‘Doing your job’ pays off big for Dawgs vs. Bradley
BEARDEN — The formula for a Bearden victory against 6-0 Bradley Central seemed almost too simple: do your job and cut down on mistakes.
For the game’s first 24 minutes, Josh Jones’ Bulldogs weren’t following the script during this huge Region 2-6A showdown at BHS’s Bill Young Field Friday evening, Sept. 30.
But the script was executed quite well in the second half, as Bearden held a strong Bears offense scoreless, moved the ball effectively both on the ground and through the air, and came away with a huge 21-7 victory.
“We felt like in the first half we didn’t play very well,” said Jones, BHS first-year head coach, whose team improved to 5-2 overall, 2-1 in region. “We made a lot of mistakes … nine penalties in the first half.
“I told the kids at halftime, ‘If we just fix us, we’ll win this ballgame.’ … We cut down on foolish mistakes,” he added.
“We talked about ‘doing your job, not your neighbor’s job.’ ... then individually and collectively we’ll be fine.”
Bearden opened the game with a 63-yard, eight-play TD drive, ending with sophomore quarterback Drew Parrott’s 5-yard scoring run. Other key plays were catches of 13 yards by senior Ethan Ford and 20 by junior Sam Tummins.
As for passing, “They were playing so far off of us, we talked about just throwing it in front of them and making them tackle us,” he said.
About Parrott, “I though he did some good stuff tonight,” Jones said. “And our receivers made plays when they got the opportunities.”
After giving up a game-tying 82-yard drive on Bradley Central’s first possession, the Dawgs’ “D” pitched a shutout.
“Our defense, I’d put them up against anybody,” Jones said, adding that after the tying touchdown, “They came to the sideline and re-grouped.”
Overall, the Bearden defense “played really, really well against a good offense,” the BHS head coach said.
“I think our defense really just came together late in the (first) half,” said Kai Young, BHS junior defensive back who grabbed an interception. “We had a rough start, but later on in the game we got it going, and their offense just didn’t have an answer for our defense.”
Top individual Dawgs on the stop side included “Sam Nicaud, senior linebacker; Eric Lyttle; I thought Knockia Wynter, our senior defensive lineman, made a couple of plays tonight,” Jones said. “The secondary was good.”
Tummins, also a defensive back, essentially ended Bradley’s final hope for a rally with an interception after the Bears used a short punt and a 15-yard penalty to land on the BHS 9.
Jones was especially pleased with his offensive line. “They really stepped up; I thought we won the battle at the line of scrimmage both ways tonight,” the coach said about left tackle Owen Johnson, left guard Brendon Releford, center Isaiah Harvey, right guard Lucas Epperson and right tackle Owen Matthews.
“We’ve all developed as an offensive line, and I think we just recently came together; we’re really working on getting that good push off the ball,” Johnson, a senior, said.
About his three top running backs — senior Presean Brown, sophomore Kai Ironside and freshman Jayzon Thompson — Jones said, “I thought they were great. … They all bring something different. They’ve all got their strengths that they bring to the table. And coach Penny Smith does a great job rotating those guys.
“We were able to run the football when we had to run the football,” the coach added.
Brown said his offensive line “opened it up. ... Studs everywhere on the field.”
In the third quarter, Parrott found Tummins on a 12-yard touchdown pass, coming on third-and-goal, putting Bearden ahead 14-7 at the 5:08 mark. Other key plays included a 16-yard catch by Tummins.
After a key motion penalty was followed by a unsportmanlike penalty, setting the Bears deep in their own territory, Bearden took advantage of great field position to go up 14.
Traveling 59 yards, the Dawgs scored on Brown’s 4-yard run with 9:59 left in the game. Other key plays included Thompson’s 29-yard catch.
The Bulldogs (5-2 overall) move into a four-way tie for the Region 2-6A top spot at 2-1 after Cleveland’s shocking home win against powerhouse Maryville, 28-24, last Friday. The Bears, Red Rebels and Farragut also are 2-1 in region.
Bearden has this Friday off before traveling to Cleveland versus the suddenly surprising Blue Raiders Friday, Oct. 14.
