GREENWOOD — Big plays by the Greenwood defense keyed an easy Bulldog victory Friday night.
The Bulldogs turned three of four Wildcats turnovers into touchdowns to fuel a 33-0 blowout Friday at Smith-Robinson Stadium.
Greenwood’s defense also made six fourth-down stops to preserve the shutout.
First-year Bulldog coach Chris Young credited defense coordinator Jason Gill, who had to change game plans last weekend when Har-Ber agreed to play Greenwood after Fort Smith Northside was forced to cancel due to covid-19 concerns.
“I called (Coach Gill) Sunday night at 9 p.m. to tell him that were changing the Northside game plan because we are now playing Har-Ber,” Young said. “He stayed up until 4 in the morning (on Labor Day) working on a new game plan for Har-Ber. Unbelievable job by the defense and the defensive coaches. I’ve coached 21 years, and it’s the best effort I’ve seen. I’m so proud of them.”
Har-Ber coach Chris Wood said the early stops stunted his team’s momentum.
“We actually started off well, and we really moved the ball,” Wood said. “Greenwood made plays when they needed to. That is what they do. Then we had a couple of turnovers, and it got away from us. We sputtered offensively, and that is on me. I have to do a better job with our boys.”
Thanks to some clutch defense and Har-Ber miscues, Greenwood built a 27-0 halftime lead.
The Bulldogs had two fourth-down defensive stops, picked off two passes and the special teams recovered a fumble to help give the offense field position and momentum. In fact, the average starting drive for the Greenwood offense in the first half was midfield.
Quarterback LD Richmond finished the half 15-of 17 passing for 200 yards and a touchdown.
The Wildcats took the opening kickoff and march to the Bulldog 21, but Colin Daggett made a great open field tackle on Har-Ber receiver Ethan Fender for a one-yard loss on fourth-and-1.
Greenwood would score on its second possession, marching 45 yards in five plays. Richmond finished the drive keeping for a 3-yard touchdown with 3:39 left in the first quarter.
It was the second quarter, however, when Greenwood took full advantage of Har-Ber’s miscues.
Har-Ber went for a fourth-and-2 at the Greenwood 42 but was stopped a yard short. Two plays later, Richmond hit Luke Brewer for a 58-yard touchdown pass for a 14-0 lead with six minutes left in the first half.
On Har-Ber’s next possession, Hayden Wells picked off a Wildcat pass and returned it to the Har-Ber 16. Hunter Wilkinson scored from a yard out and it was 21-0 with 4:10 left in the second quarter.
The Wildcats then fumbled the kickoff and Greenwood Jayden Jansa recovered at the Wildcat 34. Six plays later, Wilkinson scored on a 2-yard touchdown run and in a five-minute span, The Bulldogs scored 20 points, and it was 27-0 at halftime.
“We made some plays in the first half,” Young said. “We slowed the game down in the second half to help out our defense.”
FOUR DOWNS
• After blowout losses in the 2008 and 2009 seasons, Greenwood gets its first win over Har-Ber.
• After losing three fumbles in last week’s win over Southside, the Greenwood special teams recovered a fumbled kickoff return that was converted into a touchdown.
• Richmond finished the game 22-of-26 passing for 254 yards and two touchdowns. Both touchdowns tosses were to Luke Brewer who finished with six catches for 84 yards.
• Next week: Greenwood hosts Oklahoma City Choctaw while Har-Ber has the week off before starting 7A-West conference play.
GREENWOOD 33, SPRINGDALE HAR-BER 0
Springdale Har-Ber (0-3) ....0 0 0 0 — 0 Greenwood (2-0) ..............7 20 6 0 — 33 First Quarter
GREEN — Richmond 3 run (Morales kick), 3:39.
Second Quarter
GREEN — Brewer 58 pass from Richmond (Morales kick), 6:01.
GREEN — Wilkinson 1 run (Morales kick), 4:10. GREEN — Wilkinson 2 run (kick blocked), 1:20.
Third Quarter
GREEN — Brewer 2 pass from Richmond (pass failed), 3:39.
This story was originally published at 7:44 a.m.