A witty title and a cool header photo. That’s normally where most folks outside the small town of Mansfield Arkansas turn the page and look at other scores. They see a Mansfield score and then move on to read about the more popular and football blue bloods in the area. But it seems Mansfield doesn’t want that blue-blood notoriety, instead, the 2023 Tigers would prefer to remain a red-blooded underdog. The lack of state-wide recognition has benefited Mansfield going through the 3A State Playoffs thus far as their opponents have seemingly looked past the Tigers. But after dropping the undefeated 3A-3 Champion Hoxie Mustangs and then defeating the 11-0 number one seeded Salem Greyhounds on Friday, November 24th, Mansfield has found a way to go from red-blooded underdogs to painting the state red as upset kings.
Salem was confident going into their matchup with the Tigers so the Greyhounds opted to have Manfield kickoff the ball to allow Salem’s potent offense an opportunity to get on the board quickly. The gamble looked to have paid off as Salem started with the ball on the Tigers 44-yard line. Behind their massive offensive line, the Greyhounds pushed their way down inside the ten-yard line. The Tigers defense was unphased though and were able to shut them down to force a turnover on downs. Now with Mansfield in possession of the ball, the Tigers were ready to turn their ground and pound rushing attack loose on Salem. The Greyhounds didn’t enter the game as a 1Seed because they had a lackluster defense and they proved that by shutting down Mansfield’s running backs forcing Mansfield to punt the ball away. Pinned at the one-yard line, punter Andrew Burton kicked the ball from out of the Tigers own endzone. The punt was short which would’ve given Salem great field position, but the Greyhounds returner opted to try and return the ball off the ground and advance. But pressure by Mansfield’s Trey Powell caused Salem’s returner to bobble the ball which left the football as free game on the ground. Powell immediately recovered the ball giving the Tigers a huge break and their offense the ball back again. It only took the Tigers two plays to make the best of the turnover as Jeremy Strozier made a quick pitch to Daniel Burton who ducked and dodged his way 51 yards down the 15-yard line. Mansfield ran the ball on back-to-back plays to attempt to suck in Salem’s defense which was a plan that worked out as Jeremy Strozier found an open Peyton Martin for a 10-yard Tiger touchdown. Ethan Martin tacked on the extra-point kick giving Mansfield a 7-0 lead over Salem at the end of the first quarter.
The quick lead on the Tigers second possession didn’t last for very long though as the Greyhounds quickly rolled their way downfield to almost create a carbon copy scoring pass against Mansfield. Salem went for a two-point conversion to take the lead, but the Tigers defense denied the Greyhounds to keep a slim 7-6 lead. The Greyhounds then pulled a little bit of trickery on the ensuing kickoff going by onsiding the kick. The gamble paid off as Salem recovered the ball to give them a new offensive possession and all of the momentum, or so they thought. Salem’s offense ran the ball on the next play, but Mansfield’s Andrew Burton gave the Tigers a shot of adrenaline by stripping the ball from Salem’s runner to create a Tiger turnover. Mansfield couldn’t capitalize on the turnover though as Salem’s defense pinned their ears back and forced the Tigers into a fourth-down punting situation. Now with the ball again, the Greyhounds began to again gash Mansfield’s defense for big chunks of yardage. But the Tigers clawed out another turnover against Salem when Daniel Burton forced a fumble out allowing his brother, Andrew Burton, to recover the ball and roll downfield to the Tigers 40-yard line. The Tigers offense took the turnover seriously as Jeremy Strozier zipped a pass to Cooper Edwards for an 18-yard completion on the first play from scrimmage. Strozier then connected with Peyton Martin on a go route to set the Tigers up in scoring position at the one-yard line. Mansfield quickly lined up to catch Salem off guard allowing Strozier to keep the ball himself to plow in for a Tiger touchdown. The extra point kick went a hair wide, but the score remained in Mansfield’s favor with the Tigers up 13-6 late in the second quarter. Salem erased the Tigers stretched-out lead nearly as soon as they got it though as the Greyhounds ran two plays for 20 yards before busting through the center of the Tigers defense for a 40-yard run for a touchdown. The Greyhounds converted a two-point conversion attempt and just like that, Salem had a 14-13 lead over Mansfield. The Greyhounds would gain an interception off of a Mansfield pass at the end of the first half sending Mansfield into halftime down 14-13 on the scoreboard.
