SPRINGDALE -- The QB Wall of Honor at Shiloh Christian is impressive and includes some of the greatest to ever take snaps in the state.
Their success is also on display in the overflowing trophy case at the school gymnasium where the hardware from seven state championships trophies rest.
Arkansas Football Playoffs
CLASS 7A
First round
Friday, Nov. 9
C1 North Little Rock, C2 Bryant, W1 Bentonville High, W2 Bentonville West earn first-round byes
C5 FS Southside 35, W4 Springdale High 28
C3 Conway 49, W6 Rogers High 7
C4 FS Northside 35, W5 Van Buren 0
W3 Fayetteville 45, C6 LR Catholic 17
Quarterfinals
Friday, Nov. 16
C1 North Little Rock 48, FS Southside 45
W2 Bentonville West 31, Conway 17
FS Northside 30, W1 Bentonville 17
C2 Bryant 28, Fayetteville 25
Semifinals
Friday, Nov. 23
Bentonville West (7-4) at North Little Rock (11-0)
FS Northside (8-4) at Bryant (9-2)
Championship
Saturday, Dec. 1
at War Memorial Stadium
Bentonville West-North Little Rock winner vs. FS Northside-Bryant winner, 6:30 p.m.
CLASS 6A
First round
Friday, Nov. 9
W1 Greenwood, W2 Benton, E1 West Memphis, E2 Marion have first-round bye
E4 Searcy 49, W5 Siloam Springs 42
E6 Sylvan Hills 31, W3 Russellville 29
E5 Pine Bluff 21, W4 El Dorado 15
E3 Jonesboro 47, W6 Lake Hamilton 44
Quarterfinals
Friday, Nov. 16
W1 Greenwood 35, Searcy 0
Sylvan Hills 17, E2 Marion 14
E1 West Memphis 34, Pine Bluff 6
W2 Benton 38, Jonesboro 37
Semifinals
Friday, Nov. 23
Sylvan Hills (5-7) at Greenwood (10-1)
Benton (9-2) at West Memphis (11-0)
Championship
Saturday, Dec. 1
at War Memorial Stadium
Sylvan Hills-Greenwood winner vs. Benton-West Memphis winner, noon
CLASS 5A
First round
Friday, Nov. 9
E1 Blytheville 41, S4 Hot Springs Lakeside 27
W2 Morrilton 28, C3 LR Parkview 26
S1 Texarkana 27, E4 Nettleton 7
C2 LR Christian 63, W3 Greenbrier 26
C1 Pulaski Academy 57, W4 Alma 21
S2 LR McClellan 24, E3 Valley View 14
W1 Harrison 49, C4 White Hall 7
E2 Wynne 10, S3 Camden Fairview 6
Quarterfinals
Friday, Nov. 16
Morrilton 45, Blytheville 20
LR Christian 48, Texarkana 24
Pulaski Academy 58, LR McClellan 8
Harrison 49, Wynne 14
Semifinals
Friday, Nov. 23
LR Christian (11-1) at Morrilton (8-4)
Harrison (12-0) at Pulaski Academy (11-1)
Championship
Friday, Nov. 30
at War Memorial Stadium
LR Christian-Morrilton winner vs. Harrison-Pulaski Academy winner, 7 p.m.
CLASS 4A
First round
Friday, Nov. 9
1st-4 Ozark, 1st-2 Stuttgart have first-round byes
3rd-2 Lonoke 35, 4th-1 Prairie Grove 26
1st-7 Pulaski Robinson 47, 5th-4 Pottsville 12
3rd-8 Hamburg 31, 3rd-1 Lincoln 20
1st-3 Rivercrest 36, 5th-7 Fountain Lake 14
2nd-2 Heber Springs 31, 5th-3 Pocahontas 20
1st-8 Warren 44, 4th-2 CAC 14
3rd-7 Arkadelphia 37, 3rd-3 Gosnell 0
3rd-4 Dardanelle 31, 4th-3 Jonesboro Westside 22
2nd-8 Dumas 38, 5th-2 Batesville Southside 7
4th-8 Helena-West Helena Central 8, 2nd-1 Pea Ridge 0, OT
1st-1 Shiloh Christian 49, 4th-8 Star City 6
2nd-4 Mena 31, 5th-1 Gentry 7
2nd-7 Nashville 36, 4th-4 Elkins 0
4th-7 Bauxite 21, 2nd-3 Trumann 6
Second round
Friday, Nov. 16
1st-4 Ozark 34, Lonoke 0
Pulaski Robinson 49, Hamburg 29
Rivercrest 50, Heber Springs 36
Arkadelphia 41, Warren 14
Stuttgart 21, Dardanelle 13
Dumas 34, Helena-West Helena Central 30
Shiloh Christian 59, Mena 7
Nashville 41, Bauxite 18
Quarterfinals
Friday, Nov. 23
Pulaski Robinson (10-2) at Ozark (9-2)
Dumas (11-1) at Rivercrest (11-1)
Arkadelphia (7-5) at Stuttgart (9-1)
Nashville (10-2) at Shiloh Christian (11-1)
Semifinals
Friday, Nov. 30
Pulaski Robinson-Ozark winner vs. Dumas-Rivercrest winner
Arkadelphia-Stuttgart winner vs. Nashville-Shiloh Christian winner
Championship
Saturday, Dec. 8
at War Memorial Stadium
Teams to be determined, 6:30 p.m.
