Frazier said. “We knew we could score points and we just stayed with our offense.”
The Saints needed it to keep up with the Bruins (13-2) and quarterback Fredi Knighten, who fired three first-quarter touchdowns. Knighten finished 24 of 46 for 307 yards and five touchdowns and added 62 rushing yards, many of those coming while eluding Shiloh’s relentless pass rush.
“I chased that cat all over the field (Friday), man,” Harvill said. “He’s a great player. That kid’s got some wheels on him.”
Once Shiloh got the lead, the Saints were able to wear down the Bruins with a powerful running game. Senior Garrett Harper pounded out 154 yards on 21 carries, and his rushes kept drives going and the clock running in the second half.
Pulaski Academy’s stuck to its no-punt philosophy, and the unorthodox move proved costly as Shiloh converted four unsuccessful fourth-down attempts into points.
“I made some mistakes as a football coach. I didn’t do a great job,” Bruins coach Kevin Kelley said. “I didn’t plan very well. We made mistakes at crucial times and that falls on me.”
Even with the costly mistakes, Pulaski had a chance late in the game. But a fumble on a key pass reception proved the ultimate blow as Jones stripped Pulaski Academy’s Greyson Stokes and Jacob Coffman recovered deep in Shiloh territory.
Six plays later, Frazier hit Jones on a 44-yard scoring pass.
Later, Shiloh again held on a Bruins fourth-down attempt at the Bruins 34, and Harper caught an 8-yard touchdown pass from Frazier that gave the Saints a 55-33 lead and sealed it.
“I just told our guys (at halftime) that we had to keep fighting,” said Floyd, who won his fourth state title in the past five seasons. “I knew it’d be a four-quarter game, and I was worried about that because we haven’t been in a lot of those four-quarter games this season.”
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Class 4A State Championship
SHILOH CHRISTIAN 61
PULASKI ACADEMY 40
Pulaski Academy 20 0 13 7 — 40
Shiloh Christian 20 14 7 20 — 61
First Quarter
Pul — Lamb 20 pass from Knighten (kick failed), 9:58.
Shil — Harper 24 run (kick failed), 8:37.
Pul — Lamb 8 pass from Knighten (Friedmann kick), 6:42.
Shil — Frazier 3 run (Hale kick), 5:33.
Pul — Lamb 46 pass from Knighten (Friedmann kick), 3:26.
Shil — Frazier 3 run (Hale kick), 1:33.
Second Quarter
Shil — Jones 41 pass from Frazier (Hale kick), 2:03.
Shil — Jones 50 pass from Frazier (Hale kick), 0:52.
Third Quarter
Pul — Henry 12 pass from Knighten (Friedmann kick), 8:58.
Shil — Frazier 5 run (Hale kick), 4:43.
Pul — Knighten 16 run (kick failed), 1:22.
Fourth Quarter
Shil — Jones 56 pass from Frazier (Hale kick), 11:37.
Shil — Harper 8 pass from Frazier (Hale kick), 7:23.
Shil — Hawes 3 run (run failed), 2:51.
Pul — Reyna 13 pass from Knighten (Friedmann kick), 0:42.
Pul Shil
First Downs 25 22
Rushes-Yards 39-164 46-204
Passing Yards 307 319
Comp-Att-Int 24-47-2 15-25-0
Punts 0-0 1-42.0
Fumbles-Lost 4-3 2-2
Penalties-Yards 6-40 5-37
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INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
RUSHING — Pulaski Academy, Knighten 21-79, Skokos 12-54, Pope 2-19, Lamb 3-8, Friedmann 1-4. Shiloh Christian, Harper 21-154, Frazier 23-52, Hawes 1-3, Slone 1-(minus 5).
PASSING — Pulaski Academy, Knighten 24-46-2 307. Shiloh Christian, Frazier 15-25-0 319.
RECEIVING — Pulaski Academy, Lamb 8-140, Reyna 6-51, Skokos 4-63, Fortson 3-17, Henry 2-17, Bruce 1-19. Shiloh Christian, Harper 6-36, Jones 4-202, Schisler 2-61, Hawes 2-10, Thomas 1-10.
MISSED FIELD GOALS — None.