Panthers picked to finish fifth in 6A-West

n Siloam Springs will open the season ranked No. 11 in Class 6A.

Image submitted The Siloam Springs Panthers are picked to finish fifth in the 6A-West Conference according to the 2019 Hooten's Arkansas Football book.
Image submitted The Siloam Springs Panthers are picked to finish fifth in the 6A-West Conference according to the 2019 Hooten's Arkansas Football book.

The Siloam Springs Panthers have been picked to finish fifth in the 6A-West Conference according to coaches poll released by one publication.

The 2019 Hooten's Arkansas Football book hit stores earlier this summer, and the predicted finish for the Panthers is the highest they've had in several years.

The Panthers were picked to finish sixth in 2018 and wound up finishing fifth with a 5-6 record overall and 3-4 mark in league play.

The coaches and Hooten's have the Panthers trending upward in 2019 with a fifth place prediction behind defending 6A-West Conference and 6A state champion Greenwood, Benton, El Dorado and Russellville.

The Panthers are picked ahead of Lake Hamilton, Sheridan and Little Rock Hall. The top six out of eight teams in the conference advance to the Class 6A playoffs.

In all of Class 6A, Hooten's has Greenwood ranked No. 1 in the preseason rankings, followed by No. 2 Benton, which lost to Greenwood 45-14 in the Class 6A state title game last fall.

West Memphis is ranked third, followed by No. 4 El Dorado, No. 5 Russellville, No. 6 Marion, No. 7 Jonesboro, No. 8 Pine Bluff, No. 9 Sylvan Hills and No. 10 Searcy, which eliminated Siloam Springs in the first round of the Class 6A playoffs with a 49-42 victory at Lion Stadium in Searcy.

Siloam Springs is ranked 11th ahead of Lake Hamilton, Sheridan, Mountain Home, Jacksonville and Little Rock Hall.

Siloam Springs did not land any representatives on the Class 6A Super Team. Senior safety Jackson Norberg was listed under the "Unheralded Stars" category.

The Panthers have a two-page preview spread, which lists experience on defense as a team strength and unproven at quarterback and running back as weaknesses.

The 432-page book has a team preview of every high school team in the state and offers college previews and features as well.

Hooten's high school favorites to win it all in 2018 are North Little Rock in Class 7A, Greenwood in Class 6A, Pulaski Academy in Class 5A, Arkadelphia in Class 4A, Camden Harmony Grove in Class 3A and Junction City in Class 2A.

Hooten's picks the Arkansas Razorbacks to finish sixth in the SEC West in head coach Chad Morris' second season in Fayetteville. An extensive feature on the Razorbacks also is available in the guide.

Alabama is tabbed to win the SEC West, followed by LSU, Texas A&M, Auburn, Mississippi State, Arkansas and Ole Miss. Georgia is picked to win the SEC Eastern Division, followed by Florida, Missouri, South Carolina, Kentucky, Tennessee and Vanderbilt.

Arkansas State is ranked fourth in the Sun Belt and Appalachian State is picked to win the Sun Belt.

The Alabama Crimson Tide are Hooten's preseason No. 1 team, followed by Clemson, Georgia, Oklahoma and Ohio State.

The book is published annually by Hooten Publishing Inc., of Benton, and can be found at Walmart, Walgreens and Harps.

Sports on 07/14/2019