The Great Bend Panthers will challenge the Salina Central Mustangs on Friday. Both teams are coming into the matchup red-hot, with Great Bend sitting on 11 straight victories and Salina Central on four.
Great Bend is on a roll after a high-stakes playoff matchup on Friday. They came out on top against Hays by a score of 29-22. The 29-point effort marked the Panthers' lowest-scoring contest of the season, but in the end it didn't matter.
Daxton Minton continued his habit of posting crazy stat lines, throwing for 155 yards and three touchdowns while completing 72.2% of his passes, and also rushing for 73 yards. Ian Premer was another key player, gaining 143 total yards and two touchdowns.
Meanwhile, South kept up with Salina Central until halftime on Friday, but afterwards: not so much. The Mustangs were the clear victors by a 49-24 margin over the Cougars. Considering the Mustangs have won seven games by more than 24 points this season, Friday's blowout was nothing new.
Great Bend better keep an eye on Cooper Reves. He was instrumental in Salina Central's win, rushing for 309 yards and five scores while picking up 8.8 yards per carry. Reves is crushing it when it comes to rushing yards: he's rushed for at least 103 every time he's taken the field this season. The team also got some help courtesy of Griffin Hall, who rushed for 125 yards and a pair of TDs on only 11 carries.
They were just one part of a punishing run game: Salina Central was unstoppable on the ground and finished the game with 438 rushing yards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now rushed for at least 159 rushing yards in 13 consecutive matchups dating back to last season.
Salina Central's win bumped their record up to 10-1. As for Great Bend, their victory bumped their record up to 11-0.
Friday's contest might be decided on the ground. Great Bend has been excellent on the ground this season, having averaged 176.8 rushing yards per game. However, it's not like Salina Central struggles in that department as they've been averaging 294.4 rushing yards. There's a good chance Friday's game turns into a tough fight on the ground.
Great Bend strolled past Salina Central in their previous matchup back in October of 2023 by a score of 38-24. One of the biggest obstacles trying to stand in the way of that victory was the Mustangs' Elijah Wilson, who rushed for 211 yards and a pair of touchdowns, and also picked up 42 receiving yards. Now that he won't be playing on Friday, will it be easier for the Panthers to walk away with another win? There's only one way to find out.
