White Hall aims to rally in game against Warren

Last week’s season opener got away from White Hall; Coach Daryl Patton said the Bulldogs were only a few plays away from a different game.

“We overthrew five receivers,” Patton said. “With three plays, if we catch the ball, if we make a little bit better pass and catch a ball, that could be 21 points. Defensively, we had three plays we thought, possibly, we could have intercepted the ball or created the turnover, and we didn’t make it happen. They made the plays. We didn’t, but we were that close.”

Patton said his team will need to make more of those plays on Friday when White Hall hosts Warren at 7 p.m. at Bulldog Stadium.

Both teams are coming off season-opening home losses. White Hall (0-1) lost 58-28 to Sheridan, while Warren (0-1) dropped a 57-32 contest to Greenbrier. The Bulldogs, both last week against Sheridan and in their scrimmage against Stuttgart, scored on their opening drive but couldn’t keep the offense going afterward. Patton said White Hall needs to get the run game going to support the passing offense.

“We’ve relied too much on the passing game,” Patton said. “Even though that could be the strength of our football team, we gotta run the ball some. I think that’s one thing that we can do, and if we run the ball a little bit better, then I think you’ll see some more sustained and better drives.”

White Hall threw 39 passes against Sheridan while rushing eight times, with one of those carries being a sack.The Lumberjacks will present White Hall with another big test in what will be the Bulldogs’ final home game until Oct. 10. Warren has won each of the past three meetings with White Hall, with the last Bulldog win coming in 2021. The next two games were narrow Lumberjack victories, but Warren won convincingly last year, 46-14.

Last year’s game, like this year’s, followed a Warren loss to Greenbrier. The Lumberjacks bounced back from that loss to finish 10-3 with a Conference 4A-8 championship and a trip to the third round of the playoffs. Patton said this Warren team is as good as fans have come to expect from Coach Bo Hembree.

“They don’t have quite the big outside receivers that they’ve had in the past, but I think they’re faster,” Patton said. “They got their quarterback back from an injury, and he looked really good last week, threw for I think 400 yards. Skill-wise, they’re as good as anybody we’re going to see all year. Offensive line, defensive line, they’re still very talented. Maybe not as big as they have been, but they’re still very talented.”

Patton referenced Warren junior Jackson Denton, who started every game at quarterback for the Lumberjacks as a freshman in 2023 before suffering a season-ending injury in last year’s opener.

White Hall allowed 457 passing yards and five passing touchdowns last week and will need to stiffen up against Denton if the Bulldogs are to keep up with Warren.