There were a plethora of high-end games in the 3A on Friday, October 25, as three of the six conferences saw their top two teams take on each other. The favorites in all three games traveled to the underdog’s home field which seemingly made for an even playing field. In the 3A-3, the 2023 4A defending State Runner-Up Rivercrest Colts traveled to Seminole land to take on Osceola while the 3A-7 saw the 2023 3A defending State Runner-Ups, Prescott, face off against an undefeated Bismarck. Those two games were pegged to be the best of the best in the 3A that night, but another game was going on in western Arkansas that many underestimated and even claimed to be one-sided. The undefeated defending 3A State Champion Booneville Bearcats headed to Mansfield to face off against an improved Tigers squad for 3A-1 supremacy. Although many wrote Mansfield off in this game before the season even started, the Tigers weren’t new to the underdog scene. Coming into the game with a 5-2 overall record, the Tigers were barely in the top 10 of the 3A to most fans around the state and many considered them overrated. So, could Mansfield really stand a chance at breaking a 44-year losing streak against the heavily favored, undefeated, defending State Champion Booneville Bearcats? There was only one way to find out.
Mansfield opted to kick the ball off to start the game on defense. Booneville’s offense had averaged 39 points per game coming in, so Mansfield’s defense would have to step up their game. The Tigers didn’t step up at all on Booneville’s opening possession, they jumped all over the Bearcats by forcing a three-and-out to start the game. Not too shabby of a start for the Tigers. Mansfield’s offense has been all about physical football and time management all season, but that’s exactly what Booneville does day in and day out, so the Bearcats were more than prepared for the Tiger’s offensive attack. With all that being considered, the Tigers stuck to their game plan. Mansfield’s linemen out skilled the much larger line of Booneville to allow the Tiger’s “Burton Backfield” to gash their way through gaps and creep closer and closer to the endzone. After 15 offensive plays, Mansfield finally found their way into the endzone as quarterback, Jeremy Strozier, punched the ball across the goal line for a Tiger touchdown. The Tigers were unsuccessful on their two-point conversion but had the lead with a 6-0 score at the 2:40 mark of the first quarter. Booneville jumped right back into the mix though as they opened up their passing game, yes passing game, to drive almost 30 yards on the Tigers before the first quarter closed.
The Bearcats looked to continue their offensive drive into the second quarter, but Cadien Ore forced a Bearcat fumble on Booneville’s first snap and recovered the ball himself to give Mansfield another shot at an upset. The Tigers offense used every weapon in the backfield with Andrew Burton, Samuel Burton, and Jeremy Strozier toting the rock for the first four plays of the drive in an attempt to draw Booneville into a tight midfield defense. The tactic of drawing in the defense worked as Daniel Burton caught the Bearcats off guard by taking a wide pitch to the outside and then reversing the field to roll in for a 42-yard gain. Unfortunately, the Tigers couldn’t capitalize on the big play as they turned the ball over on downs on the six-yard line. Booneville started out their drive deep in Mansfield territory but dug their way out of the hole in just one play though as the Bearcats ran right up the gut for a massive 79-yard gain. The big play set Booneville up in the red zone and two plays later the Bearcats were in the endzone. Booneville added on an extra point kick to take the lead over Mansfield with a score of 7-6. The Tigers offense quickly got back on track with a 14-yard pass from Jeremy Strozier to Daniel Burton for a 14-yard gain. Burton wasn’t satisfied with just a 14-yard gain though, so he took a counter handoff for a 47-yard Tiger touchdown. Mansfield would again go for the two-point conversion and again fail, but the Tigers still had the lead with a 12-8 score in the second quarter. Even with a slim lead, the Tigers knew they were still two full quarters and a few minutes away from any celebrating because, well, this was the Booneville Bearcats they were playing. The proof of that came shortly, as Booneville jumped back on top of the scoreboard with a 24-yard pass for a touchdown. The Bearcats converted a two-point conversion giving the Bearcats a 15-12 lead going into halftime.
