On Aug. 29, the Portal Panthers gave their home crowd plenty to cheer about, bouncing back in a big way with a 42-20 win over the Twiggs County Cobras at the Portal Athletic Complex. Behind a balanced attack and a defense that forced turnovers all night, the Panthers secured their first victory of the season.
1st Quarter
The game opened with some nerves for Portal, as the Panthers’ first drive ended with an interception by Twiggs County. But the defense quickly stepped up, forcing a stop to give the ball right back.
On the next possession, #8 Gideon Fulcher found #1 Samarion McBride streaking downfield for a 48-yard touchdown pass. #20 Hayden Scott knocked through the extra point to make it 7-0.
With under a minute left in the quarter, #21 Zeke Percell barreled in for a 5-yard rushing touchdown, and Scott’s kick stretched the lead to 14-0.
2nd Quarter
The Panthers’ defense kept the pressure on in the second quarter. McQueen broke free for a 50-yard rushing touchdown, and Scott’s PAT made it 21-0.
Twiggs County found life when #4 Harold Crawford scored on a 16-yard rushing touchdown, though the Cobras failed on the two-point conversion.
Portal answered right back. #4 KJ Hunter capped a long drive with a 13-yard rushing score, and Scott’s kick extended the margin to 28-6. Twiggs managed an interception late in the half, but Percell recovered a fumble to end the quarter with momentum still on Portal’s side.
The Portal Panthers took a 28-6 lead into halftime to close out the second quarter.
3rd Quarter
The game slowed in the third quarter until Fulcher went deep again. With just over a minute left, he connected with McQueen on a 52-yard touchdown pass. Scott stayed perfect with the PAT, pushing the lead to 35-6.
4th Quarter
Portal wasted no time adding to the margin. Fulcher and McBride linked up once again for a 24-yard touchdown pass, with #65 Alfredo Cobos-Hernandez kicking the extra point to make it 42-6.
Twiggs County battled back late, as #2 Jeremy Stanley hit Crawford for a 15-yard touchdown pass and then added a two-point run. In the final minute, the Cobras added one more touchdown through the air, but the missed PAT sealed the final score at 42-20.
Words From Coach McEachin
Head Coach Jason McEachin praised his team’s ability to spread the ball around and create explosive plays in the win.
“I think the biggest thing we did better tonight was creating explosive plays on the perimeter and spreading the ball around all of our different skill guys,” McEachin said. “The goal is to be balanced, not necessarily with touches, but with explosive plays and the ability to pound it or get a ball on the edge. We established that we can go deep, go wide, go down the middle, and attack all parts of the defense, which is something we’re after.”
McEachin also reminded his team and community of the importance of protecting their home field.
“We talked about coming into the season that home-field advantage is critical. We did not play well at home last year, and we’ve got to do better at home this year. If we win all the home games, we’ll give ourselves a chance to make the playoffs. The mindset now is simple: take what we did well, build on it, and fix what we didn’t. Get better every week and compete every week.”
Up Next
The Panthers will be back in action when they go on the road to face the Jenkins County War Eagles on Friday, Sept. 5 at 7:30 p.m. in the team’s first regional matchup.
Twiggs County will host the Wheeler County Bulldogs the same night at 7:30 p.m.
Live Score Updates
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