SAN ANGELO Permian head coach Blake Feldt called it “a nightmare of a night.”

Compounded by injuries, struggles on offense and special team touchdowns from San Angelo Central, it spelled doom for the Panthers against the Bobcats.

Jaden Coates scored a 4-yard rushing touchdown on a fake field-goal attempt and he returned the opening kickoff of the second half for a score as San Angelo Central collected a 31-20 victory over Permian in a District 2-6A contest on Friday at San Angelo Stadium.

“It was a bad night for the Panthers,” Feldt said. “A lot of that has to do with (San Angelo) Central. They played very well. Maverick McIvor was outstanding both throwing and running the ball. They played very well.

“We struggled a little bit after that first drive. We had some injury problems in the first half that caused us some problems.”

The injury bug, which had been quiet for most of the season, stung Permian starting quarterback Steve Steen, senior offensive lineman Pablo Olivares and junior linebacker Tanner Adams.

Steen didn’t play a snap in the second half. Adams was on crutches and Olivares needed help to get off the field.

In the meantime, the Bobcats (8-0 overall, 4-0 District 2-6A) built a two-score lead in the second half and never let go. San Angelo Central junior quarterback Maverick McIvor was 11-of-20 passing for 141 yards and one touchdown in the fourth quarter to Philip Lupton.

Despite only one score on the night for McIvor, who was averaging a combined five touchdowns on the ground and through the air, he made crucial plays in clutch moments. McIvor completed five pass on either third or fourth down for 86 yards.

Aside from its first drive of the contest, Permian (6-1, 3-1) struggled to move the ball. Justin Hammond capped off the first drive with a 21-yard touchdown run. The Panthers’ first drive lasted 13 plays for 75 yards and 6 minutes, 21 seconds.

The Panthers total 231 yards and were forced to punt or turned the ball over on downs in seven of their final 10 drives. Permian ended with 13 first downs, which is seven below its average through the first six games.

“That’s the best defense we’ve seen all year without a doubt,” San Angelo Central coach Brent Davis said. “We had a good game plan for them. We were going to try to control the clock a little bit and keep their offense from having it.

“We did that and Maverick (McIvor) did a heck of a job of running what we asked him to run. That one (TD) that he did throw was huge.”

Permian won the turnover battle with two fumble recoveries and one interception from Christian Tschauner. The Panthers didn’t lose either of their fumbles and offensive lineman Dawson Reynolds scooped up the second fumble and ran it 21 yards to set up a 37-yard field goal for Carson Roberts.

During the second half, Roberts connected on 37- and 42-yard field goals. He also hit both of his extra points to remain perfect on the season 40 of 40.

“My team called for me and I executed like I needed to,” Roberts said. “I did my job.”

Permian scored the final touchdown on the contest as Brother Miller caught a 13-yard pass from backup sophomore quarterback Easton Hernandez. Ed Williams led the Panthers with 14 carries for 79 yards, while Hammond added eight carries for 63 yards and a score. Steen ended with 49 yards on 14 carries and he was 0-of-3 passing in the first half.

“I have no way to know right now,” Feldt said about Steen playing against Odessa High next Friday.

The Panthers will play the host team for their crosstown rivalry contest against the Bronchos, who picked up their first District 2-6A victory Friday with a 28-7 win over Wolfforth Frenship.

Feldt knows the Panthers have two important games to close out the regular season.

“We have a huge rivalry game against Odessa High next week and then a huge rivalry game against Midland Lee the week after that,” Feldt said. “There’s a lot riding on both of those games. We’ll be ready to roll next week.”
