Down 28-16 going into the fourth quarter at home, the Benton Panthers came back to defeat the Jonesboro Hurricane 38-37 in epic fashion in the quarterfinals of the 6A state playoffs at Panther
Stadium in Benton.
The victory sets the Panthers up with a rematch with the undefeated West Memphis Blue Devils next week in the semifinals in West Memphis.
“Survival time,” Benton Coach Brad Harris said. “It’s that time of the year. We always say the weak get eaten and we almost got ate. But we were able to survive and that’s the biggest thing. We’re playing next week in the semis.”
The Hurricane (7-5) would attempt a punt in the fourth quarter, but it was muffed and the Panthers (9-2) took full advantage on the very next play. At Jonesboro’s 30-yard line, sophomore quarterback Garrett Brown threw to junior Gavin Wells behind the line of scrimmage, and Wells would find senior receiver Garrett Body for the 30-yard touchdown to get Benton within 28-23 with 9:57 left to play.
See full story in Saturday's issue of The Saline Courier.