CLASS 3A
First round
Friday, Nov. 9
1st-5 Smackover, 1st-4 Glen Rose have first-round byes
3rd-4 Danville 55, 4th-2 Yellville-Summit 12
5th-5 Fouke (4-6) at 1st-3 Osceola (8-2)
3rd-1 Mansfield 27, 3rd-2 Melbourne 20
1st-6 Rison 50, 5th-3 Hoxie 19
2nd-4 Mayflower 60, 5th-6 Pine Bluff Dollarway 22
2nd-1 Lamar 38, 4th-4 Atkins 24
2nd-2 Harding Academy 27, 4th-1 Greenland 13
3rd-5 Camden Harmony Grove 62, 4th-6 Barton 36
1st-1 Booneville 49, 5th-4 Baptist Prep 0
3rd-3 Walnut Ridge 37, 3rd-6 Lake Village 22
1st-2 Clinton 49, 5th-1 Charleston 0
2nd-5 Prescott 42, 5th-2 Mountain View 6
2nd-3 Newport 35, 4th-5 Centerpoint 0
2nd-6 McGehee 24, 4th-3 Piggott 14
Second round
Friday, Nov. 16
1st-5 Smackover 49, Danville 35
Osceola 53, Mansfield 24
Rison 62, Mayflower 20
Lamar 32, Harding Academy 13
Camden Harmony Grove 47, 1st-4 Glen Rose 28
Booneville 41, Walnut Ridge 13
Prescott 45, Clinton 27
McGehee (8-3) at Newport (9-2)
Friday, Nov. 23
Osceola (10-2) at Smackover (10-0)
Lamar (10-2) at Rison (11-0)
Camden Harmony Grove (9-3) at Booneville (12-0)
McGehee (9-3) at Prescott (11-1)
Semifinals
Friday, Nov. 30
Osceola-Smackover winner vs. Lamar-Rison winner
Camden Harmony Grove-Booneville winner vs. McGehee-Prescott winner
Championship
Saturday, Dec. 8
at War Memorial Stadium
Teams to be determined, noon
CLASS 2A
First round
Friday, Nov. 9
1st-7 Foreman, 1st-4 Hector have first-round byes
3rd-4 Magazine 26, 4th-6 Carlisle 6
1st-3 Salem 62, 5th-7 Dierks 7
3rd-6 Earle (7-3) 30, 3rd-5 England 14
1st-8 Junction City 37, 5th-3 McCrory 8
2nd-4 Mountainburg 46, 5th-8 Parkers Chapel 28
2nd-5 Mountain Pine 35, 4th-4 Hackett 26
2nd-6 Des Arc 35, 4th-5 Magnet Cove 31
3rd-7 Mount Ida 36, 4th-8 Bearden 14
1st-5 Conway Christian 40, 5th-4 Lavaca 0
3rd-8 Fordyce 43, 3rd-3 Rector 7
1st-6 Hazen 47, 5th-5 Quitman 8
5th-6 Clarendon (3-6) at 2nd-7 Gurdon (8-2)
4th-7 Mineral Springs 20, 2nd-3 East Poinsett County 14
2nd-8 Hampton 50, 4th-3 Cross County 2
Second round
Friday, Nov. 16
1st-7 Foreman 38, Magazine 26
Earle 36, Salem 22
Junction City 50, Mountainburg 14
Des Arc 49, Mountain Pine 35
Mount Ida 38, 1st-4 Hector 21
Conway Christian 31, Fordyce 28
Hazen 46, Gurdon 0
Hampton 54, Mineral Springs 14
Quarterfinals
Friday, Nov. 23
Earle (9-3) at Foreman (8-2)
Des Arc (8-3) at Junction City (9-2)
Mount Ida (10-2) at Conway Christian (10-2)
Hampton (8-1) at Hazen (11-0)
Semifinals
Friday, Nov. 30
Earle-Foreman winner vs. Des Arc-Junction City winner
Mount Ida-Conway Christian winner vs. Hampton-Hazen winner
Championship
Friday, Dec. 7
at War Memorial Stadium
Teams to be determined, 7 p.m.
