Last Friday night, Greenwood’s Smith-Robinson Stadium hosted one of the top high school football games in the state between the hometown Bulldogs and the visiting Shiloh Christian Saints. In the immortal words of the great Yogi Berra, “It was like déjà vu all over again,” because the same two teams met last season in similar circumstances. While that game was played at Shiloh’s home field in Springdale, the same two schools were ranked 1-2 in the 6A rankings. Greenwood won that 2024 contest, 28-17, and also won last Friday night, 35-28.
Another commonality was the role injuries played in both games. In 2024 the Saints were playing without their starting quarterback while Greenwood’s Kane Archer was hurt during the game and was replaced by backup Cooper Goodwin. Last Friday, Archer was medically released to play only hours before gametime and was clearly limited in his ability to move around on a gimpy right leg, wearing a brace on his knee. To make matters worse, senior Champ Davis, the Bulldogs’ top receiver, was hurt early Friday night and did not play in the second half. Yet without its top two offensive players being available or playing at a reduced level, the Bulldogs were able to battle through those injuries for a crucial conference victory.
The victory extended both of Greenwood’s current winning streaks, 30 straight victories since the start of 2023 and 72 consecutive wins at home. Just as in 2024, it’s likely this year’s Greenwood-Shiloh winner will go on to run the table in conference play, finishing unbeaten to earn the league’s #1 seed in the playoffs and a first-round post-season bye. Last year the same two teams met in the state championship game with Greenwood winning again, 61-35.
Shiloh and Greenwood entered the game with a combined 34 state championship appearances since 1996 and 20 state titles since 1998. The Bulldogs have won 12 state crowns since the year 2000, the most by any school in any classification in Arkansas since the modern playoff era began in 1970. Most gridiron pundits expect that both schools will meet again this December, with the Saints moving up to Class 7A next season and the Dogs dropping down to Class 5A.
Friday’s performance may have been a coming-of-age story for several aspects of this year’s squad, including the offensive line, the running backs, the entire defense, and several younger players, some of them seeing major game action for the first time. GHS Head Coach Chris Young was ecstatic in his postgame comments, mentioning several of those players by position or name. Greenwood’s players and coaches showed a lot of emotion throughout the contest.
Last Friday the Saints got on the scoreboard first, cashing in on their second possession. Receiving the opening kickoff, Shiloh Christian was quickly forced to punt, but the Bulldogs just as quickly turned the ball over on a pass interception at the Greenwood 24. The Saints needed five snaps to score on an 8-yard pass play, before the extra point try was blocked by Greenwood’s Blaze McDaniel, keeping the score at 6-0.
But the Bulldogs rallied to take a 7-6 lead in what would become a back-n-forth first half. Champ Davis returned the Shiloh kickoff from the home 7-yard-line to the 43, weaving his way through traffic to give the GHS offense good field position. Davis then carried the ball on first down to the Saints’ 45 but was shaken up on the play. Mario Dunbar and Wesley Raggio then carried to the 39 before Raggio caught a Kane Archer pass at the 32.
But three snaps later the Bulldogs were facing fourth down at the 31, needing nine yards to move the chains. Instead, Archer found receiver Braxton Canada in the right front corner of the end zone for the touchdown, winning the battle against a defensive back for control of the ball. Kicker Landon Franklin added the extra point to put the home team on top, 7-6 (4:49).
The GHS defense then went to work to force another Shiloh Christian punt that was downed at the Greenwood 34. The Bulldogs didn’t score but did move the ball deep into Saints’ territory before giving it up on downs. Also of note, Kane Archer was noticeably hobbled after a scramble out-of-bounds, but remained in the game, though at one point in the first half backup QB Cruz Coatney was seen warming up on the sideline. Champ Davis also got up slow after a catch, immediately heading to the sideline, and did not return. Subbing in was junior Brayden Renick, who had several good catches in the game.
Taking over at their own 15, the Saints needed eight plays, five of them pass attempts, to retake the lead on a deep pass into double coverage in the left side of the end zone. The play covered 37 yards and stopped the clock with 10:42 left in the second quarter. Shiloh then lined up for a two-point conversion try, but the pass attempt fell incomplete, keeping the score at 12-7 in favor of the visitors.
