The Greenwood Junior High Bulldogs got things rolling in a hurry last week (October 12th) at home against the visiting Rangers of Fort Smith Darby. The boys in blue-n-white scored on their first five offensive possessions on their way to a 35-0 halftime lead, putting the mercy rule in play for an abbreviated second half. Darby scored against Greenwood’s second defense, making the final 35-6.
The Jr. ‘Dogs face Harrison this week in a critical River Valley Conference clash, with the winner likely claiming the league crown. Both teams are unbeaten and the Jr. Goblins haven’t lost a game since the 2015 season, going undefeated in 2016, claiming the title in their first season as a RVC member. Due to the distance and travel time to Harrison, the game is slated for an early (6:30 p.m.) kickoff.
Receiving the opening kick from Darby, the Jr. Bulldogs needed 11 plays and just under 2:30 to reach the end zone. From the Greenwood 26, tailback Hunter Wilkinson ran twice for three yards before catching a screen pass from quarterback L.D. Richmond for a first down at the 39.
On the next snap, Richmond passed to receiver Peyton Carter for six yards before Wilkinson ran again to the 49 for another fresh set of downs. Caden Franks then carried for big yardage to the Darby 36 and again to the Rangers’ 26. Richmond passed to Jase Strozier for six yards to the 20, but a 5-yard loss and an incomplete pass left Greenwood facing fourth-and-nine at the 25.
Too far for a field goal and too close to punt, Richmond dropped back to pass, but was flushed from the pocket, using a nifty spin move to escape a potential sack. The freshman QB then scrambled to his right before finding Peyton Carter over the middle in the end zone for the touchdown. The extra point by Luis Morales was good and Greenwood led 7-0 at the 5:24 mark of the opening quarter.
After a defensive stop on Darby’s opening possession, the Jr. Bulldogs struck again, this time needing just two plays to score. Jase Strozier helped to set up the score with a nice punt return for 22 yards to the Greenwood 48. On first down, Richmond passed to Connor Marvin for seven yards to the Darby 45. But on the next snap, Hunter Wilkinson found a gap in the defense behind left tackle and galloped all the way for the score. Morales added the extra point for a 14-0 lead (3:30).
Their next score came exactly two minutes later, after a fourth down try by Darby was foiled by a QB sack at the Rangers’ 44-yard-line. The scoring drive included just three plays, all passes. The first fell incomplete and the second went to Hunter Wilkinson for a 21-yard gain to the Darby 35.
The scoring pass from Richmond was a short toss to Strozier on the left side, who started inside then changed direction and sprinted down the home sideline all the way to the end zone. The extra point was good and Greenwood led 21-0, still in the first quarter (1:30). But they weren’t done yet.
With the defense refusing to give up a first down to the Rangers, the Greenwood offense quickly returned with good field position at the Darby 44. Richmond kept the ball for 13 yards on first down, then gave twice to Wilkinson for another 13 yards. Franks then got the call and ran to the 10-yard-line.
The TD came on the next snap when Richmond passed to Tayshaun Leader, who made a nice two-handed running catch in the end zone, his first reception of the season. Leader normally plays on defense, but reported in as a tight end on offense. Morales made the score 28-0 at the 6:49 mark of the second quarter.
Greenwood’s final score of the half and the game came with 4:52 remaining on the clock, and it was another lightning-quick drive, requiring just two plays. From their own 27, the Jr. Bulldogs got a huge play on first down, a pass completion by Richmond to Strozier for 37 yards to the Darby 36.
The touchdown came on the next snap, a short swing pass to Hunter Wilkinson coming out of the backfield and finding an open lane down the left sideline for the score. Morales added the extra point and the Jr. Bulldogs led 35-0 with 2:58 left in the half.
A fumble ended Greenwood’s final offensive possession of the half and the home defense finally gave up a first down to Darby on their last series before the intermission. Unofficially, the defense allowed less than 40 yards of offense to the Rangers in the half.
Darby did score on its first possession of the second half, getting a long TD run by its quarterback against Greenwood’s second unit defense. But with the mercy rule in play and the clock running continuously, neither team had time to do much in the second half. Most of Greenwood’s starters stayed on the sideline.
Following the contest, Greenwood Head Coach Shannon Rhea talked about the win and the challenges facing his team as the regular season winds down over the next few weeks. Greenwood is now 6-0.
“We played well,” said Rhea when asked about his team’s quick start in the first half. “We started opening up holes [in Darby’s defense] and kind of wore them down. We executed pretty good. The kicking game did well. It was a good win for us.”
Asked about Wilkinson and Franks, the coach agreed that the two make a strong tandem at running back. “That’s two good backs to have,” he said. “We alternate them and keep them fresh.”
Rhea also talked about his top two receivers, especially Jase Strozier. “With [Jayden] Jasna out (injury), him and Peyton Carter are having to be the [main] receivers, and he’s done a good job. He’s returning punts for us, and he’s got to be one of the leaders.”
As for the surprise pass to Tayshaun Leader, the coach said, “He’s a big kid and he’s got good hands, and we’ve been using him as an extra blocker on offense. He can really block. That really helps us because it opens up holes for our running backs. He [seals] off the end. That’s really helped our offense putting him at tight end.”
Rhea also liked the fact that everyone got to play. “The good thing is that we got some guys in that really haven’t had much playing time this year, to see what they can do. They’ve been here every day and been practicing since the summer, and they deserve playing time, and I’m glad we had the opportunity to get everybody in.”
As for the looming showdown with the Jr. Goblins, Rhea said, “We go to Harrison. They had a big game tonight with Chaffin. I’m anxious to see how they did. The games just get bigger and bigger. Next [week] we have Van Buren. They’re a good team. And Alma’s been winning games too.
“We’re going to have to bow up these next three weeks, especially with two [games] on the road. The conference is tight right now. We have a one game lead along with Harrison. I guess we’ll break the tie this week.”
Harrison narrowly won 31-30 at Fort Smith Chaffin last week to remain unbeaten (7-0), 4-0 in league play. Greenwood earlier hosted the Chaffin Cougars and blitzed them by a lopsided score of 40-7.