The Greenwood Bulldogs have added to a new winning streak and extended an older one with last Friday’s 52-13 blowout win over the visiting Harrison Goblins. The 36-point mercy rule victory marked their third straight win this season after starting 0-2 with narrow road losses at Bentonville West and Pulaski Academy, both top-notch Class 7A schools.
Since then, Head Coach Jason Gill and his troops have beaten Rogers High School – another solid 7A school – and 5A West conference members Morrilton and Harrison to start league play at 2-0. Friday’s triumph was also Greenwood’s 79th straight win at home in Smith-Robinson Stadium, a mark dating back more than a decade.
And it was Homecoming as well, with Queen Annie Been and her court of lovely maids being honored before the game. The rain stayed away as well, making it an almost perfect night for the big crowd that turned out to watch the festivities and the game. It was the first time since 2011 the two teams had met on the gridiron and the 24th time since 1990 with Greenwood now holding a 13-11 advantage in those meetings.
A quick start, but Harrison rallies
The Bulldogs received the opening kick and jumped to an early 17-0 lead before the Goblins rallied to trim the GHS margin to 17-10 with 2:41 left in the first half. But a late Greenwood touchdown before halftime set the stage for a second half blowout, implementing the mercy rule midway through the third stanza. The Dogs led 23-10 at the half and 45-10 after three periods. Both teams added a touchdown in the fourth quarter.
The Bulldogs mistakenly fielded the opening kickoff as it was sailing out-of-bounds at the home 25-yard-line, starting their first possession 75 yards away from pay dirt. But they covered that distance rather economically in five plays, at least until they were inside the Harrison 5-yard-line. Quarterback Cruz Coatney passed to Ty Holt for 11 yards to start the drive, then connected with Braxton Canada to the 50.
Next, Mario Dunbar ran to the Goblins’ 44 before backfield mate Rhett Holloway burst through the defense for a big gain to the Harrison 3-yard-line where stepping out-of-bounds. A penalty advanced the ball another 1½ yards, but that’s when things went awry. A procedure penalty and three more snaps yielded only a couple yards. Facing fourth down and goal from the 5-yard-line, Coach Gill sent in senior kicker Landon Franklin for a chip shot field goal, putting Greenwood on top, 3-0 (9:29).
But the improving GHS defense clamped down hard on the Goblins, forcing a quick three-and-out followed by a punt that was fair caught at the home 45-yard-line. On first down, Coatney passed to Canada to the 49 then to Holt at the Harrison 38. Canada then caught his third pass of the game, reaching the 30. Holloway rambled to the 27 for a first down before Coatney passed to Holt at the 21. Senior Brayden Renick was Coatney’s next target for six more yards to the 15.
A facemask penalty on Harrison put the ball inside the 8-yard-line before Holloway ran to the Goblins’ three. Mario Dunbar then carried in for the score behind the right side of the GHS line. Franklin’s kick was true and the Bulldogs were quickly up 10-0 with 6:10 remaining in the first quarter. They soon added another touchdown to lead 17-0. But the visitors weren’t ready to roll over and rallied to score twice in the second stanza, keeping the game temporarily close.
The Harrison offense finally found some traction on its second possession, driving 51 yards to the Greenwood 27 before turning the ball over on downs as the game transitioned into the second quarter. A pass to Rhett Holloway moved the ball to the GHS 34 before a completed pass and holding penalty brought it back to the 24. Coatney passed again to the 38 but a personal foul penalty on Greenwood put the ball back at the 24 once again. But that’s when lightning struck on a wide receiver screen pass from Coatney to Braxton Canada, who caught the ball near the line-of-scrimmage before sprinting 76 yards down the home sideline for the score. The extra point kick increased Greenwood’s lead to 17-0 at the 11:21 mark of the quarter.
But give the Goblins credit. On the verge of getting blown out early, the visitors fought hard to stay in the game, scoring on their next two possessions to trim the Greenwood advantage to 17-10. Their first score came on a 28-yard field goal with 6:08 showing on the scoreboard clock. Then after the Harrison defense forced a quick punt by Greenwood, the Goblins completed a long pass of 59 yards to the GHS 9-yard-line to set up their first touchdown. It came three plays later on a 6-yard pass. The extra point kick was good and suddenly Greenwood’s big early lead had evaporated.
Greenwood reasserts control
Still ahead 17-10 with 2:41 remaining before halftime, Coatney and company went back to work, scoring their third touchdown in just seven plays. Starting from their own 35, the Bulldogs began with a pair of passes to Canada reaching the Harrison 44. Holloway ran to the 36 before Ty Holt caught a short pass at the 31. But a play for no gain and a QB sack put the ball back at the 36. On third down, Coatney found senior Cooper Webb open over the middle for a completion and more. The big receiver secured the ball then bounced off a couple of would-be tacklers before gaining the end zone. The PAT failed due to a poor snap exchange, but with 50 seconds left in the half, the GHS lead increased to 23-10.
