For the third time in six years the Greenwood Bulldogs will meet the Pine Bluff Zebras in the Class 6A state finals in football. The game will be played this coming Friday night at 7 p.m. in Little Rock’s War Memorial Stadium. Overall, the two teams have played four times, all in the post-season, with each squad winning twice.
Greenwood is the visiting team, and GHS fans should sit on the side of the field opposite the press box. As in the past, thousands of Bulldogs’ supporters are expected to attend, but for people unable to make the trip, the contest will be broadcast live on local television by KFTA Fox channel 24.
Advance tickets are available for purchase at the high school office or the administration building through 10 a.m. Friday morning. Prices are $7.00 for adults and $6.00 for students. Tickets must be paid for in cash only. All tickets purchased at the stadium will be $7.00 each.
For those fans who wish to be a part of the travel caravan to Little Rock, the team is scheduled to depart Greenwood High School at 12:30 p.m. Friday. The weatherman is also cooperating. The early forecast is calling for fair skies and cool temperatures throughout the day and at game time.
Greenwood moved up to Class 6A in 2012, and the Bulldogs beat Pine Bluff that year to win the state title, then lost in the 2013 semi-finals when the Zebras ended the Bulldogs’ 50-game winning streak. They met two years later in the 2015 championship game with Pine Bluff winning again, before the Bulldogs returned the favor in last year’s semi-finals.
All four previous games have been very close, with an average winning margin of just 4.5 points per game. Greenwood won the 2012 title in thrilling fashion, surviving an offensive shootout, 51-44. In the 2013 semi-finals the Zebras snapped the GHS victory streak with an improbable come-from-behind 37-34 triumph at Smith-Robinson Stadium.
In the 2015 championship game all 49 points were scored in the first two quarters, followed by a scoreless second half, a 28-21 win for Pine Bluff. Last season the Bulldogs escaped with a narrow 31-30 home victory in the semi-finals.
Greenwood has won seven state crowns in football (2000, 2005-07, 2010-12) and lost in the title game on four other occasions (1996, 2004, 2015-16). Pine Bluff has won 22 state titles dating back to 1915, the second most in Arkansas history behind Little Rock Central’s 32.
Pine Bluff’s (11-1) only setback this season was to Class 7A Cabot in week one, a 20-12 loss. The Zebras are averaging just over 39 points a game on offense, while giving up 16 points per contest defensively. The Bulldogs lead Class 6A in both scoring offense (43.16 PPG) and scoring defense (11.16).
The two teams did have three common opponents this season – Fort Smith Northside, West Memphis, and Russellville. The Bulldogs took care of business in all three games, scoring a total of 117 points while allowing just 34. Pine Bluff beat Northside 14-7, topped the Blue Devils 33-7, and bested Russellville 40-21.
The Zebras are led by Head Coach Bobby Bolding, whose brother, Brad, was a former assistant coach at Greenwood back in the late 1990s. Bolding has an impressive overall record of 101-34-2 at Pine Bluff, including back-to-back state championships in 2014-15.
GHS Head Coach Rick Jones, who came to Greenwood in 2004 after coaching for many years in Oklahoma, has an even more impressive record. In 14 seasons with the Bulldogs he has posted an incredible mark of 162-23 and was named as the Coach of the Year by the National Federation of State High School Associations after winning the 2012 state championship.
Altogether, Jones and his Bulldogs have reached the state finals 10 times, going 6-3 in their previous nine attempts. Greenwood has reached the state semi-finals 12 times under Jones, who should easily reach 300 career wins next season. His overall record currently stands at 294-71.
In the pre-season rankings, Greenwood held the #1 spot in Class 6A and has remained firmly entrenched there ever since, according to Hooten’s Arkansas Football magazine and website. Pine Bluff held the #3 ranking for most of the season, moving up to #2 when El Dorado was knocked from the playoffs two weeks ago. Based on the rankings and their better season statistics, the Bulldogs should be slightly favored to win on Saturday. But games are won on the field, and the Zebras won’t go quietly.
The Bulldogs are also one of just seven unbeaten teams remaining in the state playoffs, one in each classification, except for Class 2A, which has two. State finals will be played this coming weekend in Classes 5A, 6A, and 7A, with all remaining finals the following weekend. The format will be the same for both, with a single game on Friday night and two games on Saturday.