Names like Josh Floyd, Matt Simpson, Kiehl Frazier and Rhett Lashlee all made their mark in Champions Stadium and beyond, and all are legacy members of the QB shrine.
Floyd coached the program to multiple state titles and now leads Hewitt-Trussville's program in Alabama. Simpson played for and graduated from Harvard. Frazier, a Parade Magazine All-American, was the starting quarterback at Auburn in 2012. Lashlee is Southern Methodist University's offensive coordinator and served in the same capacity at Auburn and Connecticut.
Junior Eli Reece carries the title of QB1 at Shiloh Christian now, but when he looks for advice, he turns to another former Saints star who is now a sophomore accounting and finance major at the University of Arkansas -- Connor Reece, a three-year starter for the Saints who also happens to be Eli's older brother.
"I can still go back and watch his games, so I'm still learning from him," Eli said. "He was incredible. Connor is the reason why I wanted to play quarterback. Growing up, he was like Superman to me, and I just wanted to be like him."
To make the wall, a quarterback has to "lead, make great decisions and be accurate," as described by Shiloh Christian coach Jeff Conaway. In Connor Reece's career as starter, he certainly matched those prerequisites, throwing for 8,074 yards, 82 touchdowns and finishing with a 60-percent completion mark.
"He was actually the first player I contacted when I got hired," said Conaway, who took over prior to the 2014 season from Floyd. "I basically got an opportunity to tell him that we were gonna go on a long journey together. Three years later, he goes down as one of the most successful QBs to ever come through here."
This season, the 16-year-old younger brother has been stellar as a first-year starter. He takes care of the ball and allows his playmakers to move the offense. With a 69-percent completion clip and only four interceptions compared to 23 touchdowns, Eli Reece has led his team to an 11-1 record, a 4A-1 Conference championship and to the third round of the state playoffs.
"Connor was extremely intelligent, but Eli is even more intelligent," Conaway said. "Eli makes great decisions because it's a strength of his, and he knows he has to because he may not be able to run as well as Connor did. His intelligence is on another level."
For any first-year starting quarterback at Shiloh Christian, expectations come with the territory. You're expected to compete for titles every year, lead an offense that can put up 50 points in a half with ease, display leadership skills that make it all work from the inside and do it all while living the life of a normal teenager.
Eli Reece's pressure was further magnified by the fact that his older brother was one of the individuals who restored the Saints' program to an elite level. He began to feel the enormity of the position when he wasn't starting as a sophomore like Connor did.
"I watched it kind of eat at him when he had to sit out because I feel like he kind of put that pressure on himself that he had to be what I was," Connor Reece said. "I had a conversation with him where I said, 'you have to be your own person.' My dad has told him that also, saying, 'you don't have to be Connor Reece. You have your own advantages and strengths.'"
Instead of crumbling under the pressure, Eli Reece embraced it. When he found out he'd be the starter this season, he changed his jersey number to 3 -- Connor's number. He studied film. He asked questions. Then, when the time came, he started etching his own place in Shiloh Christian history.
Of course, that brought along some brotherly trash talk.
"I poked a little bit at him once we won the conference championship because his teams never accomplished that," Eli Reece said. "I said, 'What's it like to live in my shadow?' just jokingly. For us, it's more of like a playful thing just to mess with each other."
Conaway sees a lot of similarities in the Reece brothers.
"Eli watched Connor play a lot of football, and I'm sure in that time of watching, learned a lot," Conaway said. "I can only imagine what those conversations around the dinner table consisted of. It's been enjoyable to work with the Reece brothers."
When the Saints host Nashville in the playoffs' third round Friday, Eli Reece will have another opportunity to build off his brother's legacy and take the program even further. Connor Reece's 2015 team lost in the second round to the Scrappers, who went on to win the state title.
This season also marks the ninth anniversary of what many consider the greatest comeback in Arkansas high school playoff history. In 2009, Nashville traveled to Springdale for a big playoff game and jumped on the favored Saints for a 35-0 lead and appeared on the way to a mercy-rule blowout. But the Saints staged one of the most incredible comebacks ever and eventually prevailed 51-49 and went on to capture the state title as Floyd coached and Frazier led the way.
"We're excited as a team, and it's not about who we're playing, but it's about us," Eli Reece said. "At this point in the playoffs, if you're still in, you're a good football team. Any win from here on out looks good on the résumé."
Moving toward the future, Eli Reece isn't sure if he'll play football in college. Similar to his brother, he said moving on and pursuing a degree at Arkansas might be a better option. With his team in prime position to capture the program's first state title in eight years, it's not too hard to imagine there could be two Reeces on the Shiloh Christian QB Wall of Honor once he reaches that point.
"I think those are those discussions that we can have at the end of the year," Conaway said with a laugh. "I'll have to wait and see."
Sports on 11/21/2018