Bulldogs Run Wild On Batesville

STAFF PHOTO SAMANTHA BAKER -- Springdale HIgh School's Deandre Murray runs the ball downfield Friday, Aug. 31, 2012 during the game against the Pioneers of Batesville High School for the season opener football game at Bulldog Stadium.
STAFF PHOTO SAMANTHA BAKER -- Springdale HIgh School's Deandre Murray runs the ball downfield Friday, Aug. 31, 2012 during the game against the Pioneers of Batesville High School for the season opener football game at Bulldog Stadium.

— Deandre Murray took the handoff, made several defenders miss, then broke a few tackles near the end zone.

With Murray’s 47-yard touchdown run in the first quarter, Springdale High showed in Friday’s season opener against Batesville that its Spread offense has transformed into more of a ground-and-pound attack.

The Bulldogs relied on their revamped running game early and often, with quarterback Will Whatley doing more damage with his feet than his arm in a 35-0 win over the Pioneers in Jarrell Williams Bulldog Stadium.

Gamebreaker

Springdale High 35, Batesville 0

Why The Bulldogs Won

Deandre Murray had a breakout night, and Springdale took advantage of its dominant running game — which included quarterback Will Whatley — and a solid defensive performance to cruise to the win.

Why The Pioneers Lost

Batesville could never get into an offensive rhythm, and the Pioneers were unable to mount a comeback after falling behind 21-0 at halftime.

“That’s what was going for us. Our power game was going early in the game,” Springdale coach Shane Patrick said. “Deandre kind of electrified some people, and then on our speed sweep game, they were really respecting Deandre, which I would, too, because of what kind of back he is.”

Patrick said during preseason camp that he wanted Whatley to become more of a willing runner, and the quarterback proved that during a first half in which Springdale (1-0) jumped out to a 21-0 lead on Batesville (0-1).

Whatley had more carries (10) than pass attempts (4) in the first half, and his rushing touchdowns of 5 and 14 yards, respectively, allowed the Bulldogs to turn a 7-0 lead in the first quarter into a 21-point halftime lead.

The senior had 14 rushes for 84 yards and a pair of touchdowns in the first half, finishing with 83 yards on 12 carries. He completed only 6 of 9 passes for 84 yards, but it was more than offense on a rainy night.

Especially with Springdale’s new 3-4 defense shutting down Batesville.

“I’m old school. Everything starts with the offensive line; I don’t care who you have in the backfield,” Batesville coach Dave King said. “And what I saw was a good offensive line. I thought those kids did a good job up front.”

Murray rushed for 64 yards on 11 carries, and fellow Springdale tailback Colton Greenwood added 43 yards on 11 carries and scored the final touchdown on a 3-yard run with 3 minutes, 7 seconds remaining.

But it was mostly a breakout night for Murray.

The junior fielded a punt at Springdale’s 9-yard line, then made a few more defenders miss on his way to a 91-yard punt return that extended the Bulldogs’ lead to 28-0 with 11:37 remaining.

“He’s a pretty special guy,” Patrick said. “I’m not going to put him in the category with Joe Adams yet, but that was pretty close. There was good blocking, but he made an awful lot of people miss right there.”

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