But the Bulldogs responded with an impressive scoring drive of their own, marching 61 yards in 10 plays to overtake the Saints once again at 14-12. Mario Dunbar returned the Shiloh kickoff for 16 yards to the GHS 39. Dunbar and Archer then collaborated for a short pass to the 42 before Archer scrambled his way across midfield to the Saints’ 38 and a first down. A pass to Cooper Bland reached the 24 and moved the chains again before Archer ran to the 20.
A bad snap followed, but Archer was able to corral the ball and threw it out-of-bounds, keeping the possession alive. A penalty followed, moving the ball back to the 25, easily overcome by a short pass play to Bland at the 20. Archer then executed a perfect quarterback draw up the middle, sidestepping a pair of would-be tacklers for the touchdown. Franklin’s extra point kick was good again, and the Bulldogs were back on top, 14-12, at the 7:37 mark of the second period.
The visitors started their next possession at their 20-yard-line after another Landon Franklin kick reached the end zone. But on their first snap the Saints completed a long pass to the Greenwood 32. From there they kept the ball on the ground with four rushing plays, the final one for two yards and the score. Another two-point conversion pass attempt failed, but the Saints were back on top, 18-14 (6:32).
It would be their final lead, because the Bulldogs needed less than two minutes to go back on top to stay at 21-18. It started with Braxton Canada’s kick return of 37 yards to the GHS 39. Brayden Renick then caught a pass to the 49 for a first down. Three plays later, on third-and-12, Archer found Canada again at the Saints’ 32, buying four more downs. Wesley Raggio then squirted through an opening to the 20 before Renick caught another pass at the 15. Raggio then raced up the middle for the go-ahead touchdown. Franklin’s kick was good, and Greenwood led again, 21-18 (4:38). The two teams then traded punts to run out the clock until halftime.
Compared to the frenzied scoring pace of the first half, the final two quarters were somewhat lethargic with only three touchdowns, two of those by Greenwood. The Bulldogs also scored the first two touchdowns of the half to go ahead 35-18, making it virtually impossible for the Saints to mount a late rally. They finally scored again with just over four minutes left to play, once again missing the extra point on a misguided kick.
The Bulldogs received the opening kick of the half, but were unable to pick up a first down, punting the ball away to the Shiloh Christian 23. Likewise, the Saints failed to move the chains more than once and turned the ball over on downs at their own 41, giving the home team excellent field position, and the Dogs took quick advantage.
Wesley Raggio carried for seven yards on first down to the Saints’ 34. Two more runs by the diminutive tailback reached the 27 for a first down. Quickly catching his breath, Raggio carried twice more on the possession, the first time for 24 yards before scoring the touchdown from three yards out. Franklin’s extra point kick was good again for a 28-18 GHS lead (6:30).
But the Saints were still hopeful of a comeback and moved quickly down the field on their next offensive series, marching from their own 20 to the Greenwood 25 with a first down, overcoming a holding penalty along the way. But on their next snap, Greenwood senior defensive back D.J. Dobbins read the route and made a break on the pass near the GHS sideline, first bobbling the ball before bringing it under control just as he went out-of-bounds. The interception caused the Greenwood sideline to erupt in celebration, including many of the coaches, mobbing Dobbins for his play.
Now on offense again at their own 30, the Bulldogs needed 13 plays to score, only one of those snaps resulting in a pass as the home team sought to burn the clock. Wesley Raggio carried three times for 23 yards to the Shiloh 47. Mario Dunbar then carried to the 41 before Kane Archer threw to Raggio at the 36. Archer then ran twice for a first down at the 29 before Raggio and Dunbar carried four times, twice each to the 4-yard-line. Dunbar then scored Greenwood’s fifth touchdown of the night ahead of Franklin’s final PAT.
