Arkansas Class 6A high school football team previews: Greenwood hoping to stay healthy, get back to state title game

SBLive is previewing the Arkansas high school football teams from the three largest classifications. Today, we feature the Greenwood Bulldogs from the 6A-West Conference. 

By Kyle Sutherland | Photo by Jimmy Jones 

GREENWOOD BULLDOGS

HEAD COACH

Chris Young, Third Season, 23-4

2021 AT A GLANCE

Overall Record: 9-4

Conference Record: 5-2, T-Second in 6A West

Playoffs: Def. Mountain Home 42-0; Def. Parkview 45-35; Lost to El Dorado in 6A state championship game

KEY DEPARTURES

DL Tyler Crossno

LB Parker Gill, all-state

LB Lui Honkala

LB Colt Owenby, all-state

DB Colin Daggett

PLAYERS TO WATCH

Senior QB Hunter Houston - Took over the starting position last season and despite missing time due to injury, threw for 3,000 yards and 26 touchdowns while completing 69% of his passes.

Freshman QB Kane Archer - Archer moves up to varsity as a highly touted freshman after throwing for over 2,000 yards on the junior high team in 2021.

Senior RB Jake Glover - Glover only played in five games due to a season-ending injury but still managed to rush for 480 yards and 5 touchdowns.

Senior RB Javon Williamson - Despite suffering a broken leg, Williamson was the team’s leading rusher with 676 yards and 8 touchdowns in nine games.

Senior WR Aiden Kennon - Kennon, a 2021 all-state selection, was asked to do a lot considering the amount of injuries on offense and he answered the call hauling in 67 passes for 1,091 yards and 10 touchdowns earning all-state honors.

Junior WR LJ Robins - Robins went down in the state championship game with an injury, but compiled 1,212 all-purpose yards and seven touchdowns.

Junior OL Ryan Shortes - Shortes took on a starting role as a sophomore and helped pave the way for the Bulldogs to rush for over 2,000 yards.

Senior LB Evan Williams - The heart of the defense returns at middle linebacker after finishing second on the team last season in tackles with 152 as well as 10 tackles for loss and 6 sacks.

Junior CB Landon Nelms - Nelms tied for third on the team with three interceptions in 2021 and brings the most experience to the outside of the defensive backfield.

Senior SS Storm Scherrey - Scherrey was one of the multiple Bulldogs who was doomed by a shoulder injury last season, but still managed 54 tackles in 7 games.

Junior FS Braden Skaggs - Skaggs returns for his second year starting in the defensive backfield after intercepting four passes as a sophomore.

OUTLOOK

Greenwood remains in the rugged 6A-West for the 2022-24 conference realignments and the league will be even tougher with the addition of private school powers Little Rock Christian and Pulaski Academy.

The Bulldogs are one of the state’s top consistent powerhouses and won the program’s tenth state championship, which is tied for fourth all-time for most in state history, during Young’s first season as head coach in 2020. They will start immediately against stiff competition traveling across state lines to Oklahoma to play Stillwater in the opening game of the season.

Despite being mauled by the injury bug last season the Bulldogs still made it back to what has become their second hometown of Little Rock, but fell in the state championship to a hot El Dorado squad.

Greenwood was still mostly impressive in the front half of 2021 considering all the adversity it faced going 5-2 and then really got rolling winning four of the last six games falling only to conference champion Benton and then El Dorado in the title game in that span.

With essentially everyone returning on offense, and most importantly healthy, along with the back end of the defense, the Bulldogs are ready to make a run for another title.

Houston was one of the many who dealt with nagging injuries, including being knocked out of the state championship game right before halftime. He will be backed up by the freshman phenom Archer, who when his career is all said and done will most likely be the most sought-after recruit since Mitch Mustain almost two decades ago. Archer already has offers from Arizona, Arkansas, Florida State, Hawaii, Michigan, Missouri, Ole Miss, and Texas A&M.

Houston will have a plethora of talented skill players around him in running backs Jake Glover and Javon Williamson, plus Kennon and Robins out wide. The offensive line will be led by returning senior starters Shortes and Webb.

The Bulldog defense did lose a key piece along the front line in Tyler Crossno, along with multiple linebackers, but with Evan Williams returning to secure the middle should ease that pain along with one of the more talented secondaries in Class 6A that includes Landon Nelms, Storm Scherrey, and Braden Skaggs.

COACH SAID

“We have five seniors who are returning starters coming back from pretty substantial injuries who will be major players for us this year. Jake Glover and Javon Williamson were both our leading rushers last year before suffering broken legs. Evan Williams is our returning starter at middle linebacker and Storm Scherrey at safety and both those guys had shoulder surgery in the off season and are finally getting healthy. Then you add quarterback Hunter Houston who also had shoulder surgery on his non-throwing shoulder in the off season and was recently released to start throwing. We have gone slow with all five of those guys this summer during camps, and they haven’t been happy with me holding them out. Those guys are ready to go, and we are looking forward to them leading our football program this year.”

-Chris Young