Football: Sophomore Burks displays immense talent

Treylon Burks (13) of Warren makes a catch as Isaac Disney (2) and Stone Bryant (33) of Prairie Grove defend Friday at Tiger Stadium in Prairie Grove.
Treylon Burks (13) of Warren makes a catch as Isaac Disney (2) and Stone Bryant (33) of Prairie Grove defend Friday at Tiger Stadium in Prairie Grove.

PRAIRIE GROVE -- Sophomore Treylon Burks showed why he is considered the latest in a line of standout receivers from Warren.

Burks caught four touchdown passes for 202 yards to lead the Lumberjacks to a 48-28 victory over Prairie Grove in a semifinal game Friday at Tiger Stadium. Warren (14-0) handed Prairie Grove (12-1) its first loss while advancing to face Pea Ridge in the Class 4A state championship game at War Memorial Stadium in Little Rock next weekend.

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Burks finished with eight catches and grabbed touchdown passes in each half. He had six catches for 135 yards and two touchdowns in the first half as Warren grabbed a 28-0 lead. The Tigers scored twice in the second quarter but Warren recaptured the momentum in the second half behind Burks, who also finished with 11 tackles while playing cornerback on defense.

Warren has long produced standout receivers starting with Bret Smith, who played at Tennessee in the 1990s. Jarius Wright, Greg Childs and Chris Gragg each played at Arkansas before turning pro. Burks (6-foot-3, 205 pounds) is another top prospect from Warren whose list of college scholarship offers will undoubtedly grow the next two seasons if he remains healthy.

"He's a sophomore and still has a long way to go," Warren coach Bo Hembree said. "But I love coaching him. He's a great kid, and he works extremely hard."

Burks wasn't the only reliable target for quarterback Hayden Lassiter on Friday. Lassiter also hooked up for touchdown passes with Jmalachi Kinnard and Kennemore McKnight, who found holes in the secondary and outran the pursuit.

The passing performance came against a Prairie Grove defense that had allowed less than two touchdowns per game. Burks was often guard by Isaac Disney, a standout himself who recently received an offer from Henderson State. But Burks, who has already received an offer from Arkansas, was a handful regardless of who or how many Tigers tried to cover him.

"He's fantastic, isn't he?," Prairie Grove coach Danny Abshier said. "He did an excellent job. Disney was right there with him, but their quarterback put it in the right spot to catch it. That quarterback was awfully good, too."

Burks provided a glimpse of what was to come when he took a short kickoff and returned it into Prairie Grove territory to start the game. He then scored the first touchdown on a 32-yard pass from Lassister.

Minutes later, Burks caught a pass over the middle, faked a couple of defenders and raced into the end zone for a 44-yard score. Warren built its lead to 28-0 before Disney grabbed a 41-yard touchdown pass from Zeke Laird, who finished the half with a 2-yard scoring run.

Any thoughts of a Prairie Grove comeback faded with two more touchdown catches by Burks in the second half. His final score came on a catch in which he used his length to tip the ball to himself while running at full speed. He briefly bobbled the ball but kept his balance and ran the final yards to complete the 40-yard pass play that put Warren ahead 48-20.

"He's a freak," Lassiter said. "He's as good as advertised, maybe even better."

Sports on 12/03/2016

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