FORT SMITH -- The way Fayetteville has turned the tables on Fort Smith Southside in recent years, a Bulldogs' win over the Rebels in the Class 7A semifinals couldn't come as a surprise.
A Fayetteville rout over the Rebels, however? Now that was a complete shock to everyone.
That Figures
4 — Appearances for Fayetteville in Class 7A finals in last five seasons
4 — Times Fayetteville and Bentonville have met in Class 7A championship in last five years
21 — Completions on 23 pass attempts for Fayetteville sophomore quarterback Taylor Powell against Fort Smith Southside
42 — Margin of victory Friday, the largest in Bulldogs’ postseason history
The Purple'Dogs have won 12 of the last 13 meetings against Southside. But in the vast majority of the previous 12, the outcome wasn't decided until the final quarter -- sometimes even the final possession. Friday night, though, Fayetteville hit on all cylinders and the Rebels misfired in every way possible.
The result: Fayetteville 56, Fort Smith Southside 14.
"Southside is a conference champion, they're a heck of a team, a heck of a program and coach Jeff Williams has done a heck of a job this year," Fayetteville coach Daryl Patton said. "We have been on that other side, about three weeks ago against Bentonville. Everything that could go wrong went wrong and it kind of snowballed.
"That does not mean (Southside) is a bad team. It just means we played well and it was our night, and now we get to go to Little Rock and play a team that beat us 45-2. And when we played them the first time it was not our night, so we're excited about the opportunity."
The 42-point win was the largest margin of victory in Fayetteville postseason history, topping a 42-13 win against Little Rock Catholic in 2011. It was also the worst loss in postseason for Southside, which previously suffered a largest-margin defeat in the playoffs of 45-13 against Bentonville in 2013.
"Fayetteville has a high-potent offense and their defense, nobody talks about it much, but they're really good defensively," Rebels coach Jeff Williams said. "And they've probably got the two best players in the conference in Dre Greenlaw and C.J. O'Grady."
PLAY OF THE NIGHT:As well as Fayetteville's offense played, the defense set the early tone for the rest of the evening. After the Bulldogs scored on their first possession, sophomore Andrew Ellis jumped the route on a 3rd down Clay Tyler pass attempt and came up with the interception. It was the first of three Southside turnovers, this one setting up Fayetteville's second touchdown of the night as the Bulldogs were off to the races.
PLAYERS OF THE GAME: Sophomore quarterback Taylor Powell was at his very best in the first half Friday. Powell completed 21 of 23 passes for 223 yards and three touchdowns, then took to the bench in the second half as Fayetteville's lead grew to 42-0 early in the third quarter.
INJURY REPORT:Offensive lineman Cooper Sone is still nursing an ankle injury sustained in the Conway game the previous week. No other Fayetteville injuries were reported from Friday's game.
NOTABLE:Fayetteville has advanced to the Class 7A state finals for the fourth time in the last five seasons. ... The Bulldogs have won eight consecutive games at Jim Rowland Stadium, home of the Southside Rebels. ... Friday's game was the fifth consecutive game in the Fayetteville-Southside series to be played in Fort Smith. ... Fayetteville advanced past Southside in the state semifinals for the third time, having also defeated the Rebels in the semifinals in 2010 and 2011.
UP NEXT: Bentonville vs. Fayetteville, noon Saturday at War Memorial Stadium for the Class 7A championship. If this one has a familiar ring to it, that makes sense. The Tigers and Bulldogs are squaring off in the state finals for the fourth time in five years. Bentonville defeated Fayetteville in the championship game in 2010, while the Bulldogs won the rematches in 2011 and 2012.
Sports on 11/30/2014