In Kermit Buggs’ debut as coach, the King’s Fork football team picked up a 24-7 win at Smithfield.

“It felt great getting that win out there,” Buggs said. “There are things we need to clean up. We had too many penalties, but we felt good.”

Going into the game, the Bulldogs weren’t quite sure what Smithfield was going to throw at them defensively. However, after making adjustments, the Bulldogs started to make thing happen. Leonta Johnson had a solid game at quarterback and Kahari Rodgers made plays for the Bulldogs. Defensively, Bravion Campbell, Notouris Knight and Loyd Favors all had strong showings.

“I’m really excited about how the kids’ effort was, and that’s something we want to improve on,” Buggs said. “The ability to play together as a team is what you want to see.”

King’s Fork will have a bye week this week before a Sept. 13 game against defending Southeastern District champions Indian River, which lost its opener 24-20 to Northeastern of N.C.