Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette
WOLVES LOOK to take down Bulldogs this time.
The top two teams in the 6A-West Conference played in a state championship game preview almost a month ago.
Greenwood won 38-28 at Lake Hamilton on Nov. 6 at Wolf Stadium in Pearcy to win the 6A-West Conference championship.
Tonight, Greenwood (13-0) and Lake Hamilton (11-1) face each other again. This time, they’ll be playing for the Class 6A state championship at War Memorial Stadium in Little Rock.
Kickoff is scheduled for 6:40 p.m. with the game televised by Arkansas PBS.
In the first meeting, which came in the last week of the regular season, Greenwood recovered two fumbles in the final three minutes. The Bulldogs returned one for a touchdown to extend their lead to 38-28 with less than 30 seconds remaining.
Lake Hamilton Coach Tommy Gilleran said the Wolves have played better since that loss. The Wolves are hoping they can outlast the Bulldogs in the rematch.
“We have to cut out the turnovers,” Gilleran said. “We got down to their 20, then we fumbled.”
Greenwood senior running back Hunter Wilkinson had 203 yards and 2 touchdowns on 20 carries in the first game against Lake Hamilton. Wilkinson leads the Bulldogs with 1,488 yards and 23 touchdowns this season.
“Whew, he’s a doozy,” Gilleran said. “He’s the main person to stop. We’ll have our hands full.”
First-year starting quarterback L.D. Richmond, a senior, has thrown 28 touchdown passes to help give the Bulldogs balance on offense.
For Lake Hamilton, it’s been a run-first operation.
Juniors Tevin Woodley (1,893 yards) and Owen Miller (1,723 yards) have each scored 21 touchdowns for the Wolves. Woodley had 195 yards and a touchdown against Greenwood in the first game.
Coach Chris Young said the Bulldogs’ defense has to be better against the Wolves’ running game tonight.
“They do a great job of running the football,” Young said. “We have to make plays.”
Special teams, Young said, could be important against the Wolves. The Bulldogs recovered an onside kick in the third quarter in the previous meeting, which led to Wilkinson’s 3-yard run that gave Greenwood a 28-17 lead with 23 seconds left in the quarter. That score proved to be big, as the Bulldogs were able to hold off the Wolves down the stretch.
“Special teams are going to be huge,” Young said. “We got an onside kick, and it made an impact.”
Greenwood has won two of the past three Class 6A state championships (2017, 2018) and is looking to win its 10th title overall. Former coach Rick Jones won eight titles in his tenure at Greenwood from 2004-19 before resigning in February to take a senior analyst position at Missouri. Young was promoted from offensive coordinator to head coach less than a week after Jones’ resignation.
The Wolves are searching for their third state title overall and first since 2008. Lake Hamilton hired Gilleran in 2017 from Fountain Lake to replace Jeremy Reed, who was at the school for one season after he took over for longtime coach Jerry Clay, who led the Wolves to state titles in 1992 and 2008.
Gilleran said the Wolves respect the Bulldogs but are ready for the challenge of facing them on the state’s biggest stage.
“That’s a great football team,” Gilleran said. “Coach Jones built a great tradition. Coach Young has kept it in good hands. They’re the gold standard.
“We hope to be on that level.”