Brannon King

For the FCT

The Phil Campbell Bobcats traveled to Sheffield searching for their first win of the season, but didn’t find it Friday night.

The Sheffield Bulldogs, behind a strong running attack, won the 2A Region 8 battle 45-0 at Walton R. Wright Stadium.

The effort was there for the Bobcats (0-3, 0-2 Region 8) but the team struggled on both offense and defense.

The game started off well for the Phil Campbell defense as they held the Bulldogs scoreless in the first quarter.

Phil Campbell’s first drive of the game featured a good mix of run and pass. Quarterback Tristan Godsey found Nick Smith for a 15-yard pass play. Then after a couple of running plays, Godsey’s pass on third down was picked off by Aaron Pride of the Bulldogs.

Sheffield held the ball on their first possession for 10 plays and made their way deep into Phil Campbell territory but were hampered by penalties including an illegal shift on a potential touchdown pass. On fourth and goal from the Phil Campbell 2-yard-line, the Bulldogs fumbled and Zack Winsted recovered for the Bobcats.

The Bulldogs got tings going in the second quarter. On the first play, Aaron Pride took a handoff and went 15-yards for the game’s first score.  Donavon Goodwin’s extra point was good and the Bulldogs never looked back.

The Bobcats’ next drive featured a 14-yard run by Colby Baker and a 18-yard Casey Galloway reception from Godsey. The drive couldn’t produce points as a fourth down pass fell incomplete turning the ball back over to Sheffield.

It didn’t take long for the Bulldogs to find the endzone again. Drake Beavers hit Hikeem Haley on a 64-yard touchdown pass.  The extra point failed and Sheffield led 13-0.

Sheffield employed a short kickoff strategy the entire game and it payed off as Terrance Adams ended up with the ball and the Bulldogs had possession again. Pride raced 35 yards shortly after for his second touchdown of the night. The point after kick hit the post and Sheffield led 19-0.

Turnovers continued to plague the Bobcats as Tariq Garner intercepted Phil Campbell and set up another scoring opportunity.  Charles Conaser found the endzone this time from 2 yards out. The try for two was no good and Sheffield led 25-0.

On the second play of the next Phil Campbell drive, the turnover bug bit again. The snap was fumbled but recovered by the quarterback but the play didn’t end there. Godsey then was able to get off a pass but Malik Smith intercepted it and took it in for a score. The Bulldogs wanted more and got it as Aaron Pride ran in for two giving Sheffield a 33-0 lead at the half.

Phil Campbell never gave up and the second half got off to a good start for the Bobcats as Casey Galloway picked up a Sheffield fumble on the kickoff.

Another Bobcat pass was intercepted by Malik Smith and Sheffield was in business again. Terrance Adams converted the turnover into points with a 31-yard run and Sheffield led 39-0.

The next drive for Phil Campbell ended in disappointment due to a fumble this time. Sheffield’s Willie King came up with the recovery for the Bulldogs after Casey Galloway lost the ball.

The final scoring play of the night came when Sheffield’s Chandler Evans connected with Charles Conaser for a 27-yard touchdown pass making the final score 45-0 giving the Bulldogs their first win of the season.

Phil Campbell coach Ryan Swinney knows where his team needs to improve moving forward.

“We’ve still gotta work on us. We make too many mistakes. Putting the ball on the ground, throwing some interceptions where the ball should have never been thrown, things like that.”

Next up for Phil Campbell will be county rival Red Bay as the Bobcats host the Tigers in week four.