By Clay County High School Football Coach Jason Nichols
The 2016, CCHS Panther football season finally got underway Friday when the Pirates of Fayetteville came to town. The Panthers invited the entire community out to watch the action. The fans were able to enjoy the action for free as CCHS wanted to give back to the community that had been impacted by the recent flooding.
The crowd was amazing, and many fans found standing room only to watch the game. ESPN sent camera crews out to catch the action and to continue their story of the Panthers season. ESPN plans to air a documentary of the flooding and the Panthers on either Sports Center or the college football pregame show on September 5.
Clay High also showed our appreciation the owners of Gardner’s Dry Cleaners. Rick and Kathy Leach volunteered to clean the CCHS uniforms after they were all but destroyed in the flood waters. CCHS honored the Leach family by presenting them with a dozen blue and gold roses and a signed Panther jersey.
As far as the action was concerned, Clay fell behind early as Fayetteville scored an early TD on a 63 yard pass. The defense settled in and the first quarter ended with FHS leading 7-0. The game turned into a defensive battle until late in the first half. After the Panther offense passed midfield and looked to be in scoring position, the Pirates picked off a pass and returned it into CCHS territory. Fayetteville then connected on a 3rd and 16 for the TD and took a 14-0 halftime lead.
CCHS came out the second half and seemed to be gaining some momentum until another turnover gave Fayetteville the ball in good field position. Clay just couldn’t get anything going and Fayetteville added two TDs in the fourth quarter to take the 28-0 win.
CCHS were led by Captains Ian Smith, Ryan Stewart and Reece Nichols. Smith and Stewart each had QB sacks and anchored the Panther running game. Nichols graded out with the highest percentage in the secondary. Luke Burnette intercepted a FHS pass, and Austin Rose led all CCHS runners with 43 yards on nine carries.
Clay falls to 0-1 and looks to rebound Friday at Braxton County. Braxton picked up an impressive 36-27 win over a ranked Lincoln High team. Braxton County returns many key players from last year’s squad and expects to be playoff contenders this season. The Panthers will need to get some wrinkles ironed out this week in practice. Please, come out Friday to Flatwoods for the 7:30 p.m. kickoff.