Photo courtesy, Andrew McCulloch
You don’t have to do anything different in big games. The environment around you changes, but the game doesn’t, is what coach BJ Gotte preaches to his kids.
The contest, billed as the stiffest test of the season, turned into a blowout. It’s defense took center stage while Katy Paetow’s offense steam rolled the Hurricanes, 55-7 in District 10-5A on Thursday night at Rhodes Stadium.
It’s fair to say, Katy Paetow (8-0) had its way with the Hurricanes. But the experts predicted a battle. Instead, the Panthers defense turned heads all evening with a host of standout plays and players, including nose guard Sultan Bakare, linebackers Alex Kilgore, Daymion Sanford, Tyler Silves, and sophomore defensive lineman Logan Thomas. The crew forced two turnovers, had a hand in nine sacks, and 17 stops behind the line of scrimmage.
“We hold ourselves to a high level week in and week out in practice, and we didn’t need to do anything different if we just kept practicing hard and working hard for each other,” Panthers’ coach BJ Gotte explained. “We felt like we had a chance to be competitive and I’m proud of how they came out and played clean football in all three phases.”
Panthers’ linebackers plugged the gaps and its defensive line rushed from its position to create havoc confusing Hightower’s offense.
Quarterback C.J. Dumas led the Panthers on 11-of-17, passing for 230 yards, four touchdowns and one interception. Back field battery mate Damyrion Phillips rushed for 153 yards, scored three touchdowns. He added 52 yards on two receptions and a score. Kole Wilson caught two passes for 85 yards and a score and tight end Josh Prieto snagged four for 68 yards and two touchdowns.
Much of the Panthers’ success started with its offensive line, which handled Hightower’s defensive line throughout the evening.
After Hurricanes’ sophomore quarterback Kendron Penson Jr’s 47-yard pass to receiver Kaleb Johnson at the 49 yard line, Sanford and Silves jump ignited the Panthers defense with two early sacks of Penson, Jr. to force a fourth down and 27.
“It’s truly a blessing to have the number one ranked defense on our side,” Panthers’ quarterback Dumas said. “Like how we stopped Caleb Douglas, who is a great player, but we held him. They have a really explosive offense. If we have a turnover, they’re going to go back and get the ball for us.”
Katy Paetow took its first possession on its 25 and scored on its first three frames to build a 21-0 lead.
Under the guidance of senior quarterback Dumas, running back Phillips took a pair of handoffs to the 30 to keep the Hurricanes defense honest. Then Dumas hooked up with Prieto twice to gain Hightower’s 33. Phillips finished the drive when he found an opening and raced 33-yards to the end zone to give the Panthers a 7-0 lead following Nicolas Lira’s kick with 7:00 minutes left in the first quarter.
“I told the kids you’ve earned the right to play in this game,” Gotte said. “You have to do things to make games like this exciting and they have. Let’s embrace it, enjoy it and build on it.”
Panthers’ offense piled up 507 yards of offense while Hightower mustered 205.
Hightower (6-2) put forth its best effort, but the Panthers’ relentless defensive pressure watched Bakare, and Thomas stuff the run and limited yards through the air. In addition, Katy Paetow held Hightower to minus 21 yards after one quarter.
“Obviously you can’t simulate this in practice or the offseason, but you try,” Gotte mentioned. “That’s what we’ve done and our kids have responded well. It starts with them buying in and they have.”
On Katy Paetow’s next possession, Dumas used his arm to spot speedy receiver Wilson over the middle. Wilson climbed the ladder to make a phenomenal grab and once he found his footing, a race to the end zone ended 82 yards later. The Panthers led, 14-0 with Anthony Fuentes’ extra point kick.
“They had a great game plan,” Hurricanes’ coach Cornelius Anthony said. “Everything they did, we went over it. We coached it. We just didn’t execute but hats off to Katy Paetow. They did what they do. They executed. They played mistake free football.”
Hightower would see no changes on offense as the Panthers continued its offensive assault, scoring two more touchdowns before intermission to increase its lead, 28-0.
The second half mirrored the first. The Hurricanes forced a fumble on the opening kickoff of the third quarter at the Katy Paetow 21 yard line. However, Hightower’s kicker Armando Ventura’s 36-yard field goal attempt shifted left after USC commit Caleb Douglas made an incredible one-handed catch which was ruled just outside of the end zone.
“We had a bad week in practice and we took them lightly,” says Hightower’s standout receiver Caleb Douglas. “They are a great team. We came out here and under estimated them. They got on us real quick. They had the better end of the stick.”
A series later and trailing 34-0, the Hurricanes marched 70 yards in five plays, capped on Penson, Jr’s 44-yard scoring toss to Johnson with five minutes left in the third quarter.
Katy Paetow scored four times in the second half. Twice in the third and twice in the fourth quarter to round out the game’s final, 55-7.
“They’re gap sound, they’re technically sound and that’s who’s going to win the game,” Anthony said. “When you are a talented team and do everything right, you are going to win. They’re not going to beat themselves.”
The Panthers will meet Manvel, last season’s district winner, next week. Hightower will face Milby next weekend.
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