Jacksonville Faces Harding Academy With Playoff Advancement at Stake
The Jacksonville North Pulaski School District's Titans (8-2) visit Harding Academy (6-4) at 7 p.m. Friday, Nov. 13, with a place in the second round of the Arkansas Class 5A state football playoffs at stake. Jacksonville finished third in conference play at 5-2. MaxPreps ranked the Titans fifth in Arkansas Division 5A on Nov. 8.
Jacksonville enters the postseason after closing the regular season with a 50-22 victory over Beebe, rebounding from a 37-34 loss to Mills University Studies. The Titans also posted recent wins over Greenbrier, 60-25; Vilonia, 50-29; and Maumelle, 64-0. Those results give Jacksonville four games with at least 50 points across that five-game stretch.
Senior running back Mason Ball anchors the Titans' ground attack, averaging 175.3 rushing yards per game with 31 total touchdowns, according to MaxPreps. Senior receiver Jaiden Hicks has 690 receiving yards, averaging 69.0 per game, and fellow senior Jakobe Boone adds 657 receiving yards. That receiving production gives Jacksonville options alongside Ball's rushing. Junior Kingston Burnett leads the team's listed total-yardage standings with 1,883 yards, followed by Ball with 1,846.
Harding Academy brings a four-game winning streak into the matchup after beating Brookland 41-18. MaxPreps lists running back and linebacker Ryan Ross at 70 rushing yards per game and receiver and defensive back Bax Howell at 138 receiving yards per game. Howell's production makes limiting big gains through the air a central challenge for the Titans, while Ross gives Harding Academy a rushing threat. MaxPreps lists no head-to-head result between the teams this season.
Jacksonville's defensive contributors include senior linebacker Jordan Cole, who averages 6.2 tackles per game, junior defensive end Doug Rogers, who has six sacks, and junior safety Jaron Eackles, who has two interceptions. Pressure from Rogers and coverage from Eackles could be important against Harding Academy's receiving attack, while Cole's tackling will factor into containing the ground game.
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