With just a 20-man roster, it would be easy to see a team like Mansfield get worn down in the second half by a perennial blue blood like Booneville. That is what fans on both sides of the field expected to happen, too. Mansfield’s players and coaching staff on the other hand had different expectations for the final two quarters of play. Mansfield’s plan to start the game on defense gave the Tigers offense the ball to start the second half. Booneville tried an onside kick, but Ethan Martin secured the ball allowing the Tigers to start near midfield. The Tiger’s offense slowly made their way downfield with their notorious ground-and-pound run game while picking up some extra yards from penalties by the Bearcats. After making their way down inside the two-yard line, Mansfield’s offensive line again opened up a gap just big enough for Andrew Burton to cross into the endzone for a Tiger touchdown. The Tiger’s two-point conversion was no good leaving the score with a narrow 18-15 Mansfield lead with 6:13 left in the third quarter. But in Booneville fashion, the Bearcats found their way back into the endzone to retake the lead 22-18. Neither team was backing down on either side of the ball as the Tigers and Bearcats continued to dish out heavyweight blows against each other as the third quarter came to an end with Booneville leading Mansfield 22-18.
The Tigers were in a predicament on their first play of the fourth quarter as they faced a fourth down and short to go. With a tone-setting six-yard gain, Samuel Burton picked up the first down to keep momentum in the Tiger’s corner. The tone changed as soon as it popped though as Mansfield fumbled on the next play, putting the ball into Booneville’s hands. With the turnover, the Tiger’s defense now faced a Booneville team that had the lead and momentum on their side. Mansfield’s defense was not deterred though as they forced Booneville to make a punt attempt on fourth down. But with such a close game, the Bearcats elected to try some trickery and ran a fake punt. Luckily, the Tigers had some trickery of their own as a new face entered the field. Freshman, Jeremiah Burton, sniffed out the fake and chopped down the Bearcats punter to give Mansfield the ball on a Booneville turnover on downs. Mansfield’s offense started on their side of the field and had to find a way to get the lead back against a stingy Booneville defense. After being pummeled by a barrage of Burtons for the whole game, Booneville pinned their ears back and went for every Burton on the field at the snap of the ball. But there wasn’t a ball to be found in the hands of any of Burtons this time. Instead, it was Trey Powell who took an end-around handoff and turned on the rockets for a 45-yard Tiger touchdown. The Tigers were 0-3 on two-point conversions, but Mansfield was able to stick to their guns and earn the two-point conversion this time to take a 24-22 lead over Booneville with 8:15 left in the game.
The Tiger’s defense quickly pushed Booneville back to a fourth down with twelve yards to go forcing the Bearcats to call a timeout. The Bearcats went for the fourth down attempt, but an incomplete pass turned the ball over on downs again giving the Tiger’s offense a chance to put the game away with 5:58 left on the clock. Mansfield plowed their way downfield but fumbled the ball on the five-yard line. Quick thinking by offensive lineman Logan Ore saved the drive though as Walters jumped on the loose ball to keep Mansfield’s offense in scoring position. The Tigers now faced a third down with one yard to go to get into the endzone to gain a two-score lead and seal up the game. It’s not very often Booneville allows a score, let alone one that could give their opponent a victory, so the play had to be executed perfectly. The ball was snapped cleanly, the linemen executed their jobs to a T, and Daniel Burton smashed his way into the endzone for a Tiger touchdown. Jeremy Strozier tacked on the two-point conversion giving Mansfield a 34-22 lead with 2:47 left in the game. Mansfield’s defense had to bow up one final time to keep Booneville from scoring. If the Bearcats cut the game to one score, it would look like a fluke victory for the Tigers. The game’s final nail in the coffin fell into the unlikely hands of the freshman phenom, Jeremiah Burton as Burton intercepted a Booneville pass with just under two minutes to go. The Tigers closed out the game in victory formation and took a knee to run out the clock and defeat Booneville 34-22.
Friday, October 25th will be revered for many years to come as the night of upsets. Bismarck defeated top-ranked Prescott 33-29, Osceola beat the undefeated Rivercrest Colts 28-20, and the Mansfield Tigers won against the defending 3A State Champions 34-22. The Mansfield Tigers weren’t supposed to win. The Mansfield Tigers had the odds stacked against them. The Mansfield Tigers were owned by Booneville for 44 years. But owned is a word used for things that are said in past tense. David defeated Goliath on faith alone and Mansfield did the same to set themselves up for a shot at their first 3A-1 Conference Championship since 2010 and a 1Seed in the State Playoffs. Even with a huge victory in their back pocket, the Tigers will have a limited time to celebrate as Mansfield travels to Greenland next Friday. Greenland has always given the Tigers fits, especially when the Tigers have to travel up to northwest Arkansas to play the Pirates. But for now, the Mansfield Tigers players, coaches, and fan base will soak themselves from head to toe in their historical victory and rightfully so.
