This past Friday was redemption night for the Panthers. After getting whipped like scrambled eggs in their last three games, the Panthers needed time on the heavy bag to learn to punch in the gut and deliver a right hook all over again. With the taste of losing getting stuck in their crawl, the Panthers needed a win, and a win against the tough Logan Wildcats would go a long way toward saving some pride. It was one of those nights one expected something to happen, like an eerie horror film about to unfold. Who would be the scariest team? Only 48 minutes and four quarters would tell. Mother Nature decided to play her part in the game and brought the rain, damp and fog at times as only the most loyal fans graced the stands under umbrellas and canopy city set up in the stands.
Fans could see at the onset of the game that the Panthers were not about to lay down their arms and surrender. However, Logan was on the boards first as the Panthers sort of struggled to get operational on offense, but it didn’t take long. The Panthers got the ball rolling but handed it off in the form of a fumble on the first set of downs and gave the Wildcats the ball.
Panther defense held and forced a punt which they blocked, giving the offense good field position. Both teams went back and forth, neither gaining much ground on offense as both defenses dug in their heels. The Wildcats got seven on the boards in the first quarter after grabbing a pass nearly right out of the hands of Cooper Collins and took it to the house. The Panthers got close one time and were smelling the daisies at the TD line but couldn’t get it in.
Once the second quarter got underway the Panthers still had the endzone on their bucket list as the Wildcats added another seven making the score 0-14 Wildcats. That was enough for the Panthers – having their butts handed to them again on a spit wasn’t about to happen again. Then it all broke loose! With a Wildcat climbing on him ready to claw his eyes out, Cooper Collins aired out a bomb to Joel Elliott, the speedster with gluelike hands, who crossed the money line for the TD. It was a great throw and catch combo that dropped the jaws of the Wildcats as Elliott burned the Wildcat defender like Sunday’s trash. T.J. Pritt added the extra point, and the Panthers were eatin’ meatloaf again. The game went into half-time as the Wildcats led by seven.
At the half CCHS principal Angela Nichols, along with students from CCHS, accepted the $5,000 check from the T-Mobile representative for their participation in the T-Mobile sweepstakes. In the third quarter the Wildcats took the ball down the field and were putting on an air show until they were shot down by Kohan Ramsey as he got his second interception of the game, stealing the ball right out of the cat’s mouth in the end zone.
After that it was the Brody Scarbro show.
Getting some great blocks Scarbro ran the ball down the field on the backs of the Wildcat defense like they were nothing but corn stalks. The Wildcats added another seven to the board for their last offering in the collection plate making their total effort for the game 21 and that was all the early Christmas gifts Panther defense handed out. It was then up to the Panthers offense to get the points on the board and help out the Vegas odds. With the rain falling and time running out, the Panthers ran the Cowboy 2-minute offense the rest of the game. It was fast and furious and the Wildcats were getting frustrated and the meany mouths started the flags ended it by adding yards to the Panther offense.
Here is the blow by blow: Collins hits Elliott on a 21-yard TD strike adding another 6 to the boards. Nick Williams has a bully beat down moment on defense and knocks the ball loose and Panthers recover the ball.
After Panthers give it up on downs, Kohan Ramsey intercepts the ball and runs it back to the 10-yard line. Scarbro adds the icing on the cake with a money line TD run.
Then, it was Joel Elliott’s turn at highlight reel grabbing the interception and giving the ball back to Clay. Blake Coleman grabs the honors with next TD run making the game 31-21. The final straw was Cooper Collins taking it in on a great fake and QB run from 20 yards out — this was the final cut on the Skinning of the Logan Wildcats.
The game was over as the Panthers played a whale of a second half and beat the Wildcats 38-21. It was one of those games that took a whole team to get the job done, and that they did. There isn’t much else to be said about this game other than it was a complete and needed thumping at the hands of the Panthers. Blake Coleman surpassed one of the greatest tacklers ever on the Panther team. Austin Dobbins held the solo career tackle record at 203 until this season.
Now the undisputed king of the grid is Blake Coleman who surpassed Austin’s record and is looking for more. After Friday’s game, he’s sitting on 210 solo career tackles. The Panthers, now 3-3, will take on Tolsia, also 3-3, this Friday. This will also be homecoming night and the crowning of the 2026 Panther Football Homecoming Queen. Go Panthers!
