The Alba-Golden Panthers cemented their place in the second season with a convincing 55-0 win over the visiting Como-Pickton Eagles last Friday. 

The Eagles have struggled mightily this season. Their average margin of loss in their seven defeats was 44 points. The lone win came against Detroit. They dressed 16 players for the Alba-Golden game. 

All that said, the Panthers still had to come out and perform. They did, with a great sense of focus and energy. 

Alba-Golden scored on seven of their eight possessions on the night. They played aggressively, with excellent discipline and a keen edge.

The offensive production can be credited to a banner night from quarterback Easton Campbell – 9 for 13 for 192 yards and three scores, and the aggressive running of the Panther backfield. 

Campbell connected with six different receivers and threw the ball with confidence. His decision-making was also spot-on. 

With respect to the running attack, once an Alba-Golden back got past the line of scrimmage there was a good chance he was going to go the distance. The aggressive running nature of Jake Hallman (53-yard and 37-yard scoring runs) was matched by the Peyton Dickinson, Boogie Trimble and others. 

There were also some surprises. After taking a 7-0 lead, kicker Sam Olson booted a perfect on-side kick, which teammate Wyatt Sutton was able to take in full stride. The play set up the Panthers at the Eagles’ 35-yard line. The Panthers hit a go route on the next play to take a two score lead. 

Alba-Golden never let off the accelerator, nor did they lapse into any levity. Coach Drew Webster and his coaching staff had the team in exactly the correct mindset with which to take care of business against Como-Pickton, with an eye toward Cooper and the post-season.

The Panthers travel to Cooper Friday and face a district-leading team coming off a signature win over Honey Grove. The final week of Alba-Golden’s regular season is a bye, which will allow a deep breathe and extra preparation time for the bidistrict playoff.