Friday Night Lights: Runnin' Rangers Next Challenge for Panthers
</element><element id="paragraph-1" type="body"><![CDATA[After a pair of gut-wrenching defeats to open the 2009 season, Pinckneyville is looking for their first victory, and their first good opening half on the year, after falling into big holes before coming up with any offense in both of their games.
"We've shown how good we can be at times, it's just a matter of playing like that, with that type of effort on every down, on every play," said Panthers' head coach Tod Rushing. "You can't take a play off."
The defense definitely hadn't taken any plays off in the fourth quarter against West Frankfort, when suddenly, with just over a minute to play and about half the field to go, the Redbirds moved the football at will and scored the game-winning touchdown.
"I don't think (our players) really, fully grasped the situation," Rushing said. "I think they were so 'up' from when they tied it, they didn't have a sense of urgency when they got back out there and next thing you know they're back on their heels and panic sets in. If we make a couple plays there, we give ourselves a chance to win in overtime."
Bryant Shute again made his share of plays to help get the Panthers back into the ballgame, hitting Nathan Morton with a pair of touchdown passes, while showing a bit more maturity in the pocket than in week one.
"We've told him if we have to throw it away once, eat it once or twice, that's fine, that's better than turning it over," Rushing said. "Last week he made some good decisions there, and he's only going to get better, he's just a 15-year old kid."
On the topic of throwing the football, many in the area have voiced concerns over the new footballs being used by the IHSA, but Rushing said his quarterback "hasn't really said much about it."
"They're shorter and rounder, and they feel thicker in the middle," said Rushing. "(Coach and former quarterback) Alan (Englehardt) likes them, I'd rather be using the Wilson, but this is what we have to use in the playoffs, so this is what we'll play with."
Getting to the playoffs got a lot tougher with losses in the opening two weeks, but could be on the way as the Panthers get deeper on the depth chart.
"We get a little better (this week), Tyler Rice is back, he's going to make a big difference on both sides of the ball," Rushing said. "He gives us a short yardage back if we do go to our 'T' (formation), he gives us a little more power there, and he's a good middle linebacker."
Rice joins a backfield that has been crowded already this season with Shute, Ben Harriss, Neil Kellerman and Jake Bathon all seeing a number of carries.
As the Panthers travel to Benton in week three, all eyes will be watching to see if they can finally get off to a good start, or if we'll see a repeat of last year's contest with the Rangers when Pinckneyville surrendered 41 first half points before storming back after the half -a little like weeks one and two of this season.
"We haven't really made any major adjustments at halftime, we run the same schemes (in the first half), we just get more of a sense of urgency (when trailing)," Rushing said.
" One of the freshmen kids, we laughed at him the first week, he kept saying 'we need to play like we're behind,' well maybe we need to do that, that does seem to be when we're most effective."
The jokes will be put aside at 7:00 p.m., and fans are reminded that the game will be played in Benton, rather than Pinckneyville as noted on the original 2009 schedule.
The move will balance PCHS' football schedule in 2010.
"They are athletic, that's for sure," Benton coach Jeremy Clodfelder said of the Panthers. "We're still harping on the little things we didn't do last week, we made a lot of mistakes in the game. We could have blown the game open earlier. When we have a chance to step on a team's throat we have to do it.
"But, with the win, it seems like we got the monkey off our back a little bit," he continued.