LITTLE ROCK -- Mount Ida football coach Mike White has heard a lot about the recent Southeastern Conference championship game, specifically about what can happen in a rematch.
"Somebody brought up the Auburn and Georgia games," White said with a grin after the Lions' final practice before the Class 2A championship tonight.
Three weeks after losing 40-17 on its opponent's home field, Georgia downed Auburn 28-7 at a neutral site for a spot in the College Football Playoffs.
Foreman, Mount Ida's opponent tonight at War Memorial Stadium, can take heart from Georgia's 44-point turnaround. The Gators seek revenge for a 36-7 loss to conference rival Mount Ida Oct. 13 at the Lions' Stidman Field.
"The game plan we had against them the first time worked," White said. "Now, we've got to figure out what they'll do differently and whether we can come up with Plan B."
Repeating one of sport's eternal truisms, White said, "It's tough to beat a good team twice."
Mount Ida, 14-0, looks to run the table for the second time in school history and join Pulaski Academy (Class 5A) as a repeat champion this year. Foreman, 12-1, concludes its deepest playoff run with the school's first title-game appearance. Kickoff is 7 p.m. at Little Rock's War Memorial Stadium with live TV coverage on CW Arkansas (Resort Channel 38).
Both teams beat 2A-7 rival Mountain Pine by similar scores late in the regular season, Mount Ida 49-22 at home in Week 9 and Foreman 49-21 on the road in Week 10.
Both schools were honored this week at the Farm Bureau Insurance Awards banquet with Foreman's Mark King named 2A coach of the year and Mount Ida senior Cade Helms edging Foreman's Logan Lindsey as 2A defensive player of the year.
Mount Ida has basically the same cast from last year's team, which survived the one-man show of Hampton's Monta Thomas in a 27-26 state final. The 2016 Lions bounced back from a Week 8 home loss to Dierks, winning three games each against playoff-bound Class 3A teams or decided by one point.
Mount Ida has won its last 21 games, punching its ticket to the final with a 32-14 road victory over Camden Harmony Grove last week in the semifinals.
"We've had a target on our back as the No. 1 (Class 2A) team in the state," White said. "Some kids might have gotten the big head after winning it last year, but these kids haven't wavered. We've had a bad quarter now and then, but we've been pretty focused all year and taken care of business."
Mount Ida practiced ball control against Camden Harmony Grove with 100-yard running games from Helms and juniors Jonathan Lagrange and Cade Jackson. The Lions drove 75 yards in 19 plays for the first of three touchdowns by Lagrange and marched 80 yards for a touchdown scored by Luke Forga.
Mount Ida gashed Foreman for 394 rushing yards in their first meeting. Foreman's defense has been sturdy in the postseason, recording its fourth shutout of the year against Clarendon and holding Bearden to 12 yards rushing in the second round. Danville and Salem each gained less than 200 yards against Foreman in the quarterfinal and semifinal rounds, respectively.
Although allowing 64 points the last three weeks, Mount Ida has three shutouts, including 45-0 against Des Arc in the playoffs, and nine games allowing seven points or less. Pass defense keyed the Lions' 34-28 quarterfinal win over Conway Christian with two interceptions leading to touchdowns.
Junior quarterback Kyren Batey runs Foreman's flexbone attack, accounting for 720 yards and 12 touchdowns the past three weeks and 1,847 yards and 32 TDs this season.
Mount Ida worked out at War Memorial Stadium on Thursday, Foreman getting a look at the playing site Wednesday. Among those watching the Lions Thursday was Josh Baker, hero of Mount Ida's undefeated 2007 championship team. Baker scored a touchdown, kicked two extra points and booted a game-winning 22-yard field goal with 5.6 seconds left as the Lions nipped Bearden 17-16 in the title game at WMS.
Helms, MVP of last year's 2A title game with 19 carries for 195 yards against Hampton, offered a postgame tribute to Baker's group: "We've looked up to those '07 guys."
In the program's 50th season, Montgomery County's only football-playing school seeks its second perfect season and third state title tonight.
"Our kids just want to prove that last year was no fluke," White said. "But they know that anything can happen on any given Friday night."
Sports on 12/15/2017