Little Rock Central received a 48-minute refresher course on the power of the 7A-West Conference.
Senior tailback Joey Saucier ran for two touchdowns and caught two touchdown passes as Rogers Heritage beat Central 35-26 in the first round of the Class 7A playoffs on a cold Friday night at Quigley-Cox Stadium in Little Rock.
Saucier ran 26 times for 176 yards, including the clinching 27-yard score with 1:49 remaining in the game.
Heritage (4-7) entered postseason as the 7A-West's No. 6 seed, yet was still a threat simply because of the conference's reputation the past three decades.
The 7A-West has produced every state champion in Arkansas' highest classification since 2005, and 20 since 1983.
Heritage will face 7A-West co-champion Fort Smith Southside on the road in next week's quarterfinals. Southside beat Heritage 38-17 on Oct. 17, the War Eagles' second of five consecutive losses entering postseason.
"It's pretty brutal," Heritage Coach Perry Escalante said of the 7A-West. "We played well at times, but we've had so many injuries that it's just really left us short-handed at times. Despite having a big squad, it's tough playing in that 7A-West. But, we play pretty good football."
Central (6-5) was the 7A-East's No. 2 playoff seed. Friday's result, Tigers Coach Ellis "Scooter" Register said, was reminiscent of a first-round playoff loss in 2000 when he coached El Dorado.
El Dorado was the AAAAA-South champion but was upset 28-20 in a first-round playoff game by Russellville, which entered 3-7 and as a No 4 seed from the AAAAA-West (equivalent of the 7A-West today).
"I told our players all week that the same thing happened to me when I was at El Dorado," Register said. "I told them that I've experienced this, and you all don't understand this. Sometimes, these kids just take things for granted."
The War Eagles never trailed, leading 14-0 after one quarter and 14-7 at halftime.
Saucier, one of the state's top sprinters, was the catalyst. He caught a 46-yard touchdown pass on Heritage's first play from scrimmage and a 43-yard touchdown pass for a 14-0 lead with 5:27 remaining in the first quarter.
Both touchdown passes were thrown by junior quarterback Jake Qualls, who finished 9 of 19 for 187 yards.
After Central trimmed a 28-7 deficit to 28-20 midway through the fourth quarter, Saucier iced Heritage's second playoff victory with a 27-yard touchdown run.
Saucier capped a nine-play, 80-yard drive to open the second half with a 2-yard run with 8:23 remaining in the third quarter.
"He's the real deal," said Escalante, the school's only coach since it launched a varsity program in 2008. "If we can get him isolated on people on wheel routes ... he'll burn you quick."
Senior tailback Tyler Fountain ran 18 times for 136 yards for the Tigers.
Central senior fullback/tailback Malcolm Williams ran for two touchdowns (1 and 2 yards).
Senior quarterback Cooper Westbrook, among the leading passers in Central history, threw two 35-yard touchdown passes to junior wide receiver Peyton Stevens in the fourth quarter. The first pulled Central within 28-20 with 5:17 remaining.
Heritage had taken a 28-7 lead on junior quarterback Joel Brackett's 17-yard touchdown run with 8:33 to play.
Brackett, Heritage's running quarterback, fooled the defense by faking inside to Saucier and keeping around left end.
"We got outcoached and outplayed," Register said. "They were well-prepared and played hard."
Sports on 11/15/2014