Class 4A State Championship • 2020 • War Memorial Stadium
SHILOH CHRISTIAN 58, RIVERCREST 20 Attendance 2,156 • Cloudy 45 degrees • Kickoff noon • Time 2:37 DECEMBER 19, LITTLE ROCK — The Shiloh Christian Saints were both methodical and succinct. The Saints scored on all five first-half possessions and their first seven in all while rolling to a 58-20 win over Rivercrest in the Class 4A championship game at War Memorial Stadium before a crowd of 2,156. The championship is the eighth for Shiloh Christian and first for head coach Jeff Conaway, who is the fourth head coach to take the Saints to the title to join Gus Malzahn (1998, 1999), Chris Wood (2001) and Josh Floyd (2006, 2008, 2009, 2010). Shiloh Christian lost just one game during the season and that was to Oklahoma’s Sand Springs. The Saints led the state in scoring with 702 points and did it in a variety of ways with 60 rushing touchdowns, 25 passing, seven special teams and six from the defense. The Saints finished with 518 yards of offense with a balance of 239 passing and 279 rushing. Shiloh Christian had scoring drives of 13, 11 and 14 plays, covering 63, 65 and 84 yards. The Saints also had two scoring drives of just one play each. The Saints won the coin flip and elected to receive rather than defer to the second half and took a 7-0 lead with 8:08 left in the first quarter on a 3-yard run by quarterback Eli Wisdom to cap a 13-play, 63-yard drive. Rivercrest tied the game on Keyshawn Scott’s 1-yard scoring run with 5:43 left in the opening quarter. Wisdom hit Jacob Solomon on a 10yard scoring toss, and Cam Wiedemann scored on a 3-yard scoring run to take a
SHILOH CHRISTIAN OFFENSE QB Eli Wisdom SO FB Kaden Henley JR RB Cam Wiedemann SR WR Cooper Hutchinson JR SR Andrew Dudley SR LT Sam Widmer SR LG Wyatt Graves SR C Nathan Lentine JR RG Jackson Ball JR RT Zachary Brown JR TE Noah Dejarnatt SO PK Caleb Anderson JR
Wiedemann for a 41-yard touchdown pass just 17 seconds into the new half. “If you don’t score with them, you’re going to have a hard time,” Rivercrest State championships for Shiloh Chrishead coach Johnny Fleming said. “We tian, and first for coach Jeff Conaway had a chance right there at the end of the first half to get back with them if we do that, and then we don’t fumble the Possessions scored on by Shiloh kickoff to start the second half.” Christian out of their first seven Rivercrest had another opportunity when Jaylyn West returned an on-side kick by Shiloh Christian to the 9. Four Touchdowns scored by Shiloh Chrisplays later, Shiloh Christian took over on tian combined on special teams and downs and went 91 yards in 10 plays to defense apply the Arkansas Activities Association’s Sportsmanship Rule to start the game clock running 20-7 lead on the second play of the continuously with a 49-13 lead on second quarter. Wisdom’s 7-yard scoring run with 7:37 Rivercrest stayed close with Kam left in the third quarter. Turner hitting Scott with a 30-yard “In the second half, our linemen were touchdown pass to trim Shiloh the difference,” Conaway said. “They Christian’s lead back to 20-13. leaned on them and opened up some Ben Baker returned the ensuing run lanes.” kickoff 40 yards, and Wisdom Wisdom earned the game’s Most immediately hit Cooper Hutchinson for a 39-yard touchdown pass with 8:50 left in Valuable Player award with 16 runs for 110 yards and three scores and 239 the half. Hutchinson intercepted a pass at the yards passing with three touchdowns on 1 to end Rivercrest’s next drive, and the 17-of-21 efficiency. Saints marched 84 yards on 14 plays in four minutes, 31 seconds with Kaden Henley bulling in from two yards out for a 35-13 cushion at the half. “It was a great feeling in the first half to go five for five on drives,” Conaway said. “Those were huge. We needed every one of them.” Rivercrest was turned away again as MOST VALUABLE PLAYER the first half expired at the 1. Eli Wisdom ■ QB ■ Shil Christian Rivercrest then received the secondhalf kickoff but fumbled. The Saint BURLSWORTH AWARD WINNERS struck quickly after Braden Tutt’s Sam Widmer ■ OL ■ Shil Christian recovery with Wisdom connecting with Gunnar McCullar ■ OL ■ Rivercrest State Championship Numbers
8 7
13
RIVERCREST DEFENSE DE Gunnar McCullar SR NM Trenton Kimbrough SO DE Octavio Chirinos SO OLB Brandyn Brownlee JR ILB Omarion Phillips SR ILB Travian Jones JR OLB Keshawn Scott SR CB Damarco Cuble SR CB Clay Burks JR S Jaylan West SR S Kamron Turner SR P Brandyn Brownlee JR
RIVERCREST OFFENSE QB Kamron Turner SR RB Keshawan Scott SR WR Omarion Phillips SR LT Gunnar McCullar SR LG Trenton Kimbrough SO C Andre Harris JR RG Octavio Chirinos SO RT Connor Gray SR SR Jaden Stovall SO SR Clay Burks JR WR Elijah Nichols SR PK Gunnar McCullar SR
10
SHILOH CHRISTIAN DEFENSE DE Cooper Darr SO NM Thomas Reece SO DE Nykile Poor SR OLB Dax Widger FR ILB Gavin Goddard SR ILB Kaden Henley JR OLB Braden Tutt SR CB Andrew Dudley SR CB Eli Wisdom SO S Benjamin Baker JR S Cooper Hutchinson JR P Caleb Anderson JR
