SPRINGDALE — Amid light snow, Shiloh Christian buried Nettleton under a blizzard of early touchdowns.
The Saints scored 42 points in the first quarter and skated to a 55-14 opening-round victory in the Class 5A state playoffs on Friday night at Champions Stadium.
Senior quarterback Eli Wisdom fueled the flurry, throwing five touchdown passes in the first 12 minutes and six by halftime as the Saints led 55-0 at the break. A running clock was used, starting in the second quarter.
“It’s explosive,” Shiloh Christian Coach Jeff Conaway said of the offense’s performance. “I thought [Wisdom] threw the ball nicely. Our receivers did a good job of creating some separation, finding some holes in the defense, and he delivered.” Shiloh Christian (10-1) won its 10th in a row and advanced to host the Little Rock Mills-Hot Springs winner.
“I’m very thankful for all these guys,” said Wisdom, who added 68 rushing yards on three totes. “My coach’s goal was to pass that ball around, and that’s what we did. I trust my guys. They caught the ball and scored.” The Saints showed business-like precision on both sides of the ball.
“I feel like these seniors do that every week,” Conaway said. “They have a good approach to practice. Most of the time, they’re ready when it’s time to play. Tonight was definitely one of those nights.” Junior running back Bo Williams rushed for 102 yards and a touchdown on seven carries and had two catches for 34 yards and another score. Bodie Neal added five receptions for 100 yards.
“Bo is a great running back,” Conaway said. “I felt like he ran the ball really hard.” The Saints played their reserves in the second half.
Nettleton ended the season 7-4.
Shiloh Christian sailed 58 yards in three plays on its opening possession, sparked by Wisdom’s 43-yard first-down run and capped by his 2-yard TD toss to Carter Holman.
Wisdom and Holman connected on a 21-yard touchdown pass with 9:32 left in the first quarter. Ayden Benson’s PAT put the Saints up 14-0.
Williams took a screen pass and weaved his way into the end zone from 18 yards out as Shiloh Christian extended the edge to 21-0. The rout was on.
“I thought we attacked that first quarter with a lot of speed and physicality and just focus and got the momentum rolling early,” Conaway said. “The way we started, obviously, was the opportunity to kind of run away on the scoreboard.” After two more Wisdom touchdown passes, Williams got free and raced 46 yards down the left sideline for a 42-0 cushion.
“As long as we come in here and we prepare and we focus, I think we can do that every single week,” Wisdom said. “I’m very confident in our guys and our O-line. We have to stay humble, of course. We have to keep preparing and keep focusing, just like every single week. But that definitely does give us a lot of confidence.” Ke’Andre Pope’s 2-yard TD run got the Raiders on the scoreboard at the 7:41 mark of the third quarter, and the PAT made it 55-7. Pope rushed 13 times for 69 yards.
Nettleton sophomore quarterback Maddox Hampton passed to Curtez Smith for a 17-yard score with three minutes left in the game as the clock rolled.
The snow wasn’t a factor on the field, but it was a bit of surprise.
“It was pretty cool,” Wisdom said. “I didn’t really expect that. Arkansas weather is really confusing. Yesterday it was 76. Today it’s 30 and snowing.”