Considering all that has happened in this strangest of years, the Greenwood Bulldogs and new head coach Chris Young probably could not ask for much more than they have already achieved so far in 2020. Currently 7-0 and atop the Class 6A state rankings, having dealt with numerous injuries and adversity, including two cancelled games, and playing two much larger 7A schools instead on just a few days’ notice, the team now faces its most daunting challenge to date.
Greenwood hosts the Benton Panthers (5-2) this coming Friday night at Smith-Robinson Stadium in a game that will have a huge impact on which school claims the 6A West conference crown. The winner will remain unbeaten in league play and have a leg up on the championship with two games remaining in the regular season.
That’s not to discount the other contenders – Lake Hamilton and Little Rock Parkview – but the Bulldogs and Panthers have distinguished themselves in recent years as the teams to beat, not only in the 6A West, but across the entire 6A classification. Greenwood reached the state title game four consecutive years (2015-18), winning twice, while Benton has reached the championship game the past two seasons, losing both times, including to Greenwood in 2018.
In his weekly conversation with the Dog Pound, Coach Young talked about Friday’s upcoming challenge. But first he offered some additional comments about last week’s win over Russellville. The Bulldogs hosted the Cyclones and head coach Jeff Weaver, a former GHS assistant with Young, and the two have remained friendly. Greenwood won the game, 48-10.
“Jeff and his family are Bulldogs and have done a lot for our program,” said the GHS head coach. “Jeff was a great coach for our program and did a lot of good things for our kids and our community. And last [Friday] his dad [received] a well-deserved honor,” referring to Curtis Weaver’s induction into the Greenwood Education Foundation Hall of Fame.
“Curtis has just gone above and beyond to provide things for the student-athletes of Greenwood. We’re very appreciative of what Curtis has done for our program, and I’m very appreciative of the friendship that I have with Jeff. I talk to him on a regular basis. We [wanted] to beat each other [Friday] night, but we’re very good friends,” said Young.
As for his players and their performance against the Cyclones, he added, “I was really proud of the kids and the coaches. I thought they did a good job. They were well-prepared and played very well.”
The Bulldogs have been amazingly consistent this season. The defense has allowed just 70 points or 10 point per game, while the offense has scored at least 33 points in all but one contest, averaging just over 38 points per outing. They have scored 40 or more points in four of their games while notching three consecutive mercy-rule wins in conference play and four overall on the season.
Such scoring production and efficiency is even more remarkable because the starting offense has played sparingly in the second half of most games. Obviously, the Bulldogs could easily have padded their already impressive stats simply by keeping their starters in the game longer, but that would be bad sportsmanship, and that’s not the Bulldog way.
“We’ve been really consistent [offensively],” agreed Young. “We want to make sure we make four yards every play. If we’re consistent and make first downs, then good things are going to happen,” said Greenwood’s former offensive coordinator.
Asked about the brief return of senior defensive lineman Beau Asher, who was hurt earlier in the month and courageously returned to action against Russellville, Young said, “Beau’s a competitor and he was able to get out there and compete and it was awesome to see him out there.” Unfortunately, Asher later left the game limping and did not return.
Regarding the overall health of his team, the coach preferred not to discuss specifics. “We’re not going to talk about injuries,” he said. However, in his pre-game interview with Dog Pound live-stream broadcaster Tim Terry, Young did reveal that senior Fletcher Gill could possibly return before the season ends. Prior to his injury Gill was a starting linebacker. In earlier remarks Young had observed there seemed to be more injuries this season than normal at all levels of football, something he equated with the long layoff earlier this year due to the coronavirus outbreak.
Regarding the play of his second and third units on both sides of the ball, something Young had emphasized this season, he agreed that those players are in a tough spot. With the game already put away and the clock running down under the mercy rule, they don’t have much of a chance to showcase their talents, in part because the coaching staff doesn’t want to run up the score and possibly embarrass an opponent.
“We [are] very conservative, maybe too conservative,” he said. “Are [we] trying to score or trying to give those kids reps or trying to get the game over?” he asked aloud. “We probably need to let those kids execute our stuff a little [more]. Depth is very important, [and] we probably need to open it up a little bit more, because those guys are good football players and they can make plays [too].”
Regarding Friday’s big showdown with Benton, the coach acknowledged the tough task awaiting his staff and players. Reminded of the Panthers’ four-game winning streak after losing to Bryant and Little Rock Catholic early in non-conference play, he said, “They did a similar thing last year. Anybody that plays [#1 ranked] Bryant is not going to look very good.
“The [Panthers] are very well coached,” he added, referring to Benton head coach Brad Harris and his staff. “They’ve played some young guys on defense [who] have matured and grown up and are playing really well right now. They are as talented a team as there is in our league, and it’s going to present a challenge.”
Including both losses, Benton is still averaging a little over 33 points per game while giving up just over 22 points per game defensively, but just under 17 points per conference game. Benton also defeated a very talented Little Rock Parkview team, 30-20, after the Patriots emerged from their mid-season Covid-19 shutdown. Conversely, the Panthers barely survived at Russellville, winning 47-40, the same Cyclones team Greenwood defeated last week, 48-10.
The coach also talked about the home stretch of the 2020 season, the final three games against Benton, Van Buren, and Lake Hamilton that will sort out the league’s top four teams and determine post-season seedings.
“Looking at it early in the year, we knew these last three games were going to be three of the biggest ball games,” said Young. “Benton and Lake Hamilton are both still undefeated in conference [play] and Van Buren is a very good football team. But we’re excited about it. We like to play good teams and we’re going to get that opportunity the last three weeks. They will show us where we are as a football team and the things we need to improve on going into the playoffs. It’s going to be a fun three weeks, for sure.”
Asked to decipher the complicated post-season structure this season, Young was less certain. “To be honest, I haven’t spent much time looking at that. It’s on the [Arkansas Activities Association] website [but] I’m not 100% sure.” According to the AAA website, the order of criteria for seeding in the playoffs will be (1) the total number of conference wins; (2) head-to-head results; (3) the average number of tie-breaking points; and lastly (4) a coin toss.
Because they have only 32 teams combined, the 6A and 7A classifications will be much easier to seed than the 170 smaller football schools across the state. All 16 teams in both classifications will qualify for the playoffs. But in classes 2A-5A the post-season may have to be extended by a week to play all the games required.
Among the top four teams in the 6A West, only Benton has played four conference games, already giving the Panthers a slight edge with three games remaining. Both Greenwood (3-0) and Lake Hamilton (3-0) were shorted one league contest due to the Covid-19 outbreak at Little Rock Parkview (1-1), which has played only two conference games.
Despite the complications resulting from Parkview’s two cancellations and the confusing possibilities emerging from the final three weeks of league play, Young said, “The good thing about the playoffs is you can make up for that. So we’re going to put 100% of our focus on Benton and get ready to go play a good football team.”
Besides Benton at Greenwood, other league games this week include Russellville at Parkview, Siloam Springs at Mountain Home, and Lake Hamilton at Van Buren. Other big games remaining include Benton at Lake Hamilton in week nine, while the Wolves also host Greenwood in the regular season finale in week ten. After playing Russellville this week, Parkview faces additional challenges at Siloam Springs and Mountain Home.