Panthers wrap up the regular season with impressive win!

The FZN football team wrapped up the regular season portion of the 2020 schedule with a 35 – 16 victory over previously undefeated Marquette. The game was the first time the two schools had ever met on the gridiron and proved to live up to the pre-game hype of two area powers colliding. With the victory, the Panthers secured the #1 seed in their MSHSAA Class 5 district and earned a 1st round district bye.

Against Marquette, the Panthers relied on their balanced rushing attack to successfully move the ball on the Mustangs and control the game clock throughout the contest. The combination of quarterback Jack Newcomb and running backs: Chris Futrell, Robert Rezex, Kylen Watson and Tyler Oakes proved to be the key ingredient in Panther victory. Combined, the Panthers rushed for an impressive 316 yards against the Mustangs. Rezex led all Panther rushers with 86 yards. Newcomb (2), Futrell and Watson all had rushing touchdowns for the Panthers. Futrell, who had missed the previous two games with injuries, provided an early opening statement for the Panthers as he took the first offensive play from scrimmage, breaking several tackles along the way, 62 yards for a touchdown. With gusty winds limiting the Panther air attack, Newcomb only passed four times in the contests, but his two completions that occurred back to back in the 3rd quarter, one a 31-yard completion to Tyler Oakes on a 3rd down and the other a 29-yard touchdown pass to Chris Reckel, played big dividends in the contest.

On defense, the Panthers bent a bit, but didn’t break, holding the high-powered Mustangs to just 16 points. Chris Futrell had a big night for the Panthers as he recorded 14 tackles to go along with an interception and fumble recovery. Parker Monnig recorded 12 tackles, 2 sacks, and a fumble recovery. Other top performers included: Robert Rezex (14 tackles), De’Shawn Williams (9 tackles) and Eddie Angelback (8 tackles).

Last week the Panthers defeated Liberty 55 – 6 to earn their 7th straight conference title. The Panthers are the first GAC school to accomplish such a feat. Against Liberty, Senior stand-out Tyler Oakes recorded 5 touchdowns on the night. It was the first time a Panther player recorded a 5 touchdown night since the early 2000’s. With the regular season complete, the Panthers will now await the winner between Parkway Central and Liberty in the District semi-final to be hosted by FZN on November 6th.