SPRINGDALE — Springdale High coach Shane Patrick had plenty of reasons to be optimistic following the first two weeks of the football season.
Any questions Patrick had about whether his defense could be physical were answered when the Bulldogs opened up with a pair of shutouts against Batesville and Tulsa (Okla.) Central.
Springdale also showed it could rely on its multidimensional running game to score points in bunches, winning its first two games by a 76-0 margin.
But running back Colton Greenwood sustained a concussion against Central that he never returned from, and the optimism the Bulldogs gained early in the season was erased with three straight losses in September.
“We were definitely disappointed with our overall win-loss total,” Patrick said. “The thing I was not disappointed with and that I do think is a step in the right direction is the fact that our kids never quit and they came every day to practice to work.
“Even when things weren't going well, there was never any finger pointing or blaming somebody else.”
Patrick has had a few weeks to look back on a season that ended with three straight losses and Springdale (4-6, 2-5 7A/6A-West Conference) failing to qualify for the Class 7A playoffs. While things didn't go as expected, Patrick said there were positives on both sides of the ball that give him hope for the future.
Running back Deandre Murray was certainly one of the bright spots, if not one of the more unlikely stories in the 7A/6A-West. The junior came out of nowhere in his first season at Springdale to rush for 1,443 yards and 17 touchdowns on 194 carries, averaging 7.4 yards per carry and 144.3 yards per game.
“I expected that because I know what I can do,” Murray said. “(But) I really should have done better than I did; that's what I think.”
Murray's emergence freed up Springdale quarterback Will Whatley to be used more as a dual threat who could help offset the loss of Greenwood in the running game. Whatley ranked second on the team in rushing with 115 carries for 455 yards and three touchdowns, but the Bulldogs' passing game struggled at times as the senior finished 76-for-145 for 971 yards with eight touchdowns and 10 interceptions.
“We were much better in the offensive line, which helped our running game tremendously,” Patrick said. “Our quarterback, I thought, really came and played much better this year and really cut down his turnover numbers from the year before and made a lot better decisions.”
Heading into the season, Patrick spoke at length about wanting to have an aggressive defense that flew to the ball and made plays. The Bulldogs saw that at times, getting a game-saving tackle by star safety Cua Rose to hold on for a 41-40 win over Van Buren on Oct. 12.
Rose led Springdale with 103 tackles, and twin brothers Jay and Clay Patrick combined for 11 sacks.
Shane Patrick said Springdale must spend the offseason developing more defensive linemen, along with finding a few more wide receivers and getting a new quarterback ready to replace Whatley.
“As a defense, we tackled much better this year. I mean, we still got some stuff to improve on,” Patrick said. “I thought we were much better in the secondary than we've been the last two years. I thought we came a long way.”
2012 Season
Springdale High Bulldogs
Date Opponent Time/Result
Aug. 31 Batesville W, 35-0
Sept. 7 Tulsa (Okla.) Central W, 41-0
Sept. 14 at Bixby, Okla. L, 22-7
Sept. 21 at Rogers High* L, 47-42
Sept. 28 Fayetteville* L, 27-11
Oct. 5 at Siloam Springs* W, 50-20
Oct. 12 Van Buren* W, 41-40
Oct. 19 at Rogers Heritage* L, 42-22
Oct. 26 Bentonville* L, 63-0
Nov. 2 at Springdale Har-Ber* L, 31-17
"*" denotes 7A/6A-West Conference games