For the fifth time and first time since 2018, the Arkadelphia Badgers can call themselves football state champions.

Arkadelphia overcame pouring rain and the never-ending efforts of Elkins to win the Class 4A state championship game 28-0 on Saturday afternoon at War Memorial Stadium in Little Rock.

“As a coach, the dream is to win a state championship,” Arkadelphia coach Trey Schucker said. “And man, just so proud of our program, so proud of our coaches and players. And man, it’s unreal.”

The Badgers (13-2) and Elks (14-1) finished the regular season as presumptive favorites to advance to Saturday’s final.

Turns out that was exactly why Arkadelphia was seen that way – making big offenses and causing havoc on defense.

Rain hampered both offenses in the first half as both teams entered the break with under 100 yards.

The difference was a 57-yard touchdown pass from Arkadelphia sophomore quarterback Bryston McCoy to Jay Purifoy that made it 7-0.

McCoy was particularly shaky early on due to his inexperience, wet footballs and a minor leg injury sustained in the first half. But he finished 15 of 37 for 246 yards.

“He’s a sophomore, and you saw some of that today,” Schucker said. “But, man, he’s grown from it. At halftime the biggest thing was to get through the first half and let’s take it a step further in the second half. And I thought he handled the second half really well.”

On the other hand, Elkins junior quarterback Ben Napier was never able to overcome his struggles, especially when the Arkadelphia defensive line increased their pressure.

He finished 12 of 37 for 103 yards. He threw four interceptions, including two to Arkadelphia safety Brayden Wagner, who was named the game’s most valuable player.

“What ultimately kills us is turnovers,” Elkins coach Zach Watson said. “Ben moved around a lot. I think it helps to get up a little earlier (Arkadelphia), let’s put our ears back and come and get it. And so we just couldn’t stay on schedule.”

With 2:33 left in the third quarter, one play after Wagner’s second interception, McCoy threw a screen pass to wide receiver Orion Roberts for a 56-yard touchdown to make it 14-0.

“Every loss of the ball is extremely important for the offense,” said Wagner. “They have all the momentum right there. And when they score, it just defeats the opponent.”

Less than three minutes later, McCoy connected with Maddox Fendley for a 65-yard touchdown, thanks to a miss in Elkins’ coverage, making the score 21-0 with 11:51 left.

“The main thing in the second half was that we needed someone to assert themselves on offense,” said Schucker. “We knew that if we could just get someone to step up, make a play, get some yards in the run game and continue to get first downs, those big plays would happen.”

To round out the win, Arkadelphia lined up in the I formation on Elkins’ 14 in the final seconds. Instead of the traditional lineup, the Badgers added a second fullback, senior defensive lineman Nykkisson Wimberly, directly behind the quarterback.

With the finishing touches to his Arkadelphia career, Wimberly scored the handoff from 14 yards for a touchdown, making it 28-0.

“To just have him go in and be able to run the ball and score in a state championship game, that’s a game he’ll never forget. “I’ll never forget it,” said Schucker. “Just a big, big play for us. It sealed the deal.”

After two semifinal appearances in the last three seasons, the Badgers join the 1979, 1987, 2017 and 2018 Arkadelphia teams as state champions in 2024.

“This means the world to us,” Wimberly said. “We’ve been under this hump for the last three years. As the semi-final continued, we got over the hump. (When) we won that game, we slid down the hump. That was right there for the city. More specifically, my grade.” “I always told the city that we would bring you home. And we meant it.”