Responding to a question during his post-game radio interview, head coach Rick Jones agreed that his team could not have gotten off to a better start in the conference season. "No, we really couldn't," he said. "I thought we jumped on those guys pretty quickly. We made the one mistake offensively, but our defense played really well. Those guys [Morrilton] can really run. If they just didn't make the mistakes that they made tonight, they could be a good football team. Those [running] backs are really good. They just need to get healthy and rally a little bit. Morrilton's a lot better than 0-4. They've got some tremendously fast people. They can really go. It's a shame that #5 [Justin Criswell] is not healthy, because that kid is really special. He's a wonderful player. He went head-to-head with [Michael] Dyer, and it was a battle."

      The coach was referring to a game earlier this season between Little Rock Christian and Morrilton in which Dyer rushed for 340 yards and Criswell ran for 288. Dyer is widely believed to be the best running back in Arkansas this year, and will likely eclipse 7,000 career yards by season's end. Criswell's appearance in Friday's game against Greenwood might not have meant a Devil Dogs' victory, but it certainly would have made the game more competitive and interesting for the fans. Not only did Jones express his admiration for the talent level at Morrilton, he no doubt sympathizes with Devil Dogs' head coach Buddy Greeson, formerly a member of the coaching staff at Greenwood.

      The game began in typical fashion, with Greenwood's Austin Hartness booting the opening kick into the end zone. From it's own 20-yard line, Morrilton was unable to earn a first down and lined up to punt. But Coach Greeson made a daring and somewhat questionable call for a fake punt, which came up short of the first down marker at the 27, giving the ball to Greenwood in excellent field position.

      Tony Sandifer ran for eight yards on first down, then got four more to the 10-yard line after a Morrilton penalty. On Greenwood's next play, Sandifer got the call again, scooting around the right side for the touchdown. Hartness added the point after for a 7-0 GHS lead at the 9:05 mark of the first quarter.

       After another deep kick into the end zone, this one by sophomore Derek Morgan, the Devil Dogs marched from their own 20 into Greenwood territory, reaching the 19-yard line. The big play was a 36-yard scamper by running back Matthew Franklin. But Greenwood junior defensive lineman Chance Moquett sacked quarterback Terrence Heaggans for a loss on second down. Two plays later, Morrilton gave up the ball after an incomplete pass on fourth down. The Bulldogs' offense took possession at their own 26-yard line, and needed just eight plays to go 74 yards for their second score.

      Quarterback Tyler Shook found receiver Spencer Harris for a quick hitter to the 39, before Travis Green ran for four yards to the 43. Shook kept for two yards, then connected with Harris twice more to the Morrilton 32-yard line. After two plays for no gain, Shook lofted a near-perfect pass toward the left side of the end zone over a defender, finding the waiting fingertips of Harris at the goal line for the touchdown. The PAT by Hartness made the score 14-0 with 4:40 left in the opening period.

      When Morrilton's next possession ended in failure near midfield, the Bulldogs got the ball back when the punt rolled dead at their own 13-yard line. But on first down, Shook overthrew his intended receiver and the ball was intercepted and returned 28 yards for a Devil Dogs' touchdown, their only score of the game. The PAT cut the Greenwood lead to 14-7 just over nine minutes into the contest.

      Sophomore Blake Hasley returned the ensuing kickoff for 23 yards to the Greenwood 39, setting up a 10-play scoring drive that ended early in the second quarter. Along the way, the Bulldogs overcame three penalties of their own and got a break on a pass interference call against Morrilton. The biggest plays of the drive included a 15-yard pass completion to Blake Hasley and a 17-yard catch and run by Tony Sandifer. Shook then completed an 8-yard toss to junior Stephen Hogan and a 24-yard pass to Harris, who made a great leaping catch inside the Morrilton 20. Three plays later, Shook threw incomplete in the end zone, but the Devil Dogs' were flagged for pass interference. The scoring play came two snaps later when Shook made a nice adjustment in the pocket, buying time and sliding to his left before finding Hogan in the end zone for the 16-yard reception. The extra point was good for a 21-7 GHS lead.

     The remaining 10:53 of the half was fast and furious and included nine changes of possession and three more Greenwood touchdowns. GHS senior defensive back Kylee Simmons picked off a Devil Dogs' pass early in Morrilton's next offensive series, giving the Bulldogs the ball at the visitor's 42-yard line. On first down, Coach Jones pulled a halfback pass out of his bag of tricks. Shook pitched the ball to Sandifer, who is listed on the roster as a backup QB. He then found Harris wide open behind the Morrilton defense for the score. The extra point made it 28-7 with 10:35 left in the period.

      Following another Devil Dogs' punt, Greenwood got the ball near midfield, but failed to pick up a first down after a pair of incomplete passes. But Stephen Hogan's punt was fumbled by Morrilton and was recovered by Greenwood's Blake Hasley at the 18-yard line. On second down, Travis Green rushed for seven yards to the 11, before Tony Sandifer got the call and the pitch from Tyler Shook for the score. After the PAT, Greenwood led 35-7 with 8:08 left in the opening half.

