The Greenwood Bulldogs (10-1) opened their 2018 post-season run last Friday night with a convincing 35-0 win over the visiting Searcy Lions in the quarterfinals of the state playoffs. Next Friday Greenwood will host the surprising Sylvan Hills Bears (5-7), the #6 seed from the 6A East.
The Bulldogs are the defending state champions and are favored by many observers to repeat this season. Greenwood has won 10 consecutive games. The state title contest will be played in Little Rock at War Memorial Stadium at noon on Saturday, December 1st.
The Searcy Lions entered Friday’s game at Greenwood unsure of the status of star running back Tony Young. The senior dressed out and warmed up before kickoff, but was unable to play due to a series of late season injuries, dealing a severe blow to the Lions’ offense.
Senior quarterback Peyton Wright is the top passer in Class 6A, but was harassed throughout the game by the GHS defensive line, while several of his throws were batted down by the Bulldogs’ aggressive secondary. That combination led to Searcy’s only shutout loss this season.
The visitors’ offensive problems appeared quite early too. After 11 offensive snaps the Lions had amassed exactly zero positive yards. The offense didn’t get any traction until a fake punt on its third possession resulted in a first down. But seven plays later an interception ended the series.
Greenwood’s first possession began about two minutes into the game and ended with a 29-yard field goal by senior kicker Grant Ennis. The promising drive was thwarted by a bad snap and a 20-yard loss, resulting in the field goal (7:36) and a 3-0 GHS lead.
Greenwood’s next possession ended with a fumble, followed by Searcy’s fake punt play and the interception by senior defensive back Aaron Ohl. But that offensive series ended with a Jackson Stewart punt to the Searcy 14.
The Lions then drove inside the GHS 5-yard-line before facing fourth-and-goal, settling for a field goal to tie the score, but the kick by Wright was wide of the mark, leaving Greenwood still ahead early in the second quarter. The GHS offense then went to work as the momentum shifted.
Starting from their own 20, the Bulldogs marched 80 yards in just four plays, all runs, to take a 10-0 lead. Sophomore running back Hunter Wilkinson ran three consecutive times for nice yardage to the 45 before senior QB Peyton Holt executed a great fake, keeping the ball and completely fooling the defense.
Holt then exploited a gapping hole in the middle of the field before cutting back to escape the only Lions’ defender that had a chance to tackle him. The TD run covered 55 yards, followed by the kick by Ennis at the 9:04 mark of the second period.
Greenwood’s next two possessions also ended with touchdowns as the Bulldogs built a 24-0 halftime margin and took control of the contest. The home team scored on drives of 71 and 67 yards, requiring a total of 15 plays.
Just like the previous series, Wilkinson ran three times for 20 yards to the 49. A sideline pass from Holt to Aaron Ohl then reached the Searcy 21. Senior Marc Jones ran to the 17 before Wilkinson rumbled to the four, setting up Holt to score on a keeper off right tackle. Ennis made it 17-0 (5:36).
After another defensive stop and Searcy punt, the Bulldogs’ took over at their own 33 with 3:45 remaining in the first half. Seven plays later they were in the end zone again.
Wilkinson ran for seven yards to the 40, followed by Holt’s seven yards on two carries. After a short pass completion to Luke Leonard at the 29, Wilkinson carried to the 24 and Holt ran to the 21. Two snaps later Holt tossed a screen pass to Jones near the GHS sideline.
The diminutive senior caught the ball and followed his blockers all the way to the end zone for the touchdown. Ennis added the point after, making the score 24-0 at the intermission.
The Bulldogs received the opening kick of the second half, but could do nothing with it, punting it away after a quick three-and-out. But they got the ball back just over 3½ minutes later and put three more points on the board, inching closer to a 35-point lead and the mercy rule.
