ENTERPRISE — There was no love lost between the two teams that took the field Thursday Night at Enterprise High School.

Hard hitting and several personal fouls from both squads made for a chippy contest, but it was ultimately Enterprise that was able to run the ball down the field and into the end zone to grind out a 35-0 win over Clarkdale for its second straight shut out to remain undefeated on the season. 

“It’s a rivalry game, they’re going to play hard, and we’re going to play hard,” Enterprise head coach Kelly Jimmerson said. “Clarkdale played us really well. They played with a lot of heart, a lot of emotion. At the end of the day, we had a little more than they did.”

After Ridge Kidd ran in a 5-yard touchdown on Enterprise’s first possession of the game, an extra bump by a Clarkdale defender drew a penalty. After a Clarkdale punt, a 15-yard run by quarterback Derryon Gray was met with pushing and shoving and led to offsetting personal fouls. Offsetting personal fouls occurred again in the second quarter.

Clarkdale moved the ball to as far as the 12-yard line, but a fourth-and-1 run by Gavin Mofett was met by a handful of Enterprise tacklers to force a turnover on downs. Enterprise then moved the ball down the field in the opposite direction, where Gray kept a snap and sprinted 16 yards into the end zone after completing a 36-yard pass to Kidd. 

After leading 14-0 at the half, Enterprise came out in the third quarter and executed a 15-play, 72-yard drive that was capped off by 20-yard touchdown run by John Campbell on third and 19. Enterprise converted on three third downs on the drive to earn the score and take a 20-0 lead. 

Clarkale had its moments of brilliance, like when Kodee Connor hit Landon Conklin on a 10-yard halfback sweep pass to get a first down, and when quarterback Cal Culpepper connected with Cade Hopkins on completed passes of 14 and 17 yards, but three second-half fumbles, two on kickoff returns, and a struggling run game kept the team from putting up points.

“I thought we played really well defensively for three and a half quarters. We have to learn how to finish games, but our kids are getting better, they’re playing hard,” Clarkdale head coach Jason Soules said. “I’m excited about our future; we’re coming and we’re not backing down from anybody. I like where we are, but I really love where we can be.”

After recovering a Clarkdale fumble in the fourth quarter, Kristian Milsap ran for a 34-yard touchdown to put Enterprise up by 28. Gray added a 43-yard touchdown, his second of the game, in the final minutes after Clarkdale fumbled a kickoff return. 

Gray finished 3-for-8 passing for 37 yards, and ran for 70 yards on six attempts. Many of Gray’s passes were overthrown or dropped by receivers, and it’s an area Jimmerson said needs to improve as the season progresses.  

“We’ve just got to work on it every day in practice,” Gray said. “Us not doing well in catching this week showed with us not completing passes in the game.”

Clarkdale (2-3) picked up 112 yards of offense, and was held to 36 in the second half. Culpepper went 5-for-14 passing for 39 yards and Conner ran for 39 yards on nine carries. Conklin caught four passes for 34 yards.  

“We have played pretty much turnover-free ball the entire season, and to (commit) two late in the game kind of taints what was really a 20-0 football game,” Soules said. “We’ve got to focus on us, the thing to do is to get to practice on Monday, focus on a new opponent and try and go get a win next Friday.”

Enterprise (5-0) earned 423 total yards of offense. Milsap had 144 yards on the ground, 102 in the second half, on 14 carries and a fumble, and Campbell added 68 yards on seven carries.  

“You can’t be subtle; we’re 5-0, but the last two have been ugly,” Jimmerson said. “When we get into that division we’re in, you’ve got to line up perfect every time. You can’t jump offsides on offense. There’s just so much you’ve got to do, and you’ve got to do it perfectly to be able to compete.”

Enterprise has a bye next Friday, while Clarkdale will take on Enterprise-Lincoln (1-4) on the road.