“It’s the most wonderful time of the year” is a well-known Christmas song made famous by singer Andy Williams, but that refrain could also apply to football season in Greenwood, Arkansas. The Bulldogs continued their march to yet another state title game Friday night with a resounding 48-0 shutout of the El Dorado Wildcats. The game was played in dry but chilly conditions at Greenwood’s Smith-Robinson Stadium, and the outcome put the Bulldogs in the semifinals on Thanksgiving weekend, also at Smith-Robinson next Friday against fellow 6A West conference member Mountain Home.
The 6A state championship game will be played at Little Rock’s War Memorial Stadium on Saturday, December 7th with a 12-noon kickoff. The Mountain Home Bombers notwithstanding, it now appears that the Bulldogs will reach the title game for the tenth consecutive year, a notable accomplishment. Earlier this month, Greenwood blanked the Bombers 42-0 in a battle for the conference crown, so an upset next Friday seems highly unlikely.
Assuming the Bulldogs do advance to the state championship contest, their opponent with be the winner of next Friday’s battle between the Benton Panthers (10-1) and the Saints of Shiloh Christian (8-3). Benton won the 6A East title while the Saints finished in a three-way tie with Mountain Home and Lake Hamilton for second in the 6A West and earned a #2 playoff seed. That game will be played at Benton with the Panthers likely to be slightly favored.
This past Friday the Bulldogs kicked off to start the game and the GHS defense quickly shut down the El Dorado offense, forcing a punt to the home 47-yard-line with no return. Four plays later the ‘Dogs were in the end zone. Quarterback Kane Archer opened the drive with a pass to Cooper Bland for eight yards to the Wildcats’ 45 before another short toss to Grant Karnes to the 39-yard-line. A swing pass to Champ Davis then reached the 14 before Archer rolled to his right and found Karnes again at the side of the end zone. The sure-handed receiver was interfered with but made a great catch, nonetheless. Hudson Meeker’s extra point kick was good for a 7-0 GHS lead (9:16).
After another El Dorado punt out-of-bounds at the Greenwood 28, Archer and company once again made quick work of things with another four-play touchdown drive. It began with the GHS quarterback utilizing his wheels for a 6-yard gain to the 34 before Cooper Goodwin rambled for 20 yards to the visitors’ 46. Archer then passed to Grant Karnes, reaching the 27, before another swing pass to Champ Davis down the left sideline for the touchdown. El Dorado blocked the extra point try (6:30).
Leading 13-0, it was time for the GHS defense to shine once again by stopping the Wildcats inside the home 5-yard-line after a 13-play drive that covered nearly 80 yards. Facing fourth down and short at the 2-yard-line, the Wildcats failed to gain the yard needed to earn a first down, giving up the football to the GHS offense. The Bulldogs then began a 98-yard scoring drive to go up by three touchdowns early in the second quarter.
As the game slipped into the second period, the Wildcats were flagged for encroachment, moving the ball to the GHS 7-yard-line, giving the Bulldogs some breathing room. Kane Archer then found Cooper Goodwin open for a completion to the 35 and a first down. Next, Archer kept the ball to the 40, then passed to Grant Karnes to the El Dorado 44. After a penalty back to the 49 and an incomplete pass, Grant Karnes hauled in a catch near the 25 before racing to the end zone for the score. Meeker’s kick made it 20-0 with 9:53 left in the second stanza.
Nine seconds later the GHS defense was as it again, this time on a scoop-and-score for a fourth Bulldogs’ touchdown. After Greenwood’s kickoff into the end zone, the Wildcats got the football at their own 20. Cash Archer then tackled the fleeing El Dorado quarterback from behind, knocking the ball loose, only to be picked up by senior linebacker Paul Brixey at the 11-yard-line before running in for the score. Meeker’s kick made it 27-0 (9:44).
Moments later, another defensive stop by the Bulldogs was followed by an El Dorado punt and a short return by Champ Davis to the Wildcats’ 48-yard-line. Fittingly, after starting the possession with the punt return, Davis caught a first down pass from Archer over the middle near the 35, outrunning the defense all the way to the end zone, a one play scoring drive. Meeker’s extra point try was good, making the score 34-0 with 7:49 remaining in the half. But the ‘Dogs weren’t finished yet.
On El Dorado’s next possession, Greenwood defensive lineman Cody Johnson intercepted a Wildcats’ pass, only to have the play nullified by a penalty for roughing the quarterback, giving the visitors a first down. But four plays later they were punting again, this time to the GHS 27 with no return with 5:49 left before the intermission. The Bulldogs needed just 38 seconds to score again and invoke the mercy rule for the second half.
