By Owen Berk

The Panthers’ Tale

Derby travels to Hutchinson Friday night to face its bitter rival. Both teams are undefeated and ranked in the top five in Class 6A; Derby is still ranked No. 1.

Just as the Panthers’ Week 3 matchup against Maize was centered around the Eagles’ run game, the Salthawks bring more of the same.

Hutch uses an effective two-back system, splitting carries between senior Tracy Harris and junior Brody Smith. With this system they give opposing defenses more to worry about as they have to gameplan for two different players at the same position.

But as Derby showed against Maize, the Panthers have no problem shutting down running backs who have been stellar to start the season. Derby held Maize junior Dalyn Johnson to 14 carries and three rushing yards — one week after he torched the Goddard Eisenhower defense for 257 rushing yards and six touchdowns.

Look for the Panthers offense to keep the Salthawk defense on its toes with a good mixture of running the ball with junior running back Brody Kooser, sophomore running back Jackson Syring and senior quarterback Dan Dawdy. Also look for Dawdy to pass to his plethora of targets at wide receiver.
Rivalry week looks like a tough challenge for the Panthers, but one they are sure to be prepared for.