It might have been just a scrimmage, but Quitman fans were excited to see the Bulldogs make it into the end zone on three different occasions. Trey Berry, Josh Medlin and Ty Holland each took a turn at the quarterback position. All three of the quarterbacks gained valuable rushing yardage during the contest.

Berry showed his explosiveness scoring once on a long run and then took a short pass and turned it into to a big play for another score for Quitman. On the varsity’s second offensive possession, Medlin had runs of 25 and 23 yards setting up a Berry 22 yard run for a score.

The Hawks got on the board quickly on their first possession when their big running back, 6’1” 225 pound J.D. McGowan busted up the middle for a 70 yard run to score on the Hawks first offensive play. McGowan broke another run later in the scrimmage, but was hauled down by Berry from behind preventing a score.

Quitman Head Coach Bryan Oakes said he saw some good things and some areas where there is work to be done.

“We started slow, giving up the first big run on defense, but we picked it up. We finished a lot better than we started, but I’m going to take that as a positive,” Oakes observed. “I was pleased to see how we hung in there and did not let a big play ruin the whole scrimmage. In the past I’m not so sure we would have handled adversity as well as we did Thursday.”

Oakes was pleased with the quarterback play. “I thought our quarterbacks did a good job. We did a lot better moving the ball north and south on the ground. Medlin showed a lot of poise and leadership and Berry was able to pick up a lot of yardage. The offensive line got better as the scrimmage moved along. We also were able to turn short yardage plays into bigger plays. We played with a lot more confidence and that is what we need to see from these young men.”

Oakes thought the defense got better as the night progressed. “We took a shot early. They punched us pretty good, but I was proud of the way we came back and held our own. We did not get pushed around this time. We fought back and it was good to see that kind of spirit coming from our kids,” Oakes noted. “I thought Bryan Morris stepped it up at linebacker. He’s only a sophomore but he played like a veteran. Playing tough defense is going to be a big key for us this year.”

The Bulldogs will get a stern test this Thursday when they travel to Como-Pickton for another scrimmage. The Eagles handled Winnsboro in their scrimmage Friday evening with a reported 3-1 scoring advantage.