THE OFFICIAL SITE OF
Permian High School Athletics

The Permian Panthers wasted no time Friday in staking their claim to a berth in the area round of the Class 6A Division I playoffs. The Panthers rolled up a big lead in the first half on the way to a 42-0 victory against El Paso Coronado at Ratliff Stadium, earning a date against Arlington Lamar in the second round. “It's great for our football team to be playing another week,” Permian interim coach Jeff Ellison said. “It's what they've worked for from their seventh-grade year, this senior class. I can't say enough about their dedication, their heart, their commitment to this program. “It's kind of all coming together with us in this first round. We came out at a fast pace offensively and defensively and really for the first first time in a long tme kept that going the entire game.” Permian (8-3) will play Arlington Lamar, a 55-14 winner Friday over San Angelo Central, at 3 p.m. Friday at Abilene Christian's Wildcat Stadium in the area round. It will be Permian's first game at the facility, which opened last year. The shutout was Permian's first in the playoffs since a 37-0 victory over Lewisville in the 1994 quarterfinals. The Panthers opened that postseason with three consecutive shutouts, blanking Lubbock Coronado (24-0) and El Paso Coronado (14-0) in the first two rounds. “It's big for us,” said Permian linebacker Tanner Adams, who finished with a team-high seven tackles with two tackles for loss. “It tells people we're ready.” The victory also continued Permian's dominance of the Thunderbirds as the Panthers improved to 25-0-1 in the series, including 4-0-1 in playoff meetings. The Panthers got a little something from just about everyone as the starters began coming out before the end of the first half. Justin Hammond had touchdowns rushing, receiving and passing as Permian jumped out to a 35-0 halftime lead. He was joined by Peyton Powell and Christian Rodriguez to give Permian three players with touchdown passes. Hammond finished with 126 all-purpose yards, rushing for a season-high 79 on nine carries. He also caught two passes for 23 yards and threw for 24 yards on his first pass attempt of the season. Ed Williams added 78 yards rushing and a touchdown on 14 carries, while Powell finished 6-of-7 passing for 105 yards and a TD as Permian finished with 402 total yards. Kaden Horrell caught three passes for 23 yards, while Tyler Ramage had two catches for 53 yards. Both pulled in touchdown receptions. Meanwhile, the Permian defense held the Thunderbirds (7-4) to 100 total yards and nine first downs. Christian Tschauner and Chase Stell each had an interception that led to a Permian touchdown. Ellison said it was the kind of all-around effort the Panthers must have each week in order to continue extending their season. “We talked about that going into this game and the playoff situations,” Ellison said. “There's always somebody at every level. This deep into a season, you're going to have guys step up and make plays and be a big-time player for our team. We saw that tonight. “That's why they practice. That's why they're committed to this team. They get the opportunity to go in there and do that. It was great for those kids.” The Panthers opened the game with an 11-play, 88-yard drive that resulted in Williams' 2-yard touchdown run. That set the tone as the Panthers dominated the rest of the night. Hammond pulled in an 18-yard touchdown pass from Powell on Permian's second drive, then hit Ramage on a halfback pass for a 24-yard score on the Panthers' third possession. That was a one-play drive set up by Tschauner's third interception of the season. Coronado's best scoring chance came early in the second quarter. The Thunderbirds put together an eight-play drive that reached the Panther 28, but Stell tackled Coronado's Jonathon Seabrook for a 2-yard loss on a screen pass on third down and Juan Romero's 47-yard field goal attempt went wide left. The Thunderbirds, who went three-and-out on five of their 10 possessions, had only one other sustained drive, reaching the Permian 28 early in the fourth quarter before turning the ball over on downs. In the second quarter, Hammond ran for a 3-yard touchdown and Rodriguez came in for Powell late in the half and connected with Horrell for an 8-yard score that put Permian up 35-0. Dominique Nelson capped the scoring with a 1-yard TD run midway through the third quarter.

THE OFFICIAL SITE OF
Permian High School Athletics

PERMIAN DOWNS EP CORONADO TO ADVANCE IN PLAYOFFS

SAM WALLER

Odessa American | 11/17/2018