Knightstown is 0-4 against North Decatur since September of 2015 but things could change on Friday. The Panthers will venture away from home to square off against the Chargers at 7:00 p.m. Both squads will be entering this one on the heels of a big victory.
Knightstown is on a roll after a high-stakes playoff matchup on Friday. They breezed past West Washington to the tune of 46-7. The Panthers pushed the score to 39-7 by the end of the third, a deficit the Senators had no chance of recovering from.
Jameson Crawford
| 10/03/25 vs Tri | 223 |
| 10/10/25 vs Northeastern | 221 |
| 10/24/25 vs West Washington | 109 |
| 09/12/25 vs Union City | 100 |
| 08/22/25 @ Hagerstown | 95 |
| + 5 more games |
Multiple players turned in solid performances to lead Knightstown to victory, but perhaps none more so than Jameson Crawford, who rushed for 109 yards and a pair of touchdowns on only 13 carries, and also picked up 56 receiving yards. Crawford has become a key player for the Panthers: the team is 4-1 when he posts at least 80 rushing yards, but 2-3 otherwise. Another signal caller making a difference was Bryor Carmichael, who threw for 307 yards and three TDs while completing 71.4% of his passes.
Meanwhile, you can't lose the game if you win every quarter, and that was precisely North Decatur's strategy against Greenwood Christian Academy on Friday. Given that consistent dominance, it should come as no surprise that the Chargers blew the Cougars out of the water with a 56-12 final score. The high-flying offensive performance was a huge turnaround for the Chargers considering their six-point performance the contest before.
North Decatur's win came from a few key players Knightstown will need to keep an eye on. One of the most notable was Simon Barber, who rushed for 139 yards and three scores on only 11 carries. Those 139 rushing yards gave him a new career-high. The team also got some help courtesy of Corbin Thackery, who gained 102 total yards and four touchdowns.
North Decatur didn't go easy on the quarterback and picked off five passes before the game was over. The picks came courtesy of Thackery and Eli Trenkamp. Thackery got in on the action too, converting a pick into a touchdown.
North Decatur's victory was their ninth straight at home dating back to last season, which pushed their record up to 8-2. The home wins came thanks in part to their defensive effort, having only surrendered 6.6 points on average over those games. As for Knightstown, their record now sits at 6-4.
Friday's game will pit two of the most dominant backs against one another: Crawford and Thackery. Crawford just won't slow down this season and has run in 18 touchdowns while averaging 101.5 rushing yards per game. Thackery has been a dominant force too and has run in 11 touchdowns while averaging 76.9 rushing yards per game.
Knightstown took a serious blow against North Decatur in their previous meeting back in November of 2022, falling 56-6. Thankfully for the Panthers, Reid Messer (who rushed for 49 yards and five touchdowns, and also picked up 45 receiving yards) won't be suiting up this time. Will that be enough to change the final result? There's only one way to find out.
