Going into the 2023 3A-1 football season, fans and media outlets did what they always do going into any football season. They excitedly pegged where each team would fall in the rankings come season’s end. Those predictions are mostly a mess of scrambled eggs full of favoritism based on the past, but so far this year, the predictions have been pretty spot on. Booneville leads the conference with a commanding 5-0 record followed by Charleston whose only conference loss was to the Bearcats. Mansfield, Hackett, and Lavaca are all set even at 3-2 with the Tigers and Hornets losses being to the top two teams while Lavaca’s shortcomings were against Mansfield and Hackett. With five teams from the 3A-1 headed to the State Playoffs, the 3A-1 should have their teams already predetermined, but “should” isn’t a term used to replace “guaranteed”.
Photo courtesy of Jeannie Keomoungkhoune
In last week’s matchups, there were some surprises and games too close for comfort for the predictors. Booneville beat Charleston as everyone thought they would, but it took a second-half surge by the Bearcats to secure their 25-15 victory. Hackett traveled to West Fork in Week8 where they were supposed to wipe the floor with the Tigers but instead edged out a 33-27 win in Northwest Arkansas. The Mansfield versus Lavaca game was laid out to be Lavaca’s high-octane offense versus Mansfield’s stone-cold defense but instead ended with the Tigers besting Lavaca on both sides of the ball in a 43-19 blowout. Even the winless teams of the conference shocked everyone as Cedarville knocked off Greenland 28-20 in the battle of the 3A-1 Pirates. Although most of the teams that were supposed to win did so, the manner in which they did it left many wondering how good or bad certain 3A-1 teams really are after seeing weaknesses exposed and new strengths popping up.
Even though Week8 had some close calls, there shouldn’t be any surprises going into Week9 on Friday, October 27th. That being said, one cannot fast forward past Week8 in anticipation of next weeks rivalry week that is full of massive gridiron wars. Booneville should beat Lavaca handly but the Golden Arrows offense is still potent enough to give the Bearcats a challenge, especially after Boonveille’s grinding game against Charleston last week. The battle between the black and gold Tigers could also be one to watch with Charleston being dinged up and West Fork showing a resurgence of grit in their game against Hackett. Mansfield and Hackett have already played the best of the best and could be looking ahead at their Week9 rivalry game instead of this weeks Pirate opponents. If they do set their course on cruise control this week though, both could see final scores that do not reflect their conference stature as the Tigers host Cedarville and the Hornets take on a Greenland team with nothing to lose. Again, the teams that are favored should win, but the threat of an unsuspecting loss still looms.
Photo courtesy of Malinda Mizell
Right now, Booneville is the king of the 3A-1 conference. With Lavaca and Greenland left on their schedule, the Bearcats are basically a lock for the 1Seed going into the State Playoffs. Charleston has defeated their closest competitors for the 2Seed of the Playoffs so unless the unheard-of happens against West Fork this week and in their rivalry against Lavaca next week, the Tigers will hold their spot. That brings up the three-way tie for 3rd in the 3A-1 right now as Mansfield, Hackett, and Lavaca all sit with a 3-2 conference record. With Lavaca losing the head-to-head matchups against Mansfield and Hackett, they will likely fall out of the Top3 as they still have Booneville and Charleston left on their schedule. Mansfield and Hackett on the other hand seem equal as both have their losses to Charleston and Booneville, both hold the tiebreaker against Lavaca, and also play the conference’s bottom teams this week. If Mansfield and Hackett are successful in their plundering of Pirates Friday night, they could set up the state’s most important must-see rivalry game in Week10 for not only bragging rights but also for the 3Seed going into the State Playoffs. While all in the 3A-1 seems to be going as everyone figured, 2023 has also shown that you can’t be surprised if there’s still a kink somewhere along the way.
