Ever since the news broke that Greenwood was moving down from Class 6A to 5A, teams in the 5A West, along with their families and fans, have lamented that the tradition-rich Bulldogs were joining their conference after winning a dozen state titles since 2000, the last five while in Class 6A. Greenwood’s 12 state championships are the most in Arkansas since the start of the modern playoff era in 1970. Pulaski Academy has 11, Harding Academy 10, and Shiloh Christian nine, making Greenwood the only public high school among the top four.
Many people don’t fully understand or appreciate the efforts of the Arkansas Activities Association (AAA) to maintain a competitive balance between the state’s top private schools, like those mentioned above, along with Little Rock Christian, by promoting those schools to ever higher classifications, based on their performance. Along with shifting enrollment numbers, some schools like Greenwood were subsequently pushed down to a lower classification through no fault of their own.
That being the case, it’s not surprising that last Friday the Bulldogs totally dominated the Morrilton Devil Dogs, their first 5A West conference opponent this season, winning convincingly by mercy rule, 49-7. The GHS victory was likely a preview of things to come as conference play continues over the next several weeks. Farmington may be the only league school that can put up a decent fight against the Bulldogs, who are expected to run the table before the post-season in their quest to return to War Memorial Stadium for the seventh straight year.
Greenwood and Morrilton had not played one another since 2011. Still, it was their 24th meeting on the gridiron with the Devil Dogs coming in unbeaten after wins over Russellville, Vilonia, and Harding Academy. The Bulldogs were 1-2, hoping to even their season record and kick off conference play with a victory.
The visiting Bulldogs scored on their first three possessions, while the GHS defense forced punt after punt by the Devil Dogs. Only a lost fumble broke Greenwood’s momentum on its fourth possession, but they soon went on to lead 42-0 at the half. The #1 offense returned to open the third quarter and scored again before Head Coach Jason Gill and his staff pulled most of their starters and used junior varsity players the rest of the way with the mercy rule in play and the clock running.
The offense comes out firing
With the Greenwood offensive line clearly bigger and stronger than Morrilton’s defensive line, the Bulldogs’ offense faced little resistance in the opening quarter. After kicking off to start the contest and forcing a quick punt by the home team, the Bulldogs began their first possession at their own 36 after a fair catch by Ty Holt. The senior return man and pass receiver was playing his first game after a pre-season injury and caught four early passes from quarterback Cruz Coatney.
But Coatney’s first pass went to Braxton Canada for a short gain to the 39. Holt then caught three of the next four tosses for 23 yards, moving into Morrilton territory at the Devil Dogs’ 38-yard-line. After running back Rhett Holloway picked up a first down at the 34, Holt caught another Coatney offering for 17 yards to the 17. Brayden Renick then caught a pass to the 4-yard-line, setting up the touchdown run by Mario Dunbar on the next snap. Landon Franklin’s extra point kick was good (7:21).
Leading 7-0, the visiting defense went back to work, giving up a single first down before forcing another Morrilton punt to the Greenwood 47 with no return. Six snaps later the Bulldogs were in the end zone again. The first of those plays was a pass from Coatney to Canada to the home 48-yard-line. Next, sophomore receiver Ty Karnes caught his only pass of the game to the 44. Holloway ran again to the 39 for a first down before Coatney connected with Brayden Renick at the 30.
Ty Holt then ran the ball for seven yards to the 23 before Coatney found senior receiver Brayden Brewer over the middle in the end zone for the score. Franklin’s kick was good, increasing Greenwood’s early lead to 14-0 with 3:42 remaining in the opening quarter. The Bulldogs would score again just over two minutes later after another Morrilton punt.
From the Greenwood 26, the visitors needed just four snaps to score their third touchdown. On first down, Mario Dunbar ran to the 31 before Rhett Holloway galloped 29 yards to the Morrilton 40. Coatney then launched a deep pass down the GHS sideline and into the waiting arms of Braxton Canada inside the 5-yard-line. Dunbar then scored from two yards out with 1:33 left in the quarter. Franklin’s kick made the score 21-0.
Three more GHS touchdowns followed before halftime, despite losing a pair of fumbles in the second period. The first of those turnovers occurred on the first play of the second stanza after a handoff to Rhett Holloway. Potentially on his way to the end zone after a strong run, breaking several tackles, the GHS running back lost his grip on the ball with Morrilton covering the rock at the home 22-yard-line.
But the Greenwood defense bailed out their offensive teammate by stuffing Morrilton for three plays and forcing yet another punt, this one out-of-bounds at the GHS 46. A pass to Braxton Canada reached the Devil Dogs’ 34 on first down before Dunbar ran to the 32. Holloway then reached the 14, moving the sticks again before he carried to the 10. Next, Dunbar ran to the 1-yard-line before Brayden Brewer lined up at quarterback in the shotgun, fronted by Dunbar and Holloway, keeping the ball for a scoring run up the middle. The extra point made it 28-0 with 7:58 left in the half.
Once again the GHS defense did its job, holding the Devil Dogs to a pair of first downs and forcing another punt. But Rhett Holloway was swarmed by tacklers and fumbled the ball at the Greenwood 19-yard-line giving Morrilton its best scoring chance of the first half. But two plays for losses and a touchdown-erasing penalty doomed the home team, pushing them back to the 26-yard-line. A pair of incomplete passes then gave the ball back to Greenwood with 4:03 left in the half.