The second half was all Greenwood as the Bulldogs outscored the Goblins 29-6. Harrison received the opening kick, but a third down QB sack by Greenwood’s Gunner Flanary pushed the Goblins back to their 11-yard-line. The subsequent punt was then possibly deflected by a Greenwood player, causing the ball to die at the Harrison 36. Coatney then found Canada behind a defender inside the 5-yard-line for a quick-strike touchdown pass. The senior QB found Canada again for a two-point conversion pass, making the score 31-10 with 9:45 left in the quarter.
Seconds later, GHS senior defensive back Bailey Thibodeau made a diving interception of a Harrison pass at the Goblins’ 22-yard-line, adding to the momentum for the home team. Coatney then completed another pass to Canada at the 11 before another toss to Brayden Brewer at the 4-yard-line. Mario Dunbar scored the touchdown on the next snap. Franklin’s extra point was good, making the score 38-10.
With 8:20 still left in the quarter, the Bulldogs continued pouring it on, forcing another quick Harrison punt, returned 14 yards by Canada to the Goblins’ 39-yard-line before a penalty moved the ball back to the visitors’ 47. A Cruz Coatney pass to Ty Holt reached the 38 before Coatney tossed a backwards lateral to Canada, who then threw downfield to a wide-open Ty Karnes for a touchdown. The extra point made it 45-10, invoking the mercy rule with 6:03 left in the third quarter.
Mercy rule shortens the final 18 minutes
With the clock running almost continuously, the remainder of the game went by quickly. The Goblins scored their final six points on their next possession, with many GHS starters being replaced by younger players and reserves. The Harrison drive covered 84 yards and 11 plays, including a big pass interference penalty on the Bulldogs. The touchdown came on a 33-yard pass play, but the extra point failed.
Now in the fourth quarter and the clock running, the second team offense entered the game for the Bulldogs, led by sophomore quarterback Joey Young. After Mario Dunbar returned a short kickoff to the home 43, Coatney completed a first down pass to Brayden Renick at the Harrison 37 before leaving the game.
Upon replacing Coatney, Young’s first pass attempt was caught by Bentley Neece for two yards before another toss to Ryan Ross at the 27. After a penalty moved the ball to the Harrison 22, running back Drake Little ran three times for 11, five, and six yards, the last carry for the touchdown. Sophomore kicker Grayson Cobbler added the extra point to make the final score 52-16.
Coach Gill talks with media
After the game, Coach Gill met with members of the media on the field to discuss the victory. “I just thought we weren’t really focused when we first started the game, and I challenged them [at halftime] to come out and show our crowd who we are. I thought they did that. They came out and did exactly what we needed to do. That’s what we have to do all the time.”
Gill then responded to a question about the play of quarterback Cruz Coatney, who has been steady all season. “He’s just doing awesome,” said the coach. “He’s made some big plays, and he’s stepped up when we’ve needed him. We see it in practice every day, and I’m glad he’s been able to come out these last couple of games and do it.”
As for his defense, Coach Gill had high praise for senior defensive lineman Charlie Hudnall. “Charlie, right there in the middle, really anchors us, and Bryer [Hackler] is doing an awesome job. In the secondary, I think [Bailey] Thibodeau got another pick tonight. We’ve still got some stuff we can correct and get better at, but overall, they played well.”
Referring to Harrison, Gill said, “You don’t want to let a team like that hang around. I thought we let them hang around in the first half, and I knew if we kept doing that it was going to become a four-quarter game, and we didn’t want that. We wanted to get it over with, get the clock running, and get some other guys into the game.”
The coach also bragged about junior receiver Braxton Canada. “He’s a weapon. We say he’s going to be special. We have a lot of good receivers, but he’s just a little different. He’s just that guy. We’ve got to get him the ball eight or nine times a game, and he’s going to make things happen.” Regarding Canada’s touchdown pass to Ty Karnes after the lateral from Coatney, the coach admitted, “I didn’t even know that was coming. Those offensive guys are always coming up with something. They’re tricksters.”
The first-year GHS head coach still runs the defense after being promoted from defensive coordinator, but leaves the offense in the capable hands of offensive coordinator Stephen Hogan and his staff. So far this season the Bulldogs are scoring 37.2 points per game while giving up 20 points per game defensively. Those numbers are sure to improve over the course of the next five games, starting next week at Dardanelle (A), followed by Farmington (H), Pea Ridge (A), Clarksville (H), and Alma (H).
The unofficial stats showed Coatney with 307 yards on 20 of 22 passing and three touchdowns. Coatney also threw for a two-point conversion. Braxton Canada was his top target with nine catches for 172 yards and two scores, but Canada also had a touchdown pass of 39 yards to Ty Karnes, his only catch. Ty Holt caught six passes for 59 yards while Cooper Webb had one catch for 36 yards and a touchdown. Mario Dunbar had two short yardage rushing touchdowns and Drake Little had another. The longest run from scrimmage was turned in by Rhett Hollway, a 41-yard gallop that set up Greenwood’s initial field goal by Landon Franklin, who also kicked five extra points. Grayson Cobbler added another PAT.