Archer and Davis connected for 25 yards on first down to the El Dorado 48. Another toss to Davis was good for five yards before Archer found Grant Karnes open near the 10-yard-line. After making the catch, the determined senior receiver remained upright and moving forward with two defenders battling him for the ball, taking them both into the end zone for the touchdown. The extra point was good, making the halftime score 41-0, ensuring that the second half would be brief.
During the break, GHS head volleyball coach Jennifer Golden was honored for winning her 500th career match this past season that ended in the first round of the state playoffs. Leading the Lady Bulldogs’ program for 24 years, Golden’s teams have won three state championships, reached the state finals eight other times, and earned 11 conference championships. She has also been the conference coach of the year eight times and served as an all-star coach twice. Topping off the night for the Goldens, husband Tim filled in for Coach B.J. Ross behind the microphone for the live stream broadcast of the game. Coach Ross was attending a ceremony to honor his father at County Line High School.
When play resumed, the Bulldogs muffed the opening kickoff, allowing the Wildcats to recover the ball at the GHS 38. With the help of a GHS roughing penalty, El Dorado advanced to the Greenwood 8-yard-line, then reached the two before the wheels fell off the possession. Another roughing penalty,, this one on the Wildcats, pushed them back to the 17 on third down before Cash Archer sacked the quarterback and recovered the resulting fumble at the Greenwood 25, preserving the shutout.
The Bulldogs then drove for their final score in nine plays, the last of which was the first play of the fourth quarter. A pass from Archer to Scott Holland reached the 31 before Archer scrambled to the 44 for a first down. After a penalty to the 39, Archer connected with Grant Karnes at the 48 then threw to Champ Davis to the 25. Another toss to Davis reached the 5-yard-line before the quarter ended. On the next snap, quarterback Cooper Goodwin handed the ball to Wesley Raggio for the TD run. Meeker’s last extra point kick was good, making the final score 48-0.
In the fading minutes of the contest, the Bulldogs were able to use a few freshmen who were promoted to join the team for the playoffs, including Braxton Canada, Drew Dickinson, William Rye, and others. Canada caught a pair of passes in the game and Dickinson made a tackle on defense. Those three and others will have a good chance to contribute to the varsity squad next season as sophomores on both sides of the ball.
The victory punched the Bulldogs’ ticket for the semifinals the day after Thanksgiving, something that’s become quite the habit at Greenwood. "It's always good to practice on Thanksgiving," said Head Coach Chris Young after the game. "It's a tradition here. We've done it a long time. We're a little bit spoiled. I think we take it for granted sometimes. We get another week together. This is a special team."
The coach’s remarks take on even greater meaning in the aftermath of the tragic death of receiver Isaiah Arrington in late October, who perished in a house fire along with his mother and younger sister. The Bulldogs have dedicated the remainder of their season to their beloved teammate and hope to honor his memory with yet another championship banner. The win was also the team’s 69th consecutive victory at home since they lost to El Dorado at Smith-Robinson back in 2014.
"We played really well,” said Young, “especially offensively. We [had] some penalties, or we would have played really [well] on defense. We made a couple of good stands in the red zone, and I'm proud of that, but we [had] some selfish penalties that we have to work on. I'm proud of the defense getting the shutout, and the offense scored every possession."
"But we've got plenty of areas to work on," Young continued. "We'll play a good opponent next week, so we'll have a good week of practice and come back here for the last game at Smith-Robinson." That opponent turns out to be a familiar one in the Mountain Home Bombers, 42-14 winners over Little Rock Catholic. It will be the second meeting between the two schools this season. Greenwood has been ranked #1 in Class 6A all season and handily defeated Mountain Home just over two weeks ago. A similar outcome is expected next Friday as well, setting up the 6A finals between Greenwood and the Benton - Shiloh Christian winner.
Statistically, quarterback Kane Archer had a stellar first half, completing 14-of-15 passes for 317 yards and five touchdowns. Unofficially, he finished the game 18 of 20 for 379 yards. Incredibly, Archer also has more touchdown passes (49) than he does incompletions (45) this season. He is completing over 80% of his passes and is on pace to set a new state record for passing efficiency.
Champ Davis had eight receptions for 177 yards and two touchdowns, while Grant Karnes had seven grabs for 155 yards and three touchdowns. Greenwood now has its third consecutive year of two players with over 1000 receiving yards in a season. While Davis has one more year of high school remaining, Karnes is a senior and has received an offer from the University of Arkansas as a preferred walk-on. He is also a talented baseball player with an offer from Wichita State in Kansas.
Finally, asked about the ninth graders moved up for the playoffs, Young said, “We got some good freshmen moved up. If things go right, hopefully you get some of those guys five weeks of [varsity] practice and they kind of learn the ropes. It just helps them [in] the future. Those are some talented kids – Braxton [Canada], Drew [Dickinson], and William Rye is our third corner right now.”