After a couple of weeks facing each other every day in practice, the Quitman Bulldogs got to smash bodies against an opponent, the Quinlan Boles Hornets last Friday night at Bud Moody Stadium.

After a slow start in the first few offensive plays, the Bulldogs went on a long scoring march topped off by a five-yard scoring run by Ty Holland. The first drive was highlighted by a 55-yard scamper by Wyatt Hightower. Hightower took a hand-off from Gavin Oakes and blasted through a hole opened by the Bulldog line. The Bulldogs added a 70-yard pass from Gavin Oakes to Ford Tannebaum for another score early in the scrimmage.

Quitman ran the ball well the entire scrimmage, and the defense held Boles passing and running attack to less than 100 yards.

The Bulldog defense did a nice job holding their own against the Hornets. The Bulldogs are short on depth this year, and most of the players will see action on both sides of the ball.

“It’s going to be tough because of our numbers, but this group is dedicated and we will be ready when district begins,” Head Coach/Athletic Director Bryan Oakes said.

Quitman played with a spirit and togetherness that was on display during the entire scrimmage.

“Our biggest problem will be depth. We can’t afford to lose anybody to injury,” Oakes said. “One thing I was proud of is these guys bounce back from adversity and they don’t get down. We have some diversity on offense and that will help us.”

Juniors Hightower and Oakes proved they can run the football behind a veteran line. There are seven seniors on the team who have been with the program since junior high, and Oakes is counting on them for leadership. Three of those seniors, Jonathan Lacy, Hunter Batchelder and Christian “C.J.” James, along with Gavin Hammick and Justin Matthews, lead the way on the offensive line. The juniors and select sophomores from last year’s successful JV team will try to repeat that success at the varsity level this year. 

This team is strongly dedicated to erasing the losing cloud that has dogged them from the past years and turn the football program around.

“Our kids have done a good job of coming together as a team. These guys have been through a lot and they are close. They are dedicated to working hard and they are hungry to win,” Oakes added.

Things don’t get easier. The Bulldogs face Class 3A Division I Bonham Friday night at Bud Moody with a 7 p.m. kick-off. The Purple Warriors will have the numbers with seven offensive and eight defensive starters returning from a team that went 1-9 last year. The Bulldogs were scheduled to play at Cumby, but that game was canceled due to COVID-19 problems at Cumby.