WHITE HALL -- A trophy is on the line between two longtime rivals, but that's probably the last thing White Hall football Coach Bobby Bolding is concerned about.
Bolding halted briefly from enveloping game passes in his athletic director's office when asked about the Battle of Highway 270 against Sheridan, which renews at 7 p.m. Friday at Bulldog Stadium.
"I just don't know that's a big rivalry game for the kids as it is for the older alumni," the third-year head Bulldog said. "It's a nonconference game. It's a great indicator to see where we're at, as a football team and what we need to do to continue. That's how I look at nonconference, and we want to come out of nonconference with a winning record. That's kind of the way we look at it."
Sheridan is trying to build upward momentum in its program under second-year Coach Larry McBroom, whose 226 victories in Oklahoma ranks 25th among winningest coaches in that state.
Despite a 2-9 record in 2020, the Yellowjackets made the 6A state playoffs, only to fall to eventual state finalist Lake Hamilton despite a third-quarter lead in the first round.
The Bulldogs hope Friday's game will be a start of a season that goes past the third round of the 5A playoffs, where they ended up with an 8-5 record each of the past two years. They lined up against another team Aug. 17 at Stuttgart, a scrimmage which Bolding said went fine.
"We got out healthy and saw what we needed to work on, which is the whole point of scrimmages," he said.
Bolding was then asked what he liked about it.
"It wasn't much I liked about it," he said. "We played physical, especially defensively."
White Hall returns seven starters in a senior-heavy multiple defense, including linebackers Rodrico Bowens and Grey Shaner, defensive end Savon Shelton and defensive back and wideout Braylon Johnson, but Bolding expects the unit to be heavily tested by an offense led by senior Konner Canterbury, a 1,000-yard passer in 2020.
"They're extremely well-coached, and they play hard," Bolding said. "They're really disciplined and they play really fast. They do some things offensively to test different people's techniques on the field, the ends and the tackles, the linebackers."
White Hall's offense, Bolding said, will have to earn every yard against the Yellowjackets' defense.
"They're not going to give up big plays, they're going to get to the ball, and their kids play as hard as anybody we will play all year," Bolding said.
The Bulldog offense is going into Friday with a young line and experienced playmakers including quarterback Matthew Martinez, running back Eric Pickens and wideouts Carsen Terrell, Jordan Jackson, Steven Weston and Caleb Taylor.
"We want to get better from what we did at the scrimmage," Bolding said. "We did everything in our offensive playbook. Obviously, we're going to narrow it down to what we feel like we're better at than what we did in the scrimmage to give our kids a chance to be successful. We've really got to do a good job of matching [Sheridan's] intensity, and we've got to be as disciplined as they are. If we do those things and we don't turn the ball over, we're going to have a chance to win the ballgame in the fourth quarter."
GAMEDAY INFO
White Hall schools Superintendent Doug Dorris announced Tuesday a shuttle will run Friday evening from First Baptist Church White Hall to Bulldog Stadium to transport fans due to ongoing construction at the high school campus. The shuttle will run from 6-6:45 p.m., and restart from Bulldog Stadium at 9:30 p.m., Dorris said.
There are no seating limitations at Bulldog Stadium related to covid-19. Face masks are requested but not required.
Jefferson County high school
football games this week
(All games are nonconference and start at 7 p.m. Friday)
• Watson Chapel at Pine Bluff
• Helena-West Helena Central at Dollarway
• Sheridan at White Hall