By Allen Hamrick
It’s early in the 2023 football season, but the Clay County Panthers are out using the little time they have through the summer to play some 7 on 7. The scene was Richwood High School, six teams took part in the 7 on 7 – Clay, Bath of Virginia, Buffalo, Richwood, Sherman and Pocahontas were all in attendance. Offense and defense from each team went head to head to see what they might have to work on as well as to get the cob webs out of their system. There was a monsoon early in the event with the promised rain nearly washing the matches out. It is football, however, and the CCP (Clay County
Panthers) get the job done rain or shine. On this day, the Panthers outscored the other teams 140-28. They have competed in three other 7 on 7 events and their record stands at 16-2. These 7 on 7 events are an early football learning necessity, and the CCP looked pretty good on offense as well as defense. They caught the ball well and have a ton of speed all around the field. New faces from last season’s Mustang team have added some more depth to the squad and will ultimately keep the Panthers high on the food chain.
Of course, it is way early in the season, and there will be bugs that settle in and need to be exterminated before the start of the season. The whole team did not participate so early predictions are still up in the wind, but time will tell if the Panthers will come back this season to win or be a punching bag for the other teams; my cards are on the Panthers to win. There are some shoes to fill in from last season, but from what I saw, there are some good prospects to do just that. Football season is fast approaching, and the CCP look like they are ready to play. Get set football fans, the stadiums are warming up and the bands are ready to play. Get your schedules, it’s gonna be a good one. Clay will host their 7 on 7 July 18; you don’t want to miss it.
