How about those Bobcats?

How long has it been since the Berryville Bobcats started a football season 3-0?

Long enough that no one seems exactly certain when it happened last, although the consensus is 1995.

Before last week, that is. The Bobcats continued their unbeaten start to the 2025 season with a 42-22 victory over Yellville-Summit on Homecoming night at Bobcat Stadium on Friday, Sept. 19.

Junior quarterback CT Hicks led the way for Berryville, completing nine of 14 passes for 200 yards and four touchdowns and adding 77 yards and a touchdown on the ground as the Bobcats rolled up 431 yards of total offense.

Hicks has accounted for 12 touchdowns as the Bobcats have averaged 40 points in their first three games.

“The kids did a great job coming out hot and firing on all cylinders,” said Berryville coach Macklin Chermak, whose teams won a total of four games in his first two seasons at Berryville. “We’re starting to do the big things right. Now we’ve got to really focus on the small things and cleaning up all those little things that are going to take us to the next level.”

The Bobcats took control early against Yellville-Summit. On Berryville’s second play from scrimmage, Hicks rolled to his right and found senior receiver Kale Smith wide open along the right sideline for a 48-yard touchdown just 40 seconds into the game. The first of six extra points from sophomore kicker Wah Na gave the Bobcats a 7-0 lead.

On Berryville’s second possession, the Bobcats drove 75 yards in 11 plays, capped by junior Jason Alvarado’s 1-yard touchdown run with 6:00 left in the first quarter. Junior John Butler provided the biggest play in that drive, running for 30 yards on a reverse from the Berryville 48.

Alvarado ran for 95 yards and the touchdown on 14 carries, while Butler had four rushes for 57 yards and three catches for 25 yards and a TD. He also accounted for six tackles, including a sack, from his linebacker position on defense.

Yellville-Summit responded with a 14-play drive but the Berryville defense stuffed the Panthers on fourth-and-goal from the 1 and the Bobcats went 99 yards for their third touchdown.

Alvarado got the drive off to a good start, taking a direct snap and then shaking off a defender before breaking loose for a 26-yard gain. Two plays later, Butler ran for 21 yards to the 41 after a penalty had pushed the Bobcats back. Butler then got 11 more before Hicks took it from there. From the Yellville-Summit 49, Hicks took a Shotgun snap, faked a handoff to Butler, then kept the ball up the middle and raced to the end zone virtually untouched behind Berryville’s offensive line of right tackle Easton Elliott, right guard CJ Lanje, center Coltor Goforth, left guard Zydon Ballard and left tackle Jesse Culling. Na’s extra point made it 21-0 with 10:05 left in the second quarter.

“He’s definitely grown a lot,” Chermak said of Hicks. “Coach (Justin) Ellis, our offensive coordinator, has done a great job with him this year. And Coach (Doug) Young with the offensive line. Our offensive line is just miles improved from where it’s been in the past. And our first year we struggled with throwing the ball, catching the ball. Coach Ferguson has been working with the receivers for multiple years. We’ve got three-year starters now at a couple of the receiver and slot spots who are just doing a great job blocking, getting open and catching the ball.”

On Berryville’s next possession, Hicks ran for 10 yards on third-and-2 from the Bobcats’ 43, then found junior Andre Esparza wide open in the middle of the field on a fourthand- 4 play for a 31-yard touchdown o extend the lead to 28-0 with 5:21 left in the first half.

Esparza had two catches for 42 yards and the touchdown. He also intercepted two passes and had a third interception negated by a penalty. Esparza also blocked a field-goal attempt by the Panthers. Linebacker Kobe Garcia also had a big game for the Berryville defense, recording 8.5 tackles and breaking up a pass.

Yellville-Summit answered the Esparza TD with a touchdown pass, but the extra point was blocked and a long kickoff return by Smith, along with a facemask penalty, put Berryville on the Panthers’ 29. Hicks found Butler for a 14yard gain to the 3, then after a penalty threw to Butler in the corner of the end zone for a 2-yard touchdown and a 35-6 lead.

Yellville-Summit drove inside Berryville territory on its next possession but Esparza made the first of his two interceptions to stop that drive. After the Bobcats lost a fumble, the Panthers took possession at the Bobcats’ 27, but Berryville senior Alex Castillo recovered a fumble at the 8 and the Bobcats led big at halftime.

Yellville-Summit had a long drive to open the second half but Esparza came up with his second interception in the end zone. Five plays later, Hicks rolled to his right and found junior receiver Jason Arechiga open at the Berryville 40. Arechiga made the reception and then raced the final 60 yards to complete the 77-yard catch and run for the Bobcats’ final touchdown and a 42-6 lead with 6:41 left in the third quarter.

A pair of touchdowns and a safety helped Yellville- Summit cut the final margin to 42-22 but little to dampen the Bobcats’ happy Homecoming.

Berryville opens conference play on Friday, Sept. 26, traveling to Huntsville. The Eagles are 1-2 this season but coming off a 50–0 victory last week over West Fork. wwBerryville has beaten Huntsville each of the past two seasons after going winless against the Eagles for 17 years.

“It’s a familiar foe, and we’re definitely familiar to them,” Chermak said. “Both teams want to win this game badly. It’s always been a rivalry.”