As both teams came out of the half, fans on both sides of the field were shivering. The goosebumps weren’t from the cold but rather from nerves. The Mansfield faithful had the close game nerves while Salem’s fans had the how could it be this close nerves. The Tigers would start the second half on offense and quickly warmed the field with Daniel Burton burning up yards along the way. Burton rushed twice then caught a 28-yard Jeremy Strozier pass to set the Tigers up at the 19-yard line. With Burton on fire, Salem began to key on the Tigers star runner and that was the plan all along. Two plays later, Mansfield faked a handoff to Burton and then gave the ball to Peyton Martin on an end-around run. With only one black Salem jersey in sight, Martin tight-roped his way into the endzone for a Tiger touchdown. The Tigers tried for a two-point conversion but failed leaving the score with Mansfield up on Salem 19-14. The defense held each other at bay for most of the rest of the third quarter but it was again Daniel Burton who caused concern for Salem’s defense toward the close of the quarter. Burton took a pitch from Jeremy Strozier and darted for a 38-yard gain as the clock ran out of the third quarter with Mansfield threatening at the Greyhounds 10-yard line going into the fourth and final quarter of the game.
With the Tigers threatening Salem’s defense in the red zone to start the fourth quarter, Salem flexed their muscles to give Mansfield a taste of their own medicine. Just as Mansfield held Hoxie on a goal-line stand the week prior, Salem stuffed the Tigers to force a turnover on downs giving the Greyhounds the ball back. The Greyhounds took full advantage of their massive offensive line and impressive running backs as they began to drive the ball down the Tigers throats. A Salem comeback was in the works, but a fumbled snap set Salem back. Although the Greyhounds recovered the fumble, it put them at a far stretch to convert on third down. Third and long is an automatic pass play in every coach’s book and Mansfield’s Jeremy Strozier knew it. Strozier telegraphed the Greyhounds pass and snatched the ball for a 22-yard Mansfield Tiger pick-six. Ethan Martin split the uprights for the extra point and just like that, Mansfield had the game in the bag with a 26-14 lead over Salem with just a handful of minutes left in the game. Or did they? Salem didn’t go 11-0 and became the 3A-2 Champions by laying down when things got tough. The Greyhounds blistered the Tigers special teams’ ensuing kickoff by returning the ball all the way down to the 25-yard line. It took Salem just five plays to dive into the endzone closing the score down to 26-20. The Greyhounds converted their two-point attempt to make the score 26-22 with just 4:01 left in the game. The game went Tick Tock Tick Tock as both teams’ offenses battled the clock. Salem’s defense struck first by forcing Mansfield to punt the ball back to them with just a minute left in the game. But it was the Tigers defense who again saved the day as they stopped the Greyhounds to win the game 26-22.
The Mansfield Tigers made school history with their quarterfinal victory as the first team to ever reach the State Playoff semifinals. The Tigers have done so in grand fashion too as they have defeated two 1Seeded Playoff teams who both were undefeated and champions of their respective conferences. The ultimate underdogs aren’t down yet either. Under the leadership of first-year head coach, Whit Overton, and just five seniors, this young team has made their way to become one of the top four teams in the entire Arkansas 3A. The Tigers next test will not be one they’re unfamiliar with as they play the Prescott Curly Wolves. Just like Hoxie and Salem, Prescott is one of the 3As blue blood premiere programs each and every year. The Curly Wolves are the 3A-5 Conference Champions with an impressive 12-1 overall record. Many are already counting the Tigers out which is something Mansfield is familiar with by now. But one thing is for sure, Mansfield will not allow the naysayers to sway their focus. The goal for the Tigers is still Little Rock or bust and only the scoreboard at the end of next week’s semifinal game will change their mind.
