In the Homecoming game Saturday the Panthers will face off against the Devils of Mississippi Valley State.
This year the Panthers have raised the bar to levels that have not been reached in years. The Panthers’ current record is 4-2, the first time since 1966. Their adversary’s current record is a dismal 2-5. The Panthers will look for redemption this year, as the 2005 Homecoming loss of 58-13 still rings in their ears.
The Panthers defense is headed by defensive coordinator Heishma Northern, are ranked number one in scoring defense and red zone defense. The Panthers have a strong defensive line composed of Dalvin Nettles, Jon Johnson, Kingsley Adebusola, and Marquis Johnson. The defense is led by linebacker Zach East who leads the conference with 73 tackles, and tenth in the conference in tackles for loss. Behind East is linebacker Gary Hicks, Renaldo Revuelta, and Kenneth Zenon. The secondary is a young but strong group. They are composed of Edward Moore, Anthony Beck, Riante Jones, Val Ford, and Chris Adingupu.
The special teams unit has made a huge improvement with the addition of freshman kicker Brady Faggard and punter Pedro Ventura, who is currently second in the conference.
Although the offense is now led by quarterback Mark Spivey, they still utilize Chris Gibson to his full ability. The rushing attack consists of Donald Babers, Ben Boyd, and Calvin Harris. The receiving unit will be ready to destroy the Mississippi Valley defense with Anthony Weeden, Joe Townsend, Gabrael Ediae-Osaze, and Shaun Stephens.
The Panthers will be ready for the Mississippi Valley Devils who rank first in punt return average, and third in red zone scoring offense. The Devils also rank in the bottom half of 25 of 30 statistical categories.
The Panthers will look to their fans for help as they expect to emerge victorious. This year’s Homecoming game will be played at Blackshear Stadium on Oct. 27 at 2 p.m. Go Panthers!