Fort Stockton’s boys of fall kicked off their first official Friday night football game in El Paso. The Panthers took on a tough El Paso Austin squad who put up a four-quarter fight, but the Panthers came out victorious. Fort Stockton defeated El Paso Austin 21-13.

“We are very proud of the kids, they showed what Team Never Quit is about, we faced all kinds of adversity, and we just keep overcoming it and fighting for each other,” Head Coach Jeremy Hickman said.

Offensively the Panthers were led on the field by veteran quarterback Senior Marco Garcia. In his second yearleadingthecharge,Garcia came out guns-a-blazing amassing one touchdown, six completions, and 72 rushing yards.

Corbin Luna made his presence known by tallying 133 rushing yards, while Isaiah Velasquez added 48 rushing yards.

With the “Team Never Quit” mantra engrained in each athlete’s subconscious, the Panthers pulled off a come from behind win after a game changing interception by Sophomore Gerry Diaz. He was able to provide the Panthers with a shift of momentum and the team was able to cash in a victory. His reception added 11 yards for the Panthers.

“We are built to win games in the second half,” Hickman said. “We pride ourselves in being tougher in the second half than our opponent.”

Other offensive leaders include Alonso Galindo 10 yards on two receptions, Fabian Silva five yards on two receptions, and Kasch Norman five yards on one reception.

“We are proud of the Offensive Line and their ability to be coachable, make adjustments, and create some big running lanes in the 2nd half,” Hickman said.

Defensively Ejay Ortiz had a standout night recording 11 tackles. Allan Leyva added seven tackles and Gerry Diaz had two tackles with one sack. Evian Acosta was a huge contender in the victory and had a great night of defensive line play.

“We are very proud of the Defensive side of the ball getting better and better throughout the game,” Hickman said. “We are young on defense, and I felt like we grew up tonight.”

With the victory in El Paso, the Panthers are now 1-0 on the season.

“This was a great example of complementary football within a team,” Hickman added. “The offense and defense both did what they had to do in order to win the game. Our kids played hard and played to represent Fort Stockton the right way.

“I was especially proud of our overall fight, and refusal to back down from a big, tough opponent.”

*The Panthers will break-in their new turf field Friday against Alpine. The Bucks opened the season last week with a 41-36 loss to Clint Mountain View.

“They’ve got a new coach this year, and so what I see compared to last year – looking at a couple scrimmages and a film – is I see a group of Alpine Bucks who are playing with a high energy,” Hickman said. “I see a high energy team compared to what they looked like last year.”

The Bucks are led by quarterback No. 12 Devon Rojo, who went 13-for-22 for 212 yards and two touchdowns against Mountain View; his favorite targets are No. 3 Dae Hardwick and No. 28 Reece Ahrens. No. 11 Logan Smith carried the ball 37 times for 169 yards and No. 30 Edward Morrison will be called upon in short-yardage situations. The 215-pound senior carried eight times for 26 yards and two scores against the Lobos.

“They’re a lot more innovative in what they’re doing,” Hickman said. “A lot of trick plays, a lot of formations, whereas last year they were flex-bone and they lined up in this and these plays and that’s what they did. And this new guy has come in here and brought a lot of energy, a lot of excitement and a lot more up-to-date stuff so I’m sure the kids are enjoying learning that, and you can tell they’re playing with a lot of energy and excitement, and they look confident.”

Hickman said that heading into the El Paso Austin game, there was a lot of uncertainty amongst the coaching staff on how the kids were going to play together.

“As the game went on, I saw our kids play more and more together,” Hickman said. “I saw them gelling, I saw the defensive kids really grow up and gain confidence. I saw the offensive side of the ball really make some good adjustments that they haven’t had to do, and it ended up helping us in the end.”

The coach saw a lot of growth in the team coming out of that game, which will translate onto the field Friday against Alpine.

Kickoff is at 7 p.m. Panther JV wins 16-12 The Fort Stockton Panthers JV won a tightly contested game against El Paso Austin Thursday night, 1612. The defense was led by Angel Mendoza with several tackles, and Jose Sarabia, who recovered a fumble late in the fourth quarter to set up the game-winning score. Andrew Black, Landen Rivas, and Josiah Escontrias were also a force on defense.

Offensively, quarterback Nick Almendariz had two touchdown passes, one to Jordan Olvera and the other to Cedric Lopez.

Freshmen fall 18-16 The Freshmen Panthers suffered a loss to El Paso Austin with, 18-16. Riley Muniz scored two touchdowns, the first from 67 yards out on a quarterback keeper and the other on a 4-yard run. Two-point conversions were scored by Esai Ramos. The defense had two big fourth down stops and denied Austin from scoring their twopoint conversions.

Sera Ramirez, Shawn Yorks, Ivan Pena, Matthew Villanueva, and others contributed to this report.