After a pair of penalties, one on each team, moved the ball to the 21, Cruz Coatney passed to Brayden Renick at the 38, moving the chains. Another toss to Braxton Canada reached the Morrilton 40, then two snaps later from the 39, Coatney found Canada again on a wide receiver screen for the touchdown. The talented receiver caught the ball at the line-of-scrimmage before picking up his blockers and sprinting ahead for the score. The kick by Franklin made it 35-0 with time running out in the half.
However, one more GHS touchdown followed before the break, this one by the defense on a 78-yard interception return by Greenwood’s Bailey Thibodeau, who picked off the Morrilton pass at the visitors’ 22. He grabbed the ball almost in full stride, gaining the GHS sideline before picking up a critical block from teammate Terry McGinister near the Morrilton 30, allowing him to complete the touchdown run. The point after made the halftime score 42-0.
Mercy rules second half as regulars rest
Due to the mercy rule, the second half of Friday’s game was short and sweet, interrupted only by the arrival of a host of emergency vehicles, including a medical e-vac helicopter at one end of the field beyond the end zone. Apparently, a Morrilton player who walked off the field at halftime later succumbed to an unknown injury involving his neck, prompting medical personnel to err on the side of caution, expediting his transport for further medical attention. The start of the third quarter was delayed for a time and later a moment of silence and prayer was observed throughout the stadium.
With the clock running continuously, the final two quarters were played almost in real time. Coatney and company returned for the opening series by Greenwood, who started the half’s first possession at the Bulldogs’ 24. A short pass to Mario Dunbar reached the 27 before a third down toss to Cooper Webb moved the sticks to the 37. Another pass to Webb reached the 46 before Rhett Holloway rumbled to the 39. Coatney then passed to Brayden Renick to the 21 before connecting with Braxton Canada in the end zone for the touchdown. Franklin’s extra point kick was good, making the score 49-0 four minutes into the third quarter.
That would be it for Greenwood’s offensive starters as Coach Gill called off the Dogs, so to speak, finishing the game with junior varsity players. Sophomore quarterback Joey Young took most of the remaining snaps behind center and junior running back Drake Little had a couple nice runs. Greenwood’s #2 defense did give up Morrilton’s only touchdown on a 25-yard run on the first play of the fourth quarter, capping a 77-yard drive in six plays. The PAT made the final score, 49-7.
The numbers remain consistent for Greenwood
Unofficial stats showed the Bulldogs gaining over 400 yards of offense, right in line with their performance in each of their prior three games. QB Cruz Coatney was very efficient, completing 20 of 25 passes for 269 yards and three touchdowns. Braxton Canada was his top target with eight catches for 150 and two TDs. Brayden Renick had four receptions for 56 yards, Ty Holt had four grabs for 40 yards, and Cooper Webb had three catches for 32 yards. Brayden Brewer also had a 24-yard catch for a touchdown. A handful of others caught solo passes in the game.
Rhett Holloway led Greenwood’s rushing game with 93 yards on eight carries, or about 11.5 yards per touch. Mario Dunbar had six carries for 23 yards and two touchdowns. Drake Little ran 10 times for 46 yards and Brayden Brewer had a 1-yard carry for a touchdown. Defensively, junior linebacker Bryer Hackler had a monster game with 10 total tackles, four of them for losses, despite only playing half the game.
Postgame with Coach Gill
After the game, sideline reporter Richie Cagle spoke with GHS Head Coach Jason Gill, starting their conversation by saying, “It’s good to get the first conference win against a good football team — a 3-0 football team,” said Cagle, referring to Morrilton’s perfect record prior to facing Greenwood. “I’m just proud of our guys,” said Gill. “They came out focused. We’re working on ourselves, and you could tell we executed tonight. We’ve got a good chance to have a really good football team.
“There have been a few bumps in the road, but those kids come to work every day,” the coach continued. “I’ve told them we’re six points away from being 3-0. But we learned from it. As coaches, we learn from it, and we find out what these guys can do. We’re looking forward to seeing the rest of the year.”
Asked about any standout performers in the game, Gill said, “I know Bryer [Hackler] made a few good plays. [Bailey] Thibodeau picked that ball off and took it back. It’s been a long time since we’ve done that on defense. Cruz [Coatney] was throwing the ball around. Rhett [Holloway] was running the ball hard. He fumbled that one time, but he runs hard. Mario [Dunbar] finished a couple of runs in the end zone. The offensive line was blocking. I could go on and on, probably.”
Gill and his excellent staff of assistant coaches and players will be back at Smith-Robinson Stadium next Friday to take on the Harrison Goblins in 5A West conference play. Once upon a time the two teams competed regularly in league play and quite often the Golden Goblins had the upper hand before the Bulldogs began their ascendency in the late 1990s. Friday’s contest will also serve as Greenwood’s football homecoming for 2026 with many of the festivities occurring on the field prior to the game. The Bulldogs currently have a 78-game home winning streak. A big crowd is expected and kickoff will be at 7 p.m.