Class 7A football state championship game preview: After hiatus, Fayetteville back in title game looking to stop Bryant's dominance

For the first time since winning back-to-back Class 7A state titles in 2015 and 2016, the Fayetteville Purple Dogs will head down to Little Rock to face the Bryant Hornets, who are playing for a record fourth straight 7A crown.

By Kyle Sutherland | Photo by Sadie Rucker

For the first time since winning back-to-back Class 7A state titles in 2015 and 2016, the Fayetteville Purple Dogs will head down to Little Rock and face the Bryant Hornets, who are playing for a record fourth straight 7A crown. Along with archrival Bentonville, Fayetteville was a dominant force during the West conference’s 12-year state championship run, winning four total between 2007-16. 

Former Razorback quarterback Casey Dick is in his third year as head coach at Fayetteville and on the other sideline is one of the most decorated coaches in the state, Buck James, who is looking for not just a fifth career state title for the thumb, but also his 200th win. The game will kick off at 6:30 p.m. on Saturday night at War Memorial Stadium. 

After starting the season 1-2 while playing one of the toughest nonconference schedules in the state, Fayetteville has reeled off nine straight victories and clinched an outright 7A-West Conference title for the first time since 1963. The Purple Dogs have won their two postseason games in thrilling fashion, coming back from 21 points down to defeat Cabot 34-27 and overcoming 21 consecutive points scored by Conway last Friday to survive 29-21. 

Fayetteville had not hit a field goal this fall, but opted to bring on the kicking unit with four seconds remaining. Kicker Graham Witte came through, hitting from 40 yards and helping clinch Fayetteville’s spot in the title game. On a last-second desperation play from Conway, linebacker Kaiden Turner intercepted a lateral pass and took it for the score as the final seconds ticked off the clock, making the final 29-21.

“Our kids have been battle-tested and know what it feels like to be both up and down,” Dick said. “They have been in multiple situations and they don’t get uncomfortable, just stay even-keeled and keep fighting, which is what I love about this group.”

The offense begins with one of the state’s top QB/WR tandems in Bladen Fike and University of Arkansas commit Isaiah Sategna. After a tough ending to last season, Fike has become one of the state’s best quarterbacks, completing 63% of his passes for 3,701 yards and 40 touchdowns. Sategna ranks in the Top 10 nationally with 1,772 yards and has found the end zone 17 times. 

“Sategna gets most of the publicity, but Fayetteville has a great offensive football team,” James said. “They find a lot of creative ways to get other guys the football, which can make him wide open.”

Fike and Co. will need one more great performance going up against a state juggernaut in Bryant who are currently riding a 41-game in-state winning streak. The Hornets lost twice in 2018 during the regular season when they won their first state championship and one of those was to Fayetteville 36-35 before later defeating the Purple Dogs 28-25 in the first round of the playoffs. 

“Being able to play in four of these (championships) is a dream come true,” James said. “My compliment is to our coaches, kids, and administration allowing us to coach our guys and give us a chance to get there.” 

The Hornets lost a large portion of their nucleus to graduation last year, including the majority of the defense, a trio of running backs, the state’s leading receiver, Hayden Schrader, and Landers Award winning quarterback Austin Ledbetter, who is a freshman on the Razorbacks baseball team, but returned most of the offensive line that boasts three Division I college prospects. 

Junior Chris Gannaway and sophomore James Martin have come along nicely at running back, and senior quarterback Carson Burnett has managed an offense averaging 40 points per game after running with the third-team last season. 

“Coach (Kirk) Bock has done one heck of a job with Carson,” James said. “He’s really progressed. He’s a big, strong kid that wants to win. He would have actually been at running back last year if everything would have fell into place. What he has been able to accomplish is phenomenal and we would not be here without him.”

Defensively, Bryant came into the season inexperienced but has impressed, allowing just 13 points per game.

“We lost every starter but one last year,” James said. “We never dreamed we would play as well as we have with only starters returning (across the board) on the offensive line. There are peaks and valleys with young people, but in big games like this you just have to eliminate times when we play really bad. We’re not a big defense, but we play really hard.”

The pass rush from the defensive line has been one of the keys for the Hornets defense all year, and that will be a major key to watch going up against the passing attack that Fayetteville possesses.

“Big-time players make big-time plays in big games,” James said. “All of our guys on the field are going to know where 1, 2, and 8 [receivers Sategna, Jalen Blackburn and Dylan Kittell] are, but it is those other guys too who can make it a lot tougher. We have to be sound in what we’re doing as well as focused on our keys and responsibilities.” 

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