BEARCATS LOOKING FOR 50TH WIN IN SERIES

The Bearcats have a chance to add longtime rival Paris as a fourth opponent to a club of those beaten at least 50 times.

Already among those to have taken 50 losses from the Booneville program are Mansfield at 62, Waldron at 60, and last week’s opponent, Ozark, now at 56.

The 2021 Bearcats beat Paris 41-22 for program win 49 against the North Logan County school, but the series took a two-year hiatus before resuming as a nonconference game for this, and next season.

There have been 91 meetings between Booneville and Paris, making the Eagles the most often faced opponent. Ozark was an opponent for a second most 87th time last week.

Both the six tie games and the 36 series wins by Paris are the most of any opponent.

The meeting count could easily be in the triple digits but, in addition to the last two-year cycle, there were no games in 2006-2013, and there was another break in 2016-2017.

The 2006 stoppage occurred when the schools were placed into different classifications and ended an 80-year streak of the schools playing, sometimes despite being in different classifications.

Early on in the series the game was played on Thanksgiving day and even after that tradition gave way, the game would typically be the regular season finale, rendering the off season bragging rights. One of those, the 1929 game with Paris was also the first recorded Booneville homecoming game.

Head coaches Gene Bradley and Kenneth Rippy, who played in the heyday of Paris being the Bearcats top rival, both lead 10 Bearcat teams to wins in the series. Bradley’s final of his 107 wins came at the expense of Paris.

Doug Scheel’s teams were a perfect 9-0 against Paris, representing the largest part of a 12-year winning streak that covered the years of 1978-1989.

It was during that streak the Bearcats assumed a series lead they have yet to relinquish. However, the .571 winning percentage against Paris is, by far, the closest among schools with at least 20 meetings.

Current Bearcat Head Coach Doc Crowley is 2-0 against Paris.

• Mascots: Booneville Bearcats; Paris Eagles
• When: 7 PM, September 13, at Eagle Stadium
• Series: Booneville leads 49-36-6 (0.571)
• Streak: Booneville has won last 4
• Last Meeting: Booneville 41 Paris 22 on October 29, 1921
• First Meeting: Booneville 12 Paris 12 on October 7, 1922
• Conference Affiliations: Booneville is 3A-1; Paris is 3A-4

TODAY IN BEARCAT FOOTBALL HISTORY: The Bearcats are 8-3 all time in games documented to have been played on September 13. Twice on this date there have been two punt return touchdowns in a game. On September 13 1985 Andy Napier had two punt return touchdowns, both in the third quarter, and scored five touchdowns in a 37-6 win over Mena. In 1996, Trent Goff and Davin Hicks both had punt return touchdowns in a 26-21 loss to Mena. Between them, in 1991 the Bearcats survived for a 20-19 win with a goal-line stand in Huntsville in a game that saw Joey Ballin run 79 yards for a touchdown and Randy May total 136 yards on the ground. In the most recent September 13th game, Evan Schlinker threw Cam Brasher a 52-yard touchdown pass and Andrew Robertson returned a fumble 43 yards for a touchdown in a 42-14 win over Pottsville.

NOTES: There could easily be a field goal try Friday. Oliver Loaeza (23) kicked, and made, his first career field goal try Friday, and there has been a successful field goal in both games this season. Paris has a kicker who made two against Waldron in their season opener. Friday’s win marked the 14th straight, making the current streak the fourth longest in school history with the only longer streaks extending 15, 16, and 23 games.

THE 3A-1: Conference 3A-1 was 2-4 last week with the Bearcats beating Ozark 31-14 and Mansfield pounding Waldron 41-8. Elsewhere Lavaca lost to Paris 48-21 and Cedarville lost to Mountainburg 50-22, while West Fork fell to Green Forest 12-0 and Charleston fell to Pottsville 38-35. Hackett and Greenland were open.

This week’s league schedule finds all eight teams in action. Besides the Bearcats in Paris, Charleston is at Ozark, Mansfield is at Lamar, Lavaca is at Roland, Okla., West Fork is hosting Lincoln, Hackett is at Gentry, Greenland is at Berryville, and Cedarville is hosting Johnson County Westside.

PEP RALLY THEME: Hawaiian.