On a night that featured six fumbles, two interceptions, and 14 penalties, it was probably a good thing for Permian that Cooper standout running back Daniel Bray was held out of the game due to a hamstring injury. The Panthers were responsible for four of those miscues, along with another night filled with 11 penalties for over 100 yards.
The Black Cats opened the contest with an impressive 8-play, 53-yard scoring drive that was capped off by a short TD run by Juzstyce Lara. He would finish the night with three touchdowns. The Cougars would fumble the ensuing kickoff to set up the Panthers at the 11 yard line. A TD strike from Jakob Garcia to Carter Harris upped the tally to 13-0 in a span of 13 seconds.
Cooper fought back to remain in striking distance on its next possession. A 10-play, 69-yard drive ended with a 8-yard TD catch to cut the deficit to seven points. Permian responded three plays later on a 62-yard scamper by Lara to push the first quarter score to 20-6.
The Panthers coughed up the ball early in the second frame, which led to a Cougar touchdown run from four yards out. After a failed onside kick by Cooper, Permian fumbled the pigskin right back near midfield. The Cougars drove into Panther territory but missed a 27-yard field goal to leave the difference at 20-13.
The Black Cats pinned Cooper deep following a punt to the 15. On the second play from scrimmage, Riley Summerford nabbed an easy pick-six from the 7 for the Panthers to enjoy a 27-13 halftime lead.
Cooper received the second half kickoff and it took all of one play before a fumble gave Permian the ball at the Cooper 23. Four plays later, Lara was in the endzone for the third time. The Cougars matched the touchdown when they returned a 61-yard intercepted pass to make it 34-20 midway into the third quarter.
The Mojo defense turned in a solid effort and kept the Cougars in check, turning them away several times including collecting a sack on 4th-and-6 at the PHS 17. Meanwhile, the Permian offense was poised to add another score late in the quarter. Again, the Panthers put the ball on the turf, this time at the CHS 19.
The Black Cats added the game’s final points on a 45-yard touchdown catch from Garcia to Gage Murphy midway into the fourth quarter.
The Panthers can take positives from the contest – Lara’s three touchdowns, the performance of the defense, and the ability to convert Cooper mistakes into points. The Black Cats will enjoy an extra week of preparation to address the discipline issues with the penalties and multiple turnovers the past few games.
Permian has a bye week before beginning District 2-6A play – the five games that matter. The Panthers (3-2) will play host to Odessa High (3-1) on October 6 at Ratliff Stadium.
| BY QUARTER | |||||
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | F | |
| Permian |
20 | 07 | 07 | 07 | 41 |
| Cooper | 06 | 07 | 07 | 00 | 20 |
SCORING SUMMARY
First Quarter
OP – Lara 2 run (kick fail), 8:27
OP – Harris 11 pass from Garcia (Franco kick), 8:14
AC – Parker 8 pass from Cummins (kick fail), 4:09
OP – Lara 62 run (Franco kick), 2:50
Second Quarter
AC – Rico 4 run (Carvazos kick), 11:05
OP – Summerford 7 INT return (Franco kick), 1:49
Third Quarter
OP – Lara 1 run (Franco kick), 10:16
AC – Alexander 61 INT return (Carvazos kick), 7:23
Fourth Quarter
OP – Murphy 45 pass from Garcia (Franco kick), 6:35
| SPORTZ GAME STATS | ||
| OP | AC | |
| First Downs | 14 | 20 |
| Total Yards | 329 | 309 |
| Rushing | 223 | 55 |
| Passing | 106 | 254 |
| C-A-I | 8-11-1 | 25-45-1 |
| Fumbles | 3-3 | 3-3 |
| Penalties | 11-103 | 3-21 |
Summary and stats – Terry Alan.
