It was supposed to be a River Valley showdown for the state football championship for Class 3A on Saturday night. But on a wet night at Little Rock’s War Memorial Stadium, the Booneville Bearcats and the Charleston Tigers started out like it would be a tightly contest championship game when the two teams ended the first quarter in a scoreless, 0-0 tie.
But early in the second quarter, with Charleston facing a fourth a long at approximately their own 40 yard line, the Tigers coach, Ricky May, sent a signal that the Tigers were there to win a championship. May called a fake punt that was caught in spectacular, one-handed fashion by Charleston’s Brycen Kendrix for a first down to keep the Tigers’ drive alive. Charleston would then go down the field, scoring on a Brevyn Ketter run, taking a 7-0 lead over Booneville in the second quarter.
The Tigers defense was successful in slowing the Booneville rushing attack of Dax Goff, Cody Elliott, and Trace Hall. Goff would eventually break a long run for a touchdown late in the game, but in the ensuing Charleston drive, finals MVP Brandon Scott would hit Reese Merechka for a final touchdown score for the Tigers. And on the rainy and wet Saturday night in Little Rock, the Tigers went home with the championship trophy and a 41-12 win over rival Booneville.
Many writers believed the Charleston 42-14 win at Booneville on October 21 was an aberration due to the Bearcats being without seven players; five of which were starters, including All-State running back and linebacker, Dax Goff. Many believed that Booneville would be at full strength for the championship game and the result would be a much closer game. But that would not be the case, as the final score turned out to be not too different than their earlier meeting.
In retrospect, now that the championship game has been played, the significance of Charleston’s 27-0 road win at Rison in the semifinals may show that the Tigers took a huge step toward the title by shutting out a very good Rison team on the road. Charleston did it in very “business-like” fashion last week, and that could have been a predictor of how the state title game would go. Of course, you can’t make direct comparisons, but the fact remains that the Rison road victory was a huge step to the title for Charleston.
The Tigers defense, who gave up just 12 points in the playoffs going into Saturday’s final, gave one last stellar performance in helping Charleston win its sixth state title. The game’s Most Valuable Player, Brandon Scott, hurt the Bearcats’ defense all night with his passing and decision making, as well as using his legs to pick up big gaines and crucial first downs to keep drives alive. Booneville brought pressure to disrupt Scott, but his senior experience and athleticism allowed him to keep his eyes down field, spotting open receivers, and throwing the ball away when necessary to avoid possible interceptions. It was a fitting end for Scott who will undoubtedly be named to his third All-State selection. He has quarterbacked teams that have won three straight conference titles, and now he adds a state title to his illustrious high school career.
Saturday’s game was originally scheduled for 6:30 p.m., but weather delays in the earlier-scheduled Class 4A final between Malvern and Harding Academy pushed the game back to a possible 7:40 p.m. start, and an eventual 8:30 p.m. start. Hats off to the stadium personnel and the Arkansas Activities Association employees who spent a long day at the stadium and did not go home until very late on Saturday night after having been there all day. They did an excellent job hosting the finals, and the workers at the stadium deserve a lot of recognition for their hard work.
On a personal note, I retired from public school administration in June of 2019. I began writing for Resident Press that summer, and Charleston was my assignment area. That is when I met Tigers coach Ricky May. It was Coach May’s first season leading the football program after his hire earlier that spring. I got to know Coach May as I interviewed him and visited with him throughout that summer and into the season. He had a tough first season because his team had been devastated by injuries. But Coach May got his team into the playoffs that year, and since that time, he has won three consecutive conference titles, and now, he and the Tigers are state champions. Quite impressive for the coach in such a short time to have Charleston back to their glory days of state titles.
But most impressive to me about Coach May is his character and his faith. And that is evident in the program he has built. Tonight was special; it is good to see good people win.
Look for photos from the state championship later in the week on Facebook at Charleston Tigers Sports. Congratulations to the Booneville Bearcats for an outstanding season. The Bearcats were ranked second in the state going into the championship game behind the top-ranked Tigers. They traveled over 1500 miles to win four games in the playoffs and to eventually reach the state finals. They deserve a lot of credit and congratulations for an outstanding season.
And now, it is very late, or, very early on Sunday morning, whichever way you want to look at it. Enjoy your championship game memories, and look for more stories on the Class 3A state championship game later this week on RNN Sports!
