By JACOB MOORE, for the Democrat
After a lopsided season-opening loss to Owen Valley, Brown County came into the second week of the season hoping to show improvement against the visiting Jennings County Panthers.
The Aug. 26 game was more competitive, with the Eagles staying within striking distance until midway through the third quarter, but with Jennings County ultimately pulling away for a 45-6 victory.
The Panthers struck first when quarterback Sam Burkman broke into the open and scampered 56 yards for a touchdown.
The extra point went wide right leaving Jennings County ahead 6-0.
That lead would be short-lived. On the ensuing kickoff Brown County sophomore running back Ben Wagler shook off a would-be tackler, reversed field and sprinted 80 yards for a touchdown to even the game at 6-6 with 8:12 left in the first quarter.
“I thought he had me,” Wagler said of the Panther whose paws he slipped out of.
“But I got out of it, got a heck of a block and was able to outrun everyone.”
Jennings County would regain the lead with 30 seconds left in the first quarter when fullback Blaine Ison plunged into the end zone from three yards out.
The extra point extended the lead to 13-6.
Penalties made a major mark on the second quarter. With 8:30 to play, the Eagles had forced Jennings County into a 4th and 12.
The Panthers threw an incomplete pass, but a personal foul against Brown County during the play gave the Panthers a first down inside Brown County’s 20 yard-line.
Two plays later, Jennings County would extend its lead to 19-6 when running back Matt Hines took a handoff 14 yards for a touchdown.
With 2:14 left in the half, another penalty would take an apparent score off the board.
Jennings County was forced to punt and the ball bounced off the facemask of the Eagle attempting to field it. Multiple players would then struggle to corral the loose ball with Jennings County’s Ison finally falling on the ball in the end zone.
Luckily for Brown County, a Panther drew a personal foul penalty on the play, nullifying the apparent touchdown.
With a halftime score of 19-6, Brown County was very much in the game. Unfortunately for the Eagles, Jennings County’s run heavy offense seemed to take a toll in the second half.
In the season opener, Brown County had only 23 players in uniform. Against the Panthers, there were 29 Eagles in uniform.
While an improvement, those numbers still required many Eagles to start on offense and defense, and made it difficult for coaches to rest players.
Meanwhile, on offense the Panthers were running out of the Wing-T. The Wing-T is a compact formation with no more than one wide receiver and is heavily run-oriented.
In fact, for the game, Jennings County would amass 384 yards rushing but attempt less than five passes for only seven yards.
In the second half all that running seemed to wear down the Eagle defense. Three minutes into the third quarter, Jennings County running back Brandon Braun broke into the open field and scored from 34 yards out.
Later in the quarter, Hines would score his second touchdown of the night on a seven yard run extending the Panthers’ lead to 32-6.
Meanwhile, Brown County struggled for offensive consistency. For the second straight week, senior Ethan Spiece, sophomore Noah Lewis and freshman Vince Carfiro all took snaps at quarterback.
The Eagles’ longest play from scrimmage was a 12-yard catch by sophomore Kody Shugars and their longest run was by Spiece for seven yards.
Early in the fourth quarter, Jennings County running back Nate Doty would score on a 32 yard run.
With 3:45 to play and both teams playing reserves, the Panthers would put up the final points in the game when freshman quarterback Parker Elmore scored on a 10 yard run to make it a 45-6 game.
Though disappointed by the final score, Head Coach Colton Sample said the team’s play showed improvement.
“There were sparks where we played well,” he said.
“We put them in third and long several times, we forced punts. But we have to compete on every down. We’re a better team than we’ve shown so far.”
The Eagles will play their first road game when they visit the Cloverdale Clovers on Sept. 2.
The Clovers have had a similar season to the Eagles so far, losing to South Putnam 70-0 and to Edinburgh 42-14. Kickoff for that game is set for 7 p.m.
