Marion Athletics -

The world was a dramatically different place in 2004, to say the least.

President George W. Bush won reelection in early November of that year, easily defeating John Kerry.
Facebook was launched by an unknown Harvard student, Mark Zuckerberg, but you could only join the social network with a valid college email address.

The summer Olympics were held in Athens, Greece, celebrating the return of the games to the site of the very first games.

The Boston Red Sox toppled the famous (maybe infamous) Curse of the Bambino, winning their first World Series in 86 by winning their last eight playoff games, including four in a row over the vaunted New York Yankees, and sweeping the St. Louis Cardinals in that year's Fall Classic.

And in Marion, Arkansas, the fifth-longest state playoff appearance streak in Class 7A and 6A had not yet even started.

The 2004 Patriots put together their finest season to date under third-year coach Mark Uhiren, finishing 5-5 for the school's best mark since a 6-5 record in 1992.

However, a Homecoming loss to Paragould gave the Rams the tiebreaker for the fourth and final playoff spot that fall, boosting the Rams into the postseason, and leaving the Pats on the couch for the 12^th year in a row.

Marion started 4-0 in 2005 and never looked back, hosting a playoff game for the first time ever, crushing Crossett 44-7, and dropping a thrilling 44-34 game at eventual Class 4A state champion Greenwood in the playoff quarterfinals.

From there, the Patriots have made the playoffs every season for 21 years in a row.

“We do not take making the playoffs lightly,” said Coach Lance Clark, whose teams have made the playoffs in all five of his seasons at Marion. “If you are in the playoffs, you can win the state championship, which is our ultimate goal. There are easier and harder paths to that, but if you get in and play four great games, you can win it all. It's also your seniors' last chance to keep playing. In the regular season, there's usually one more game to look towards. In the playoffs, if you lose, it's over. We love our seniors, so we want to keep them with us as long as we can.”

Marion finished the 2025 regular season 6-4 overall and 4-3 in the 6A East, a mark good enough to tie for fourth place in the league, but Jonesboro outkicked Marion head to head on the strength of a 21-6 win over the Patriots in October.

That puts Marion on the road for the opening round of the state playoffs for the first time since 2020. The Patriots open their latest playoff run Friday night with a cross-state trip to Van Buren (5-5, 4-3 6A West) in the first round of the state playoffs.

The Van Buren contest will be the third playoff meeting in the past six seasons, and the first at Van Buren.

Marion toppled Van Buren in the 2020 state quarterfinals 55-34, rushing for more than 350 yards, to make just the second state semifinal appearance in program history at the time.

The Pointers returned the favor last fall, scoring late in the fourth period and intercepting a pass in Pointer territory to topple Marion 29-26.

“This is a team that has won a playoff game the past two years, including us last year,” said Clark. “They outplayed us last year on the field, and they outcoached us, too. They earned that win, and because of that, they'll believe they can win this week, as well, because they can. They have a really good football team, they're extremely disciplined, and they have played well at home this year.”

Van Buren quarterback Hayden Williford completed 65 percent of his passes this fall for 2,074 yards and 17 touchdowns with only eight interceptions. Tailback Hayden Christenberry averaged 5.2 yards per carry for 1,137 yards and seven scores, while five Pointer receivers have caught 16 passes or more, led by senior wideout Austin Riggs, who grabbed 63 passes for 1,006 yards and 10 TDs.

“Offensively, they do a good job calling plays and being balanced,” said Clark. “They have plenty of dudes who can go, and their offensive line does a great job. If they run zone, it looks good running zone. They look good doing it against all the teams. They execute it well.”

Darren Mays (78 tackles in 2025), Jaxson Silvers (75 stops with three sacks), and Jace Ponder (73 tackles and four sacks) pace the Pointer stop troops.

“On defense, they're extremely sound,” said Clark. “They have safeties who fly downhill and get into the alleys. They're about as good as anyone we've seen this year doing that. They just don't blow assignments. They get the call, and they carry it out. If someone makes a play, it's because they just made a play. Van Buren doesn't beat itself.”

The winner of the Marion-Van Buren game on Friday will advance to the quarterfinals on November 21 at 6A East co-champion and No. 1 playoff seed Sylvan Hills in Sherwood.

HOW TO WATCH
You can watch the Marion-Van Buren playoff game on Friday night for free on the MPAN YouTube channel. Kickoff is scheduled for 7 p.m.

CLASS 6A FIRST-ROUND PLAYOFF MATCHES
Marion at Van Buren
Lake Hamilton at El Dorado
FS Southside at Jonesboro
Sheridan at Mountain Home