Almost six years ago, GHS varsity assistant coach Shannon Rhea asked then Head Coach Rick Jones if he could take over the junior high football program at Greenwood. His boss agreed, promoting Jason Gill to the varsity staff and allowing Rhea to move down to the junior high level as head coach, the job formerly held by Gill, a former head coach at Mansfield who has since become the defensive coordinator for the varsity Bulldogs, and a very good one.
Since that time, Rhea, also a former varsity head coach, has led his Junior Bulldogs to a pair of unbeaten seasons and three River Valley Conference championships, losing only eight games along the way, half of those coming in one season (2016). They have lost only four games since then. The other perfect season was his first in 2015 (9-0), with the other two league titles coming that year and in 2018, finishing second three other times.
Of course, since the beginning of the Rick Jones era, the Greenwood freshmen have been good for a long time under a succession of coaches including Lynn McElroy, Don Harrison, Gill, and now Rhea. The junior high program runs much the same offense and defense as the varsity Bulldogs, and most other junior high schools in the area are ill-prepared for what the Jr. ‘Dogs throw at them. For example, in their five shutouts this season the GHS freshmen outscored the opposition by a whopping margin of 180-0. Their closest game was a 35-12 season-opening win over Shiloh Christian.
While following the program dictates of the varsity head coach, whether Rick Jones or now Chris Young, Coach Rhea still enjoys a measure of autonomy as a head coach in his own right. He is also surrounded by an excellent staff including offensive coordinator Josh Holloway, defensive coordinator Eric Daniel, and line coach Brian Sims. Together, those four are responsible for two seventh grade squads, plus the eighth and ninth grade teams.
After last week’s 27-0 victory over Harrison that sealed a perfect season and the River Valley championship, Coach Rhea talked about his team, their season, and the challenges of playing a full season under the restrictions imposed due to the Covid-19 outbreak.
“The boys played really well [against Harrison],” he began. “They played well every Thursday night, and I congratulate them for that. It was a really tough year as far as the [pandemic] goes. We were on pins and needles [and] had a couple of instances where guys got quarantined. But they did really well,” referring to his players’ efforts to wear masks and socially distance. “I was proud of them. Football is a contact sport, and it makes us worry as coaches, but it worked out for us.”
The Jr. ‘Dogs were actually short one defensive starter against Harrison, losing linebacker Brady Mackey, who tested positive for the virus. “He’s a big player for us,” said Rhea, “especially when playing a running team like Harrison. That kind of made us nervous.” But Mackey’s teammates stepped up to fill his shoes, along with some good planning by the coaching staff.
“We had some different sets that we ran,” explained Rhea, giving credit to Coach Daniel and several players who filled in, depending on the situation. “Bryce Williams and Riley White played middle linebacker. We also used Eli Whitaker some. They all got to play, and they did really well.”
Rhea added concerning his defense, “For the most part we won first and second downs, and got [Harrison] in passing situations, and that’s kind of right up our ally. I think our quickness hurt them [too]. Our D-line did a good job getting after them, and when they threw it up, we had some picks.
“[Harrison’s] offense is tough,” he continued. “They overload you, and when you try to adjust, they run the counter play. Usually they have a good running quarterback. They run different formations and give us fits. So it was important that [our offense] got ahead early. [But] our kids did a good job of getting in the gaps and holding their ground [on defense]. We were able to get penetration and stop [them].”
Asked to comment on his team’s five shutouts this season, Rhea said, “Shutouts are good, but you also want to get the boys in that have been on the sideline and been practicing all year and get them some playing time, and we were able to do that. A lot of those shutouts were not just our first string defense. We had kids that came in, second and third stringers, and they did a fine job. I was proud of them. We had great depth this year, and that was probably a good thing with the virus.”
Asked if he still likes the job, the coach answered in the affirmative. “It’s going [well]. I’ve been a teacher at the middle school [in the past] and got to know the boys, and it’s a fun group to coach. I really enjoy what I’m doing right now.
“I’ve had a couple of opportunities to go somewhere else,” he added. “But my wife and I have really enjoyed it at Greenwood. I really wasn’t looking, but with the coaching change at the senior high level, you never know what’s going to happen. You want to keep your options open. But Coach Young got [the job], and I’ve known him for a long time, and Greenwood is a great place to work.”
The coach then explained that things are changing in the River Valley Conference for next season with the consolidation of the four Fort Smith junior high schools (Ramsey, Chaffin, Darby, Kimmons) into just two teams, one funneling players to the Southside varsity program and the other sending players to Northside. The move will reduce the number of RVC teams to six, down from eight this past season.
