SPRINGDALE — The Shiloh Christian defense spent plenty of time in front of TVs this week, studying the Bald Knob defense and looking for clues. The Saints evidently found many.
Shiloh forced five turnovers and allowed minus-2 rushing yards during a 48-7 victory Friday night in the Class 4A state semifinals in Champions Stadium. The defensive domination helped offset some early ineptitude by Shiloh’s offense.
“We just came out fired up,” junior defensive lineman Samuel Harvill said. “We had a great game plan, and we studied really hard. We got the film and knew what to expect from their offense. We knew what they’d do, and we shut them down all night. They didn’t have a chance against our defensive line.”
Bolstered by its aggressive front four, Shiloh’s defense acted quickly, forcing a turnover on the Bulldogs’ second play from scrimmage.
Junior quarterback Kiehl Frazier, playing defense, recovered Jordan Johnston’s fumble at the Bald Knob 23. The Saints (12-1) turned the ball back over three plays later, but senior linebacker Colt Thomas intercepted quarterback Nick Glaze on the first play of Bald Knob’s ensuing drive.
Thomas stepped in front of a Bulldogs receiver at the Bald Knob 10 and ran to the 2. Frazier fought his way into the end zone on Shiloh’s next play for the contest’s first points.
“Colt is a definite weapon for the defense,” Harvill said. “He’s a hard-nosed kid, an awesome linebacker, and he has a great instinct for the ball. He’s good at reading, and he’s got a lot of picks this year.”
Bald Knob (13-1) drove to the Shiloh 16 on its third series, but the Saints got the ball back after its defense made four straight stellar plays.
Senior linebacker Mitchell Roberts dropped a Bald Knob runner for a 2-yard loss. Junior linemen Jason Schisler and Troy Goss combined to sack Glaze. Thomas had a sack for an 8-yard loss on third down, and junior defensive back Zann Jones knocked down a pass on fourth down with 5 minutes, 44 seconds left in the first quarter.
Frazier threw two more interceptions in the first, but Shiloh answered again when junior Chase Richards pounced on a fumble. Senior running back Chris Bryant’s 9-yard run two plays later gave Shiloh a 13-0 lead.
“The turnovers were real important,” Harvill said. “Our offense wasn’t clicking all that well tonight. Thankfully our defense kept it together, just like last week against Nashville. We just played as hard as we could. Our defense played amazing.”
The defensive line especially.
All night long, Glaze scrambled out of the backfield from Harvill, Goss, Richards, Schisler, Roberts and senior defensive end Jake Scott. The Saints sacked Glaze five times and forced hurried throws on many of Glaze’s 42 pass attempts.
“The defense was definitely the key (Friday),” Shiloh coach Josh Floyd said. “We obviously felt like we could hold them coming in, and the defense really stepped up and played well.”