Panther football makes resurgence

Some important questions were answered early this fall, leading to a resurgence of Creston football.

When the Panthers opened the 2021 season at Clarinda, several players were sophomores making their first varsity appearance, and among the new starters was junior quarterback Kyle Strider.

At Sunday’s team banquet held in the Creston Community High School commons, head coach Brian Morrison said he was impressed with the performances of those first-year varsity contributors, as well as improvement in the offensive and defensive lines by returning players.

It all led to a team that went 6-3, the first Creston team with a winning record since the 8-2 squad in 2016. The Panthers were the first team left out of the Class 3A playoffs, finishing 17th on the Iowa High School Athletic Association’s Ratings Percentage Index. Sixteen teams make the playoffs.

In that 6-3 campaign, two of the three losses were to teams that reached the UNI-Dome in the state semifinals. Harlan is playing for a 3A state championship next weekend, while Winterset bowed out of the 4A playoffs in a semifinal loss to Cedar Rapids Xavier. ADM, the second qualifier from District 6, was the other team that defeated Creston this season.

Along the way, the Panthers rushed for 1,951 yards, led by senior Briley Hayes with 865 yards and 17 touchdowns. Sophomore Brennan Hayes ran for 687 yards and three TDs. Strider passed for 958 yards and nine touchdowns.

In team awards announced Sunday, Briley Hayes and tackle Avery Fuller were named offensive MVPs. Outside linebacker Gage Skarda and defensive end Derek Paup were named defensive MVPs. Team captains were Hayes, Paup, offensive guard Chris Wilson and defensive noseguard Andre Davis.

All-district honors will be announced when district member Harlan has completed its season.

Closing their careers were Kayleb Howard, Skyler Wilson, Aidan Anderson, Briley Hayes, Gage Skarda, Joey Huston, Lucas Veatch, Owen Richards, Andre Davis, Chris Wilson and Derek Paup.

“We had a lot of question marks to start this season, and I thought the kids did a tremendous job this year,” Morrison said. “We would not have had the season that we had without the leadership of our 12 seniors. With the experience we gained from our juniors and sophomores, we think our future is bright. We expect to have 88 committed players next year and that’s a good number.”

Some of the seniors aren’t done playing football. Wilson and Richards plan to play at Graceland University, and Paup is being contacted by several colleges with no decision made yet, Morrison said.

In introducing this year’s seniors, Morrison said players like Davis and receivers Kayleb Howard and Aiden Anderson made strides in their skills to become starters in their final season.

“For our younger kids, this is the kind of impact you can have on our team if you just stick with it and keep working,” Morrison said.

Juniors and sophomores, many of whom made up the JV squad on Monday nights, were introduced by assistant coaches Jon Thomson and Chad Briley. Freshman coach Kevin Cooper said his squad of 19 players showed versatility and resilience in compiling a 4-3-2 season after starting the year with two ties.

Sunday’s event concluded with a video of season highlights presented by Strider, a student in the school’s Communication and Service Technology (CAST) class.

Letterwinners

Seniors — Aidan Anderson, Andre Davis, Avery Fuller, Briley Hayes, Kayleb Howard, Joey Huston, Derek Paup, Owen Richards, Gage Skarda, Lucas Veatch, Chris Wilson, Skyler Wilson.

Juniors — Trey Chesnut, Payton Conley, Briar Davis, Noah Felix, Gannon Greenwalt, Owen Henderson, Carter Henderson, Ty Morrison, Jaydan Pettegrew, Kohl Ringer, Austin Seaton, Kaden Street, Kyle Strider, George Weis, Cade Wurster.

Sophomores — Wyatt Barber, Steven Bell, Brandon Briley, Talon Bolinger, Gavin Bolton, Dylan Calvin, Max Chapman, Dravin Drake, Austin Evans, Quinten Fuller, McCoy Haines, Diedrick Harris, Brennan Hayes, Lincoln Keeler, Jagger Luther, Carson Rieck, Tucker Rohrig, Lucas Rushing, Savannah Sistad, Max Skellenger, Dillon Starlin, Milo Staver, Cael Turner, Jack Walter.

Team awards

Captains — Chris Wilson, Derek Paup, Andre Davis, Briley Hayes.

Offensive MVPs — Briley Hayes, Avery Fuller.

Defensive MVPs — Gage Skarda, Derek Paup.

Special teams MVP — Gage Skarda.

Scout team MVP — Will Bolinger.

District 6 standings — 1. Harlan 5-0; 2. ADM 4-1; 3. Creston 3-2; 4. Atlantic 2-3; 5. Knoxville 1-4; 6. Saydel 0-5.

2021 scores — Creston 18, Clarinda 6; Winterset 28, Creston 7; Creston 35, Denison-Schleswig 14; Creston 49, Gilbert 17; Creston 49, Knoxville 0; ADM 42, Creston 0; Creston 51, Saydel 12; Harlan 42, Creston 0; Creston 49, Atlantic 19.

Statistical leaders

Passing — Kyle Strider 56-110-3 for 958 yards, 9 TDs; Cael Turner 1-4-0 for 35 yards, 1 TD.

Rushing — Briley Hayes 152 carries for 865 yards, 17 TDs; Brennan Hayes 97 carries for 687 yards, 3 TDs; Kyle Strider 59 carries for 175 yards, 4 TDs; Will Bolinger 14 carries for 148 yards, 2 TDs.

Receiving — Brandon Briley 13-326, 2 TDs; Kayleb Howard 13-165, 3 TDs; Derek Paup 10-153, 1 TD; Aiden Anderson 8-140 1 TD.

Total tackles — Austin Evans 36.0; Briley Hayes 35.0; Gannon Greenwalt 34.5; Ty Morrison 32.5; Derek Paup 29.0; Cael Turner 27.5; Dylan Calvin 27.0; Gage Skarda 26.0.

Solo tackles — Cael Turner 21; Dylan Calvin 20; Briley Hayes 19; Gannon Greenwalt 18; Derek Paup 16.

Tackles for loss — Derek Paup 7.0; Avery Fuller 2.5; Austin Evans 2.5; Max Chapman 2.0; Gage Skarda 2.0; Briley Hayes 2.0.

Interceptions — Cael Turner 4; Dylan Calvin 3; Briley Hayes 2; McCoy Haines 2.

Kickoff returns — Gannon Greenwalt 12-264; Dylan Calvin 6-120.

Punting — Derek Paup 22-37.0 average.

PATs — Aiden Anderson 30-33.