Over the last two weeks, the CBMS Panther 8th grade football team has played three games. After their season-opening big win against South Shelby, the Panthers traveled to Southern Boone and Macon before hosting the Hallsville Indians on September 25th. The Panthers lost to Southern Boone and Macon but won big against Hallsville.
In the Southern Boone game, the Eagles were a very physical team. Centralia tried various defensive strategies to stop their running attack but had trouble consistently shutting them down. Offensively, except for a few plays, the Panthers struggled to move the with consistency. The one scoring drive for Centralia included a 61-yard pass from Kyland Dickerson to Donovan Dowell taking the ball down to the 3-yard line. Dickerson punched it in from there on a 3-yard scamper but the Eagles won handily 42-6.
In the Macon game, Centralia moved the ball pretty well on runs by Klayton Hendren, Jackson Evans, Carter Kinkead, and Kyland Dickerson. The Panthers' offense struggled once they got inside the red zone. The Panthers had several big offensive plays: a 29-yard pass from Hendren to Dowell, a 10-yard run by Hendren, a 12-yard run by Evans, a 19-yard run by Kinkead, a 16-yard and 21-yard run by Dickerson, a 22-yard pass, a 14-yard pass, and a 13-yard pass from Hendren to Hubbard. The Panthers moved the ball against the Tigers but couldn't score on offense.
Defensively, the Panthers played very solid defense except for four long pass plays. Macon scored on a 66-yard pass, a 65-yard pass, and a 33-yard pass, all to the same Macon receiver. The only other long play the Panthers surrendered was a 46-yard pass play for one of the Tigers' two first downs. The Panthers only allowed two first downs against the Tigers, both on the second to last possession. The Panther defense did score a safety when Dustin Fashing, Keegan Spillane, and Sam Hasekamp tackled a Macon ball carrier in the end zone. The Panthers lost 18-2.
The next week in practice focused on sustaining blocks and finishing drives. A few new plays and formations were added to give the Panthers more variety on offense.
Against the Hallsville Indians, the Panthers got out of the gate quickly. Taking the opening kickoff, Klayton Hendren ripped off long runs of 22 yards and 24 yards that got the ball down to the Hallsville 7-yard line. From there, Jackson Evans ran it in for the 7-yard touchdown. Hendren passed to Donovan Dowell for the 2-point conversion making the score 8-0 CBMS at 5:36 in the first quarter.
The following kickoff by Sam Hasekamp went down to the 10-yard line and Keegan Spillane and Conrad Salisbury buried the returner inside the 20-yard line. A few plays later, Hasekamp recovered a fumble at the Hallsville 14. On fourth down, Kyland Dickerson scrambled down to the 4 but came up just short of the first down. Hallsville took over but moments later Zach Townsend picked off an Indian pass and returned it 28 yards for the touchdown. The 2-point conversion attempt failed making the score 14-0 early in the second quarter.
Later in the second quarter, Hasekamp forced a fumble, recovered the fumble, and rumbled down to the Hallsville 7-yard line. A few plays later, Hendren ran in from two yards out and also ran in the 2-point conversion with 27.1 seconds left in the first half. The ensuing kickoff featured a picture-perfect onside kick by Conrad Salisbury and was recovered by Cole Hubbard.
In the second half, both teams struggled to move the ball consistently. The Panther defense gave the offense a boost when Cole Hubbard intercepted an Indian pass and returned it 20 yards to the Hallsville 30. A few plays later, Hendren sprinted around the right side for a 6-yard score. The 2-point conversion attempt failed making the score 28-0 and that would end up being the final score.
Highlights from the CBMS Panthers games are available: http://www.hudl.com/team/16362
After four games, the CBMS Panther 8th grade team is 2-2. They have two more games on their schedule: an October 2nd trip to Bowling Green and an October 9th home game against North Callaway.
