The Greenwood Junior High Bulldogs are off to a good start after their season-opening win at Shiloh Christian last Thursday night. Both defenses turned in good performances in the low-scoring affair, especially Greenwood. The visitors held a 7-0 lead at halftime after scoring late in the second quarter on a short pass reception and long run by Ty Karnes. But neither team was able to sustain long drives and several possessions ended with failed fourth down plays, some within sight of the end zone. The Jr. Dogs added a second score in the third period with their only sustained drive of the game before the Jr. Saints finally scored very late on a big play. The final score was 14-6.
Greenwood received the opening kick, returned to the 40 by Ryan Ross, then drove 25 yards to the Saints’ 35 before giving the ball up on downs. They recovered a fumble moments later at their own 16, stopping the Saints after they completed a long pass into Greenwood territory. Brandon Jarrels covered the ball for the visitors. But after reaching midfield, the Jr. Dogs were forced to punt.
Both teams then turned the ball over on downs on their next two series. Greenwood’s possession ended inside the Shiloh five yard line early in the second quarter. But after forcing the Saints to punt, the Bulldogs gave up a pass interception, putting the defense right back on the field. Unfazed, the Greenwood "D" did its job, stopping the Saints at the visitors’ 16-yard-line, setting up Greenwood’s first touchdown.
On first down, receiver Ty Karnes caught a short pass near the Shiloh sideline and avoided traffic long enough to reverse his course across the field before finding daylight and streaking to the end zone in front of a cheering Greenwood sideline and crowd, including his older brother, Grant, a former GHS star receiver and current Arkansas Razorback. Kicker Grayson Cobbler added the extra point for a 7-0 Greenwood lead.
The Saints tried desperately to answer back with a score of their own, driving about 40 yards with a diminishing clock, forcing them to throw the ball deep, including a couple shots at the end zone, one of which was dropped by the receiver. Their final Hail Mary effort also failed, and the two teams left the field at halftime with the score still 7-0.
The visiting defense continued to play well in the second half, halting the Saints at the Greenwood 34 after a Shiloh penalty and a failed fourth down play. Then the Bulldogs’ offense finally went to work, driving the ball consistently down the field on the ground. But first, after a penalty on Shiloh, quarterback Joey Young passed to receiver Aiden Wilcox for 11 yards to the 50. Running back Kim Rogers then kept the momentum going with a pair of runs to the 36 before Young carried to the 34. Rogers then ran for eight yards to the 27, nine more yards to the 18, then broke several tackles around the right side all the way to the end zone. With 3:06 left in the third quarter, Grayson Cobbler added the extra point.
Leading 14-0, a quarterback sack ended Shiloh’s next possession, giving Greenwood the ball at the home 27. But the Saints’ defense also continued to play well, stopping the visitors once again inside the red zone early in the fourth stanza. The Bulldogs recovered another fumble at the Shiloh 23 but could do nothing with it except continue to run the clock. The Saints got the ball back for the last time with 33 seconds left at their own 48 before an amazing run across the field, eluding several tackles along the way to score with 13.6 seconds left. But the two-point conversion failed.
In a brief post-game interview, Greenwood Head Coach Luke Hales was quick to credit his defense for the win. “Our defense played awesome,” were the first words out of his mouth when asked about his first impression of the game. “They were physical and tackled guys in open space. I was really pleased with their physicality and aggression. But we’ve got to get sharper on offense. We’ve got to throw and catch the little stuff better and find ways to get the ball in the hands of Karnes and Ross. We’ve also got to get more physical up front. We’ve got to get movement and be able to run the ball.
“I was really proud of our second offensive line,” Hales continued. “And Kim Rogers came in and ran the ball awesome, and we marched right down the field. We had agreed with Shiloh that we were going to play the starters in the first half then get some other guys in the second half, and it worked out well. We got a lot of reps tonight, and we’ll see Shiloh again later this season in conference play and there will be a lot more intensity in that game. But Coach [Brandon] Godfrey is doing an incredible job and we’re proud of our defense.”
Greenwood and Shiloh Christian will meet again this season, the next time in league play, and it could be the last time the teams meet for quite some time, due to reclassification. The Shiloh Christian varsity team will likely be moving up to Class 7A next season while the Greenwood Bulldogs are moving down to 5A, putting the schools in different conferences, though they could still meet in non-conference play. The two junior high squads will square off again on Thursday, October 9th at Greenwood. Next Thursday conference play begins at Alma, a longtime rival of Greenwood.