By RayJaun Stelly, The Seattle Medium
With their second home game of the year at Memorial Stadium delayed due to weather conditions, the Garfield Bulldogs, coming off an impressive 42-2 win last week against Lake City, faced Davis High School, a 4A opponent from Yakima, Saturday afternoon.
Both teams established their defense’s ability to stop one another from gaining significant momentum early in the game. Despite scoring the games’ first touchdown Garfield struggled early to find a rhythm offensively, due to dropped passes and bad snaps.
The Bulldogs’ defense rose to the occasion each time Davis possessed the ball, forcing four punts in the first half, recording three sacks, and causing a missed field goal attempt.
Leading 7-0 at halftime and receiving the ball to start the third quarter Garfield’s offense had all the momentum. The Bulldogs would go on to put up 37 points in the quarter, as running backs Reon Hampton and Jimmy Miller scored all but one touchdown in the frame.
While some of his players may have had great individual games, Garfield Head Football Coach Reggie Witherspoon, Jr, says that the Bulldogs’ success running the ball was a direct result of execution and everyone understanding their roles and assignments.
“[We were successful because we had] everyone doing their job upfront and my backs understanding and learning how to read defenses,” said Witherspoon. “More importantly having a dominant mentality when running the ball, we can’t be stopped is our mindset.”
As a result, Davis’ defense had no answer for Garfield’s rushing attack, Hampton had 15 carries for 140 yards and three touchdowns and Miller complimented him with seven carries for 115 yards and two touchdowns. Their momentum offensively became contagious because the Bulldogs’ defense was outstanding in all aspects.
In the second half, Garfield’s defense didn’t allow a pass completion, forced consistent penalties, and the special team’s unit recovered a fumble and made it impossible for Davis to have a decent kick or punt return.
Garfield quarterback E.J. Caminong threw the games’ only touchdown pass, and teammate Jacolby Cochran scored the game’s final touchdown going 79-yards as the Bulldogs’ remained undefeated a 58-0 win over Davis.
So far this season, the Bulldogs’ have allowed a combined total of 10 points between all of their opponents. Although it’s still early in the season, Witherspoon says that the team’s hard work in practice is paying off.
“[We have] everyone understanding their role in this defense and [realizing] the importance of reading keys and playing your fit,” said Witherspoon. “We drill this over and over again at practice.”
The Bulldogs (3-0) will now face Ballard in their first Metro League contest this Friday at Memorial Stadium for senior night.
