Panther Pride: Parkway Pounces into the Post-season

Story by: Wes Merriott

BOSSIER CITY, LOUISIANA: Parkway High School begins the post-season with their first playoff game tomorrow night against Geismer, LA’s Dutchtown High School. 28 teams are vying for the Division I Non-Select Championship with four teams (Ruston, Destrehan, Southside, and Neville) earning first round-byes.

Dutchtown High School is 6-3 and 4-1 in district play, with losses to Northshore, Ponchatoula, and Denham Springs. The teams that beat Dutchtown had a combined record of 20-10, and they start the playoffs ranked #14. The Panthers losses came to teams with a combined record of 21-6, and begin their post-season journey ranked #19.

sobo.live spoke with Parkway Head Coach Coy Brotherton about the practice and prep going into the game aginst Dutchtown. “…Our kids are excited to play someone not from this area.” Senior Defensive End Ray Mayweather echoes those sentiments. “It’s high energy as always. [The team is] pretty confident and high-spirited going into this game.”

The Panthers know that the schedule following tomorrow night’s game doesn’t get any easier. A win tomorow night versus Dutchtown places the Panthers squarely in the sights of the Destrehan Wildcats. Destrehan was a perfect 10-0 with three shut-outs in the regular season. Destrehan has a powerful offense, scoring 40+ points in every game. Their defense is equally formidable, allowing less than 10 points in each game all year thus far.

The Panther’s know they have to operate at peak efficiency to progress in this year’s post-season. “It’s do-or-die for the rest of the way,” Mayweather tells us. The Panthers have some significant offensive weapons at their disposal, with phenom running back Jaylan White putting up 1,445 rushing yards and 468 receiving yards in the regular season. Senior quarterback Ashton Martin threw for an impressive 1,425 passing yards, with White being one of his primary targets. Martin also has wide receiver Trenton Lape (an LSU baseball commit), who has been good for 18 yards per catch this season.

For a team that’s no stranger to the off-season, the challenges presented this year are met with enthusiasm by this team. “It’s been a good week… [the team] has been focused all week,” Coach Brotherton says.

Notes: sobo.live will broadcast Parkway’s first playoff game LIVE on our website and our Facebook Page. Kickoff is 7:00pm on November 11th, 2022.