      The Devil Dogs' showed that they still had some fight left in them by marching 60 yards on their next possession. They reached the Greenwood 16-yard line before turning the ball over on downs against a determined GHS defense. The Bulldogs got the ball back with 3:31 showing on the clock and needed only three plays and 36 seconds to score, invoking the mercy rule for the remainder of the game.

      On first down, Green ripped off a big gainer to the 38, and then followed up with another nice run to the Morrilton 49-yard line. Staying on the ground, Shook gave the ball to Sandifer off right tackle, who ran into traffic and reversed his course, picking up blockers and finding open space around the left side, outrunning a pair of defenders before diving into the end zone. The kick made the score 42-7.

      The Bulldogs then held on defense and forced another Morrilton punt, getting the ball back at their own 44 with 1:13 left in the first half. But with the mercy rule already in force, Coach Jones and the Bulldogs refused the opportunity to run up the score. Shook took a knee twice, downing the ball behind the line of scrimmage and allowing the remaining time to expire.

      After six touchdowns and 255 total yards in the first half - 134 passing and 121 rushing - Greenwood was content to play mostly reserves in the second half. The Bulldogs started the half at their own 35 after the kickoff. Shook began the drive at quarterback, and handed off to junior running back Dylan Dixon, who burst through the middle for 49 yards before being dragged down from behind. After a 4-yard gain by sophomore running back Justin Sunde, Shook was replaced by sophomore QB Hayden Smith, who handed off to Sunde again for nine yards to the Morrilton 3-yard line. Dixon got the ball on the next snap, finding pay dirt around the left side for the touchdown. The kick by Hartness made the score 49-7.

      Late in the third quarter, GHS junior linebacker William Caster intercepted a Morrilton pass and returned it 12 yards to the Devil Dogs' 26-yard line. Sunde and Dixon ran for 14 yards sandwiched around a holding penalty on Greenwood. From the 16, sophomore running back Adam Shores ran twice to the 4-yard line, as the game moved into the fourth quarter, setting up a touchdown run by new quarterback, sophomore Sabastian Neece. The extra point attempt by sophomore kicker Adam McFain failed, keeping the score at 55-7 with 10:31 left to play.

      The Bulldogs recovered a Morrilton fumble at the Devil Dogs' 17-yard line on the visitor's next possession. But conservative play calling failed to gain a first down on four rushing attempts. Morrilton regained control of the ball with 6:04 to play, and managed to reach Greenwood territory, gaining five first downs before time expired on the 55-7 GHS conference victory.

      After the game, Coach Jones admitted that he was a bit concerned about the mental and emotional state of his team following the 54-51 win over Shiloh a week earlier. "I don't think I was afraid of a letdown, but I was just probably wary of a letdown," said the coach. "But I was proud of the way our kids played. We just need to get better every week, because somebody out there is, and if it's not you then you fall behind, and we don't want to fall behind."

     When asked about his offensive line play, Coach Jones was generous with his praise. "We've had great [pass] protection, and I think our run blocking is a little bit better. I appreciate the fact that Coach [Clarence] Madden has been working hard with those guys. I think we're getting better. We try to make progress every day and every practice. But we had a good showing tonight."

     The coach also responded to a question about offensive impact players, specifically Tony Sandifer and Spencer Harris. "We really think we have five [playmakers]," said Jones. "Stephen's [Hogan] made big plays and Seth's [Parker] made big plays the last couple of weeks, and that's what really has us excited about the offense."

     As for Sandifer, Coach Jones acknowledged the junior's versatility. "He runs it and throws it. He can do a lot of things. That was a good [TD] pass by Tony. He was excited about that one. He's a special kid. He has special talent, and we're going to try to utilize every bit of it. In this business the job is to get the ball to the playmakers. We have a few of those and we need to make sure and keep giving the ball to them. But it's all based upon the fact that the line gave us the time to do what we needed to do, and that's the guys I'm most proud of.

     Regarding Spencer, Greenwood's tallest receiver, the coach said, "If I'm a quarterback and I can throw to a 6-3 guy or throw to a 5-5 guy, I'd rather throw to the 6-3 guy, because he can make a pretty bad pass look good. The guy has amazing hands." The GHS senior was also offered a full athletic scholarship last week to play football for Arkansas State.

     On the opposite side of the ball, Jones commented on the speed of his defense. "They played fast. They had to, because Morrilton is so fast. They have so much speed, and they hit the hole so quickly. But I was proud of the way our defense played. They played really well. Our guys are getting better, and that's the key. Because if you look ahead in this conference you're in trouble."

     And speaking of looking ahead, Greenwood returns to the road next Friday, traveling three hours north to take on the Harrison Goblins in another conference game. "Harrison is Harrison," said Jones. "They have great tradition and Coach Tice does a great job. It's a nice bus ride up there. We just have to get better next week. The opponent is really yourself, that little voice inside your head that says, you don't need to work this hard, its Monday, or Tuesday, or Wednesday, you'll turn it on Friday. That's the little voice that will get you beat." Kickoff is set for 7:30 p.m.