But after the Saints were forced to punt once again with 7:23 left in the contest, it was another interception that set up the visitors’ final score. Archer’s pass was tipped and picked off near midfield at the Shiloh 48. Five snaps later the Saints reached the end zone on a six-yard run after a 27-yard screen pass play that set up the score. Foregoing the two-point try, the extra point kick sailed wide, leaving the score, 35-24, with 4:19 remaining.
With time running out, the Saints did the only thing they could do, trying an onside kick, which Greenwood’s Mario Dunbar was able to catch at the Shiloh 49, essentially ending any hope of a Saints’ miracle comeback. Wesley Raggio carried on first down, followed by Dunbar’s four carries to the visitors’ 27 before time expired on the 11-point GHS win, 35-24.
After addressing his team on the field, Coach Young talked with members of the media. "That was a great win for our program and our football team," he said. "We were shorthanded offensively and we had to lean on our defense and our offensive line. Both of those things really came through. Our defense really played well, and our offensive line was dominant."
In comments both at halftime and after the game, Young acknowledged Archer’s injury and limitations, even saying the coaching staff had game planned for backup Cruz Coatney to be the starter. Archer was injured during the thrilling 43-42 win at Springdale Har-Ber and had practiced sparingly since then. Archer was only cleared to play by the medical staff hours before kickoff and the coaching staff decided to go with the more experienced senior over the junior newcomer in Coatney.
But there were plenty of other players who showed their stuff against the Saints. “I’m really proud of our football team,” said Young. “We lost Champ [Davis] right off the bat and [Brayden] Renick comes in and just plays awesome. I’m so proud of him. He’s such a great young man. All our receivers and our offensive linemen, it was the best they’ve played in a long time. Kane hadn’t practiced for two weeks and just got cleared at the last minute. Our training staff did a fantastic job with him and the toughness he showed tonight playing through [that injury] was unbelievable. We were ready to go with [Coatney], who had a good week [of practice], but we decided to go with the senior. But we’ve got two great quarterbacks, and the offensive line is improving. And how about our defense? They got better tonight. They were physical and slowed down a really good Shiloh team. We’ve just got to continue to get better. We’re not a great football team right now, but we’re getting better, and we’ve got to get healthy.”
The coach also bragged on his running backs, starting with Wesley Raggio. “He was awesome,” said Young. “He was seeing the cuts, and his ball protection was good. Mario Dunbar got a little banged up, so we rode [Raggio] tonight. We thought we could run on them. Our offensive line had two weeks of really good practice and Coach [Austin] Moreton did a fantastic job with those guys. And I thought Coach [Stephen] Hogan called a really good game and took what [Shiloh] was giving us. That was a great win for our football team.”
Statistically, Raggio finished with 20 carries for 127 yards to pace the Bulldogs’ 240-yard rushing performance. Despite his limited mobility, Kane Archer completed 18 of 31 pass attempts for 178 yards and carried eight times for 44 yards. All stats are unofficial. It’s also worth noting that Archer is approaching a couple of school records after breaking the mark for touchdown passes in week two against Fort Smith Northside.
Ironically, it was Cruz Coatney’s dad, Brooks, who threw for 104 touchdowns, finishing his career in 1998. Archer has now surpassed that mark with several more games to go this season, though his current injury could cost him more time in coming weeks. He is 2,246 yards short of the career school record of 10,075 yards, also held by Brooks Coatney and almost 3,400 yards behind the single-season mark set by Tyler Wilson (4,222).
The Bulldogs now turn their attention to the remainder of the 6A West conference schedule, starting this coming Friday with a trip to Russellville. After facing the winless Cyclones (0-4), Greenwood will host Siloam Springs on homecoming night, October 10th, before going to Lake Hamilton on the 17th. The Bulldogs will get back-to-back home games against Van Buren and Fort Smith Southside on the 24th and 31st, respectively. The Southside game will also serve as Greenwood’s senior night. They will then close their regular season on the road at Mountain Home (4-0) the first Friday in November. All other league teams currently have at least two losses each. The playoffs begin November 14th with the top seed from each of the two 6A conferences earning a first-round bye. The 6A East has no unbeaten teams after four weeks of play.