5A East Top Player Performances of the Week
Congratulations to this week's top players! We're covering the best performances from Friday's football action (using all statistics entered as of the time of writing). Enjoy!
Owen Miller Dazzles in Harding Academy Victory
Starting off the list is Harding Academy's Owen Miller, who we judged to be the best player in the league this week. Miller threw for 416 yards and two touchdowns while completing 78.9% of his passes, and also rushed for 64 yards and a touchdown. That's the most rushing yards he has posted since back in November of 2023.
Harding Academy's win was their third straight on the road, which pushed their record up to 3-3. Miller and Harding Academy will welcome Paragould at 7:00 p.m. on Friday.
Gamescore: 43.03
Harrell Made His Presence Known in Nettleton's 55-23 Win
Xavier Harrell was instrumental in extending Nettleton's winning streak to four on Friday. Harrell was unstoppable, rushing for 164 yards and two touchdowns on only 11 carries. His rushing production has been exceptional as that marked his fifth straight game with at least 106 rushing yards.
Nettleton's win was their third straight at home, which pushed their record up to 6-1. Harrell and Nettleton will challenge Greene County Tech at 7:00 p.m. on Friday.
Gamescore: 40.40
Isaac Baker Turns in Season-Best Performance
Harding Academy was led to victory by Isaac Baker, who turned in his biggest game of the season on Friday. Baker rushed for 97 yards and three touchdowns, and also picked up 80 receiving yards. The performance marked the most rushing yards he has had since back in October of 2023.
For the season, Baker has averaged 62.8 receiving yards per game. He's made a big improvement compared to last season: at this point last year, he was only averaging 35.8 receiving yards per game.
Gamescore: 39.57
A Season-Best Performance from Talen Foree Leads Batesville over Harding Academy
On Friday, Batesville had to settle for second even though Talen Foree put up the best numbers he has all season. Foree made 15 total tackles and defended a pass.
Batesville's loss was their fourth straight at home dating back to last season, which dropped their record down to 1-5. Foree and Batesville will square off against Wynne at 7:00 p.m. on Friday.
Gamescore: 34.95
Cole Bentz Delivers Best Effort of Season
On Friday, Batesville had to settle for second even though Cole Bentz put up the best numbers he has all season. Bentz threw for 289 yards and two touchdowns, and also punched in two rushing scores.
This year, Bentz has thrown 8 touchdowns while averaging 151.3 passing yards per game. He is looking even better than he did last year: after six games last season, he was only averaging 64.5 passing yards per game.
Gamescore: 32.47
Other Notable Players
- Drew Gartman: 183 yards passing; 80 yards rushing, 1 TD (Gamescore: 31.70)
- Maddox Hampton: 207 yards passing (Gamescore: 27.60)
- Cam Austin: 76 yards rushing, 2 TDs (Gamescore: 26.88)
- Endy Mcgalliard: 178 yards receiving, 1 TD (Gamescore: 24.72)
- Rourke Sevier: 1 sack and 13 total tackles (2.5 for loss) (Gamescore: 24.00)
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
