Thursday, September 28th, the Patuxent Panthers faced the Chopticon Braves. The Panthers were coming off a 4-0 start, while the Braves were coming off a 1-5 start. After Chopticon presented the colors and sang the national anthem and the game was underway. A bobbled return by the Panthers forced them within the 10-yard line. On the second play of the game, Patuxent ran a jet sweep but Chopticon was able to get to the edge and force a fumble. The Braves were 1st and goal and could score, but the Panthers held and forced a turnover on downs. This second drive woke up the Panthers to drive down the field and give it to Evan Blouir to through it deep to Jacari Fredrick for a 35-yard TD. Patuxent was ready to kick in another easy PAT, but due to a low snap, Will Hagan passed it to Josh Hamm for a successful 2-point attempt. This was only the beginning of the momentum of the Panthers. Patuxent would go on to stop the Braves yet again, forcing the punt. Right before the end of the quarter, Blouir decided to air one out to Tristan Borgholthaus for yet another 45-yard TD. To end the quarter Chopticon received the kick and started to drive down to midfield. At the end of the quarter, the Panthers lead 15-0.
After a short intermission, both teams took to the field and were ready to play on. Chopticon, now midfield, was hoping for retaliation from the first quarter. The pressure of the Panther’s defense must have startled the Chopticon O-Line because, on the second play, the center had a high snap giving Defensive Tackle Chase Wood a 46-yard scoop and score for the first defensive score of the game. The Panther’s defense wouldn’t stop there, they would force yet another turnover on downs which led to another 45-yard passing TD score by Fredrick. Just like that the defense was back on the field in under two minutes. Chopticon needing anything took a deep shot downfield, just to get shut down by Evan Jones with an interception. Patuxent’s offense drove down the field ending the drive with a 20-yard rushing TD by Daiquan Buck. The score was now 36-0, with still five minutes until halftime. The Braves had some time to score before the half, and they were driving but were cut short due to the time.
After a motivational speech and a quick bathroom break, the half was over. Since Patuxent was up by more than 35 points after the half, the clock never stopped running. Due to that, Chopticon ran out almost the whole 3rd quarter before turning back over to Patuxent. For the Panther’s final offensive drive ended with Buck rushing in for his second TD of the game. The rest of the game was about the Braves trying to stop the shutout before the clock ran out. In the end, they were able to get into the red zone but weren’t able to score. Ending the game 43-0, Patuxent won over Chopticon. The next game for the Panthers will face the Great Mills Hornets for their homecoming game on Friday, October 6. Patuxent will attempt to advance on its 5-0 season record. The Braves will now prepare for their game against La Plata. That is it from the Den this week, see you next week.
Stats from Max Preps:
QB Evan Blouir – 6/11, 160 Passing yards, 3 Passing TDs, and 20 Rushing Yards
RB Daiquan Buck – 13 Carries, 129 Rushing Yards, and 2 Rushing TDs
WR Jacari Fredrick – 3 Receptions, 79 Receiving Yards, and 2 Receiving TDs
NT Chase Wood – 3 Solo Tackles, 1 Assist Tackle, and 46-yard Scoop and Score
K Noah Underwood – 5/5 PATs
As of October 2nd, Chopticon has not entered any stats.