There are forced rivalries in the sports world that just don’t live up to what the teams and fans want to see. It just doesn’t seem natural. Like the perfect storm, some things are just meant to be. One rivalry that has never had to be fabricated or made up is the Mansfield versus Hackett football game. For decades each program has brought their A Game to this matchup in hopes for a high Playoff seeding and Sebastian County bragging rights. The last time this game was played in Mansfield, a tornado ripped through town leaving a mucky mess on the field and a low-scoring 16-6 final in the Tigers favor. This time though, the only twister that could be seen was the Tigers ripping up the field and blowing up the scoreboard en route to a dominant 36-6 victory over Hackett.
The Tigers started the game by kicking the ball off to the Hornets allowing Hackett’s air raid offense to head onto the field. Hackett landed a quick first down after two plays but with big tackles by Cooper Edwards and Daniel Burton Hackett was soon forced to punt. Luckily for the Hornets, Mansfield returner muffed the catch which gave Hackett’s offense the ball right back. The turnover wasn’t that big of a deal for the Tigers though Mansfield’s defense quickly set Hackett up on fourth down and six yards to go. Hacket went for the fourth down conversion, but linebacker Zander Walters sacked the quarterback forcing a fumble which Dakota Deer recovered. Mansfield’s offense got their gears turning with a pair of first-down runs followed by a Daniel Burton 48-yard Tiger touchdown. The Tigers went for a two-point conversion but bobbled the snap setting and lost the extra two points to leave the score at a 6-0 lead in Mansfield’s favor. With the momentum needle leaning in the Tigers favor, Trey Powell jumped a Hackett pass on third down for an interception at the 45-yard line to send that needle into the red. The turnover gave Mansfield’s offense the ball back and Samuel Burton made the Hornets pay with a 28-yard run for a touchdown. The Tigers tacked on a two-point conversion attempt to give Mansfield a 14-0 lead with 4:08 left in the first quarter. Hackett’s offense got their wings under them again gaining their second first down of the quarter, but the Tigers defense again shut Hackett down forcing the Hornets to punt. Mansfield’s offense closed out the quarter on the back of Andrew Burton as Burton ran for 13 yards, 3 yards, 24 yards, and 8 yards before the first quarter closed with a 14-0 Mansfield lead.
Mansfield started the second quarter on offense which allowed the ball to go into the hands of Daniel Burton. Burton snatched the ball and took off for a big 40-yard gain on the Hornets defense. Unfortunately, a holding penalty called the big run back setting the Tigers up behind the sticks. An offsides penalty by Hackett followed and a seven-yard gain by Andrew Burton closed the gap but still left the Tigers facing a fourth-down decision. The Tigers went for it and Daniel Burton again busted loose for a big gain, but yet again a penalty brought the big gain back. Facing fourth and a mile, the Tigers elected to punt the ball away to Hackett. Hackett’s quarterback made the most of the opportunity with a big run down the sidelines to cross midfield for the for time in the game. The Hornets continued with a pair of nice runs up the gut before pulling a double pass out of the bag for a 26-yard gain. With Hackett inside the 15-yard line, Mansfield caught some more laundry giving Hackett the ball down at the 6-yard line and a first down. That was as close as the Hornets would get though as defensive linemen Ethan Martin and Logan Ore sacked the quarterback forcing a turnover on downs. With the offense Tigers back on the field, Andrew Burton busted loose a 45-yard run on the first play of the drive to give Mansfield some breathing room. With just 5:34 to go in the half, Manfield introduced their passing game to Hackett with a Jeremy Strozier pass to Samuel Burton for a 29-yard Tiger touchdown. Mansfield tacked on the two-point conversion to light up the scoreboard with a 22-0 lead over Hackett. The Hornets coughed up the ball on the first play of the following drive and Cooper Edwards was right there to scoop the ball up for the Tigers. Mansfield looked to put the game away before the half as Daniel Burton screamed 40 yards for another Tiger touchdown. The two point conversion attempt was no good, but the blowout fuse was lit as Mansfield would again score with 1:04 left in the half. Going into the half, Mansfield held a commanding 36-0 lead.
There is no score in a rivalry game that is safe except the final score. Although Mansfield had a hefty lead, the Tigers knew they had to keep the pedal to the metal as they came out to start the third quarter. Normally a coach would sub out all of his starters at this point, but with Mansfield’s tiny roster of 20 players, there were some players who had no choice but continuing to play. The Tigers took over on offense to start the third quarter with Cooper Edwards under center and Dalton Knowles at running back. Hackett’s defense was able to sniff out the newbies and force a fourth down punt. The Hornets offense faced off against a new Mansfield defense and found the weak points to punch the ball into the endzone in just eight plays. Hackett went for the extra point kick, but the kick was blocked by Matthew Burton setting the score at 36-6 in Mansfield’s favor. The score remained the same to the end of the third quarter as each program refused to give up ground. Running backs Pacen Strozier and Chandler Wisman made a few salty runs for Mnasfield’s offense in the final quarter while Mansfield’s backup defense showed their poise against the Hornets by only allowing a single score in the second half. Chandler Wisman closed the storm cellar door on a Hackett comeback with a smooth interception thus allowing the Tigers to take a knee and run the clock out as Mansfield rolled their way to a 36-6 final for the rivalry win.
The town of Mansfield is split between Sebastian County and Scott County which gives the Tigers a double-decker in the rivalry game department. For the third consecutive year, the Mansfield Tigers have won both country crowns with victories over Waldron and Hackett. Winning a rivalry game is great but winning a conference game is even better. The Tigers now sit with a 2-2 overall record and a 1-0 conference record. While that’s not a bad way to start off, the road only gets bumpier from here with a rough and tumble 3A-1 conference schedule ahead of the Tigers. Next up for Mansfield will be the Charleston Tigers and everyone in the state of Arkansas knows what a stiff challenge that can be. The multi-time State Champion Tigers defeated Mansfield last year in a 14-7 thriller. The game will again be played at Charleston due to a schedule shuffle in the 3A-1 during the offseason. Both teams are 2-2 overall, 1-0 in conference play, and both are eager to prove themselves to the 3A competition across the state after some tough non-conference losses.
