CLASS 2A STATE CHAMPIONSHIP

McCRORY 34, FORDYCE 7

DECEMBER 12, LITTLE ROCK — The McCrory Jaquars did everything right in the championship game.

McCrory took advantage of a fumble right before halftime to seize momentum and then used a negative-yardage punt to take command in the third quarter in a 34-7 win over Fordyce for the Class 2A state title at War Memorial Stadium.

The game was delayed two days and played on a sunny Sunday afternoon after a storm front rolled through Little Rock and parts of the region of the United States that produced several tornadoes on Friday night.

McCrory and Fordyce had warmed up on Friday night when the stadium was cleared and the game postponed until Sunday.

McCrory led just 12-7 late in the first half and was threatening but Jacobie Walker intercepted in the end zone for Jacobie Walker.

Fordyce, though, fumbled on its play, and Reece Rushing recovered at the 19. It turned the tide.

“With that halftime score, it gave us new life,” McCrory head coach Greg Kennon said. “We were here in 2015 and let Rison score before half, and we lost momentum. That score right before half I knew was going to be huge because I’d been on the other side of that before.”

Consecutive 9-yard gains by Latrell Neal and Cason Campbell had McCrory at the 1. After reviewing Campbell’s run, the ball was placed at the 1 and a second put back on the clock. McCrory called timeout, and Reid Kennon cashed in the gift touchdown as the first half expired. Kennon also added the two-point conversion to run McCrory’s lead to 20-7 at the half.

“I’m glad we got here and wished we could have played better,” Fordyce head coach Tim Rodgers said. “I wish I could have done a better job coaching. I made some mistakes in the first half. Instead of taking a knee and going into at halftime 12-7, I put us in a bad situation where we’re behind by double digits. That’s on me. I’ve been doing this 38 years, and I should have known better.”

In the third quarter, Fordyce was forced to punt from their own end zone. The punt went almost straight up in the air and fielded by Dalton Reynolds at the 2 for a punt of negative two yards with 4:25 left in the third quarter.

Kennon rushed for a yard before McCrory was called for a false start. From the 6, Neal ran for the 2 and fumbled but Rushing recovered. On third down, Kennon went around the right side and scored with 2:38 left in the third quarter. Kennon added the two-point run for a 28-7 lead.

Neal led McCrory’s ground game with 105 yards with Kennon, the head coach’s son, earning the Most Valuable Player honors with 15 carries for 84 yards and three touchdowns.

“He’s been a great kid for us,” Kennon said. “The Lord has blessed us with two wonderful kids, and his ability and work ethic is unbelievable. The biggest thing is that he leads by example instead of words. He puts the team on his back and does everything he can to make everybody better and encourage everybody around him. We knew it was his last. We hadn’t won one with him. That had been his dream since he was walking the sideline in ’15 when he was in the sixth grade and we won one. He said he was going to be here by the time he was a senior. That group of seniors bonded and refused to lose “.

Campbell added a scoring run and was 6-of-10 passing for 72 yards.

Rushing caught three passes, all for first downs, for 59 yards, had four solo tackles with one for loss, and recovered a fumble on offense and defense, both of which led to touchdowns, and had a quarterback hurry that resulted in an incomplete pass on fourth down.

McCrory’s defense had five fourth-down stops, recovered two fumbles, and Leevi Tucker and Colby Baskins intercepted passes with Tucker returning his 32 yards for McCrory’s final touchdown.

McCrory’s average drive started at Fordyce’s 47 with four scoring drives starting at the Fordyce 29, 28, 19, and 2. The other McCrory touchdown was on the interception return.