“It’s going to be different next year,” said Rhea. “I think Fort Smith is combining junior highs and going to freshmen academies, so they will be [more] competitive next year. Kids that apply for Southside (from Ramsey & Chaffin) will have a freshman team, and the same thing for Northside (from Darby & Kimmons).”
Regarding the implications for the 2021 schedule, Rhea wasn’t sure. “I don’t know. I’ve got to get with [Athletic Director] Dr. [Dustin] Smith on that. We’re going to be losing two games. I don’t know how they are going to do that. I’ll have to get with him to see what the schedule will be. I do know we have to go to both Pea Ridge and Harrison, so we will be road warriors next year.”
Rhea agreed that this will always be a special year for his players, as it was for the coaches too. “We were really pleased with this bunch. We hate to leave them,” said the coach. “They were a fun group to practice and we enjoyed their company. And I think they had a good time, and that made it special winning it all last Thursday night. It (the season) was different with the Covid stuff. It made it tough on us. But I’m really proud of the work they put in.”
The coach then talked about the abundance of talent among his freshmen. “We were really good offensively, I thought,” he said. “Our quarterback – Slade Dean – Coach Holloway was figuring up his numbers the other day, and there were some games where he had only one or two incompletions. He was very accurate and the guys he threw to could catch the ball. It’s probably the deepest group of receivers we’ve had, and that’s what made this team good.”
As for running back L.J. Robins, his coach said, “He has gotten a lot better. Last year I think we was banged up, but this year he really turned it on. He’s got a little wiggle about him. He knows how to cut and move and use his line and his blockers. He can see the hole and he hits it. I think when he fills out, he’s going to be a ballplayer.”
Turning his attention to the defense, Rhea continued, “We had guys that could cover on defense – our linebackers and secondary were very tough. We were also pretty fast to the ball. Some of our [defensive] linemen might have been undersized, but we were pretty quick.”
On special teams, Rhea said, “Bodie Steinfeldt did a great job of kicking, and I think he’s going to be a good kicker later in his career. We emphasized the kicking [game] and we were pretty good in that area. [Many] of them have gone to basketball, and that’s what we want, to see those guys compete and do well in different sports.
As for the two younger grades, the coach admitted that the three teams lost a grand total of two games – maybe. “We had kind of a “B” game against Russellville, and they beat us 8-6. That was seventh grade. We did lose a [regular] game to Darby in seventh grade. They beat us like 50-36. It was the highest scoring seventh grade game I’ve ever seen. They couldn’t stop us and we couldn’t stop them.”
Thinking ahead to next year’s freshman squad, the coach said with pride, “Our eighth-grade team didn’t lose [a game]. They are real aggressive kids. I don’t know if they have as much depth as this year’s team, but our starting group is pretty tough. They’ve done a good job all year.”
During the pre-season Coach Rhea waxed eloquent about his wealth of quarterbacks among the three grades, two of which hold great potential in the near future, Kaylor Jasna and Kane Archer. Jasna will be next year’s freshman QB and is the younger brother of senior Jayden Jasna, a defensive back and kick return specialist for the Bulldogs. Archer was a seventh-grade quarterback this past season who also played some on the eighth grade level.
“He did a great job,” said Coach Rhea. “We played him in the seventh grade, and then we’d move him up as a backup for our eighth grade. We’d play him for a quarter, and he fit right in. He’s pretty smooth for a kid that age. He loves football and he’s going to be a good quarterback for Greenwood. He throws the ball really well.
“Our eighth-grade quarterback is Kaylor Jasna, and he’s going to be a player too. He’s more of a running quarterback, which helps us offensively because we spread people out. He can run and throw, and he’s going to be good too.”
Coach Rhea and his staff are the foundation stones of the highly successful GHS football program – a foundation laid by former head coaches Ronnie Peacock in the 1990s and Rick Jones in the 2000s. There is also a symbiotic relationship between the junior high and varsity programs, both of which take their direction from the varsity head coach.
That job now belongs to 43-year-old Chris Young, who has been with the Bulldogs for all of his coaching career, after growing up as the son of Joe Fred Young, a very successful coach at Fort Smith Northside for many years. Young has been on the sideline for over 20 state championship games either as an interested spectator or as a coach, so he’s accustomed to the big stage. He also knows the value of training young players in the earliest grades, including the elementary (Pitbulls) and junior high levels.
He understands the necessity of keeping good players in the talent pipeline and teaching them fundamentals and the skills that prepare them for the next level. But Young and Rhea also know the importance of teaching life lessons to their charges as they mature into full grown Bulldogs.
After all, Greenwood seldom has the biggest, fastest, most physically talented players on the field. But the Bulldogs do have great coaching, outstanding community support, winning tradition, a proven system, and plenty of character and heart, and usually that’s enough to carry them to victory, including a pair of unbeaten records this season.