From their own 22, the ‘Dogs drove to the Searcy seven-yard-line before settling for the 24-yard kick by Ennis. Along the way, quarterback Peyton Holt and receiver Luke Leonard connected on three passes for 40 yards, while Holt and Marc Jones did the legwork on the ground. Lazaro Angel also caught a pass for seven yards.
Leading 27-0 (2:49) late in the third quarter, the GHS defense continued its fine work, despite being penalized twice for pass interference during the same Searcy possession. The Lions later failed on a fourth down conversion at the home 41-yard-line.
Greenwood then drove for its final touchdown and converted a two-point play to invoke the 35-point sportsmanship rule and speed up the clock over the final quarter.
Holt ran on first down to the 43, then passed to Jayden Jasna for six yards to the 49, before keeping the ball again for a first down at the Searcy 48. The quick strike drive ended on the next play, a deep sideline pass from Holt to Aaron Ohl just inside the 20-yard-line.
The part-time fill-in receiver hauled in the pass and scored Greenwood’s fourth touchdown of the game. Holt then rolled to his right and threw back left to a wide-open Marc Jones for the two-point conversion, making the score 35-0 just 29 seconds into the fourth quarter. The final 11:31 went by quickly, with Greenwood pulling most of its starters on both sides of the ball.
After the two teams exchanged pleasantries at midfield, Coach Jones addressed his team then spoke to members of the radio and print media, obviously pleased with the win.
“[Searcy] is a scary team,” said Jones. “They are really good. I watched them on film and they scared me to death. They missed [Tony Young]. That guy is a really good running back, [but] he wasn’t able to go. They missed him big time and they became sort of one dimensional [without him]. But our [defensive] guys had a great plan. They executed well. They worked tirelessly on the plan.
“Our defensive coaches did an amazing job,” said the coach, mentioning defensive coordinator Jason Gill specifically. “They had our kids locked and loaded. I was proud of the way our secondary guys played. It was awesome to watch them compete for every single ball [Searcy] threw up, and our guys up front were constantly harassing the quarterback.
“It was a great defensive team effort. Those guys play with fire and passion and they practice with fire and passion. They just battle, battle, battle. Our guys played aggressive and physical,” said Jones. The Bulldogs finished with six QB sacks, several passes knocked down, and one pick.
Unofficially, the GHS defense allowed just 132 yards in the first half on 41 plays, but clamped down even tighter in the third quarter, allowing no positive yardage on 14 plays. Overall, Greenwood held the Lions to just 194 yards for the game.
“Offensively we were missing some pieces, and I was worried about who was going to make plays,” he said, referring to receiver Treyton Dawson and kick return specialist Max Vickery, both of which were injured and unable to play. Running back Hunter Wilkinson was also dinged up in the first half and did not return. Jones was hopeful that all three players will return for next week’s game.
“But I do know this,” he said. “If we’ve got #3 (Peyton Holt) vertical, we’ve got a chance to make something good happen. When he has the ball in his hands, he makes great things happen. [The defense] has to account for him. It’s like playing against 12 people.”
As he has been all season, Holt was the heart of the Bulldogs’ offensive, completing 14 of 24 passes for 255 yards, while rushing 16 times for 129 yards, unofficially. Greenwood gained about 500 yards.
Jones also praised the work of his offensive line and the presence of a solid running game. “We got physical with [Searcy],” he said. “Our offensive line got after them really well and were moving them backwards. When we established that we could run it, that made a huge difference.”
When asked about practicing on Thanksgiving next week, Jones said, “I wanted to get to a point where [our players] thought that practicing on Thanksgiving is just part of being a Bulldog. Our kids have done such a great job of that. We haven’t missed it too many times in 15 years, and I’m really proud of them. It’s a Thanksgiving tradition and we love it.”
Thursday’s practice begins at 9 a.m. and will be open to the public. Coffee, hot chocolate, and donuts will be available to those who attend, usually numbering in the hundreds of fans. This will be the 13th Thanksgiving practice for the Bulldogs since Jones arrived in 2004.