It was a unique feel under the Friday night lights as football made its return, but that didn’t change how badly Daviess County and Ohio County each wanted to walk away with a victory at Reid Stadium. With a steady attack, the Panthers were able to pull away and secure a 41-16 opening-night victory over the Eagles.
The Panthers relied heavily on the rushing efforts of sophomore running back Bryson Parm while classmate Jack Ball captained their air attack. Ball replaced normal starting quarterback Joe Humphreys, who was adhering to proactive quarantine protocols set forth by the district.
“We knew we had something special with Bryson and I thought he did an excellent job of getting behind our line and taking what the defense gave him,” said Panther Head Coach Matt Brannon. “Jack stepped up in a big way tonight — he and Joe were texting all week — it just goes to show the level of commitment our guys have.”
Parm scored the first of his touchdowns on a 12-yard run with 5:56 left in the first quarter. Ohio County standout and all-state rusher QDaryius Jennings returned the favor seconds later with a 66-yard run to tie the game at 7-7.
“This is one of the best of Ohio County teams we’ve seen in years,” Brannon said. “It’s difficult to simulate a (running) back that is as strong and as quick as Jennings. It was a team effort to keep him bottled up.”
The Panthers ended the first quarter with a 36-yard touchdown pass from Ball to Decker Renfrow to extend their lead to 14-7. Ohio County forced a safety to cut the lead to 14-9 before Parm reached the end zone again on a 15-yard run to make it 21-9 going into halftime.
Parm added his third touchdown late in the third quarter, while Ball and Renfrow connected for another score late in the fourth. A 55-yard touchdown pass from Devin Gott to Dalton Burns provided a glimpse of hope for Ohio County before Brady Best was able to punch one in from five yards out to add to the Panthers’ lead.
The Daviess County defense forced three turnovers in the contest, all while holding Jennings to 103 yards on the ground and one touchdown. Gott finished with two touchdowns on 122 yards passing for the Eagles.
Ball finished with 115 yards passing while Parm amassed 191 on the ground. Renfrow led the Panthers in receiving with 99 yards on five receptions.
With uncertainty surrounding the 2020 season, Brannon attributed the true victory to merely being able to play.
“These guys have been working hard all summer and relentless in their efforts to follow the restrictions we have in place. It’s a testament to the kind of men they are,” he said. “We’ve been preaching to keep your head down and stay locked into reaching our goal of being able to play.”
The Panthers will travel across town next week to face city-county foe Owensboro High School. Brannon and his bunch are eager to build on their Week 1 success.
“We did a lot of things really well, and there are several things we can still improve on,” he said. “We’re committed to getting better every day.”
