FAYETTEVILLE — Conway presented Fayetteville’s defense with a new look to start Friday’s Class 7A quarterfinal at Harmon Stadium. It didn’t take the Bulldogs very long, however, to adjust to everything the Wampus Cats had up their sleeves.
That Figures
2 — Touchdowns needed by Brice Gahagans to break a school record for most scored in career
3 — Consecutive appearances for Fayetteville in Class 7A semifinals
70 — Total yards allowed by Fayetteville’s defense before the mercy rule was enforced Friday
“They came out and showed up some different things that we hadn’t seen on film,” said Daryl Patton, Fayetteville coach. “But we got adjusted, and our defensive coordinator Brian Early and the defensive staff had a great game plan.”
Conway put together a 14-play, 48-yard drive on its first possession of the game. The rest of the first half would see the Wampus Cats manage just 9 total yards as Fayetteville went from a 3-0 deficit to a 31-3 lead.
By the time the Bulldogs (8-3) took a 38-3 lead to enforce the mercy rule with 6:09 left in the third quarter, Conway (8-3) still had just 80 yards of total offense before finishing the game with 185 yards — against mostly Fayetteville reserves.
“We had that good opening drive and then we never could get it going again after that,” Conway coach Clint Ashcraft said. “Their defensive line and linebackers really put a lot of pressure on Cody (Rhoades), and they exposed us up front. They outplayed us up there.”
Play of the Night: Conway had moved inside the Fayetteville 15 yardline on its first drive of the game and was third and 8 from the 12 when Bulldogs linebacker Brooks Ellis sacked Rhoades to force the Wampus Cats to settle for a long, 44-yard field goal. While Matt Cummins converted to give Conway a 3-0 lead with 4:49 left in the first quarter, Ellis’ big hit on Rhoades set the tone on many more big plays by the Fayetteville defense still to come later in the game.
Injury Update: No significant injuries were reported in Friday’s game and the Bulldogs are as healthy as they’ve been all season long.
Player of the Game: The Fayetteville defense. Brooks Ellis had two sacks, Taryll Henry had a sack and a fumble recovery, Reese Fitchue was in on another sack and a forced fumble and Alex Brignoni also had a sack and a punt return touchdown which was called back by a penalty.
Notable: Fayetteville senior tailback Brice Gahagans had his best night of a season that has been marred by injuries. Gahagans had 13 carries for 97 yards and a touchdown and two catches for 19 yards. ... With his one touchdown Friday, Gahagans moved within one score of the school record for total touchdowns scored in a career, held by Gionni Harris. ... The Bulldogs advanced to the state semifinals for a third consecutive season with Friday’s win.
The Lingo: “We’re a good team, and we’re healthy.”
— Daryl Patton
Fayetteville coach
Up Next: Fayetteville visits North Little Rock (10-1) on Friday, the day after Thanksgiving, in the Class 7A semifinals. The Charging Wildcats, the No. 1 seed from 7A/6A-Central — playing the regular season out of the East Conference — had a bye in the first round of the playoffs and defeated Cabot, 28-0, in the second round.