Two dominant signal callers in Daxton Minton and Tevin Cotter are getting ready to go toe-to-toe. The Great Bend Panthers will be playing in front of their home fans against the Liberal Redskins at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. Both teams are still undefeated after five games, but that won't be the case come Friday.
Great Bend's defense heads into the game hoping to repeat the dominance they displayed on Friday. They simply couldn't be stopped as they easily beat Dodge City 41-0. Considering the Panthers have won four matchups by more than 23 points this season, Friday's blowout was nothing new.
Ian Premer was his usual excellent self, picking up 33 receiving yards and a pair of scores, while also rushing for 62 yards and one touchdown. Another player making a difference was Conner Holladay, who rushed for 103 yards and one TD on only ten carries.
Wins are hard to come by when you can't run the rock, something Great Bend proved: they limited Dodge City to a paltry 3.2 yards per carry. The team can thank Kale Kern for the heroic effort on defense: he. That's the most yards per carry they've posted since back in October of 2024.
Great Bend didn't go easy on the quarterback and picked off three passes before the game was over. The picks came courtesy of Koehn Ribordy and Premer.
Meanwhile, Liberal earned a 39-32 victory over Garden City on Friday.
Great Bend better keep an eye on James Fieser. He was instrumental in Liberal's win, picking up 226 receiving yards and three scores. With that strong performance, Fieser is now averaging an impressive 108.2 receiving yards per game. Xavier Tafoya was another key player, gaining 126 total yards and a touchdown.
Great Bend's win bumped their record up to 5-0. As for Liberal, their victory bumped their record up to an identical 5-0.
Friday's contest might be decided on the ground. Great Bend has been excellent on the ground this season, having averaged 170.8 rushing yards per game. However, it's not like Liberal struggles in that department as they've been averaging 161 rushing yards. There's a good chance Friday's game turns into a tough fight on the ground.
Great Bend beat Liberal 14-7 when the teams last played back in October of 2024. Do the Panthers have another victory up their sleeve, or will the Redskins turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.
