Van Buren ends Patriots’ football season
By CHUCK LIVINGSTON
Marion School District
Oftentimes, in the Arkansas high school football playoffs, the team who scores last wins, and unfortunately for the Marion Patriots last Friday night, Van Buren scored last.
Marion took leads of 7-0 and 26-22 late in the fourth period, but the Pointers took advantage of a long kick return and a short field on their next-to-last drive.
The Pointers (4-7 overall) got a 43-yard kickoff return from Blayne Pruitt into Marion territory and cashed that big play in ahead of a third and 5 when quarterback Hayden Williford hit Elijah Johnson for a 16-yard touchdown pass with 39 seconds left in regulation to provide a dramatic 29-26 win.
“Just really proud of our kids and coaches for finding a way with that one,” said Van Buren coach Moe Henry. “We played well a lot of the night, and it still almost didn’t matter. But we made the plays when we needed it, and that’s what the playoffs are all about.”
Pointer safety Landon Evans intercepted Marion’s Zayden Walker with 25 seconds left to clinch victory for Van Buren.
Van Buren’s heroics nullified Marion’s (7-4 overall) lategame fireworks. The Patriots took over at their own 36-yard line with 3:00 left in regulation when senior tailback Jalen Smith took a direct snap, rolled left, and lofted a pass to junior tailback Rico Ward, who collected the attempt and was pushed out of bounds at the Van Buren 6-yard line.
Smith ran over the left side one play later for a go-ahead score that gave the Pats their first lead since 7-0 with 2:49 left in the game.
The 7-0 lead was the result of Marion’s 12-play, 80-yard touchdown march with the game’s opening kickoff.
The drive was propped up by three Marion third-down conversions, the last of which went for 32 yards on a Ward TD run with 7:09 left in the first period, and the seven-point cushion carried into the second period.
Van Buren got even at 7 three plays into the second when tailback Cameron Keller ran 36 yards to paydirt with 11:14 left in the first half.
Following a Marion punt, Van Buren embarked on a seven-play 64-yard drive that Keller paid off with a 10-yard scoring scamper for a 14-7 Pointer advantage.
It took Van Buren just two plays on its ensuing drive to take a 22-7 lead when Williford hit receiver Trenton Cooley for an 85-yard TD pass with 2:53 left in the second stanza.
Marion got within 22-14 at halftime when Ward added a seven-yard TD run late in the first half.
“I thought it was important to have the lead at halftime,” said Henry. “We did a lot right in the first half and it was good for us to take that with us. I wish we’d built on to it a little bit, but we felt good getting to halftime with the lead, and it helped us, I think.”
Marion got within 22-20 after three quarters when sophomore Jeremiah Dent ran 48 yards to the paint with 22 seconds left in the third period, but the Pointers tackled Marion’s Christian Young at the one-yard line with the two-point conversion to keep Van Buren on top.
Marion forced back-to-back Van Buren turnovers on downs to set itself up for its late-game charge.
Following Smith’s dramatic touchdown, a personal foul penalty forced Marion to kickoff from its own 25-yard line, giving Pruitt the runway to move into Marion territory.
The Pointers picked up one first down before a pair of rushes netted Van Buren five yards, setting the stage for Williford and Johnson’s big play.
“Our coaches work really hard and they have a lot of great ideas for plays, a lot of them we may never run,” said Henry. “We felt good with this one, and we’re obviously happy it paid off.”
Van Buren advances to the state quarterfinals for the second season in a row, playing at 6A runner-up Shiloh Christian next week.
Marion capped its fourth straight season of seven wins or more under Coach Lance Clark, whose record is 30-16 (66 percent winning percentage) since taking over in time for the 2021 season.
Senior farewell
The Van Buren playoff game marks the final game in a Marion uniform for some alltime great Patriots, including three-year starters Jalen Smith (school-record 4,044 career rushing yards), all-state left tackle and LSU commit Carius Curne, center Charlie Cantrell, and receivers Mitrell Lewis, Cam Garrett, and Christian Young.
Winning ways
This year’s senior group played a part in 22 victories in their three seasons, an average of more than seven wins per season, and is the most prosperous three-year stretch for the school since Marion’s 20052007 run (23 victories).
Youth movement
Marion graduates almost 30 seniors in May, but the Patriots could return their leading passer (junior QB Zayden Walker, who completed 52 percent of his passes this year for 911 yards and five touchdowns), their second and third leading rushers (junior Rico Ward and sophomore Jeremiah Dent), while Dent ranked fourth this season with eight receptions for 149 yards and two TDs. Jeremy Dent finished with six receptions for 118 yards and two scores, while sophomore Kam Riley snagged five passes for 76 yards.
Defensively, junior linebacker Chris Byrd paced the 2024 Patriots with 69 tackles with two sacks, while defensive ends Zadean Wilson (56 tackles this fall with a team-high 10 for losses and two sacks) and Ryan Blackwell (54 stops with six TFL and a team-high three sacks with an interception) are all eligible to return for 2025. In the defensive backfield, junior twins Kajeris (team-high five interceptions and 31 tackles) and Kejaris Hills (two interceptions with 32 stops) and Brian Benford, Jr. (30 tackles with an interception) are all underclassmen.
Marion senior receiver Christian Young (4) lines up for a play during action last week against Van Buren.
Photo by Eryn Edwards/
