With less 10 days until their football season opener with powerhouse York Institute, Coach Derik Samber and the Stone Memorial Panthers fared well Friday in their second scrimmage of the preseason.
After a basic standoff last week with Sequatchie County, the Panthers had little trouble with Bledsoe County at SMHS. Stone won the battle of the scoreboard, 35-6.
“I think we’re trending toward being ready for the season,” Samber said after the scrimmage. “You’re never ready at this point, but we’re closer to where we want to be in that regard. Offensively, we executed at a pretty high clip, had some penalties that slowed us down.
“Defensively, we did some really, really good things the first series. We subbed some guys. Some guys really stood up or stood out. I think Bledsoe is a great program and playing them does a good job of preparing us for the season.”
The Panthers were able to move the ball well against the Warriors Friday. The Stone offensive line gave quarterback Max Warner good time in the pocket. Parker Cox, a new member of the black and gold front wall, played very well.
“We’ve been sharp on offense so far,” Samber said. “I think we’ve had six series of down-and-distance, and we’ve scored on all but two of them. Those stalled out in the red zone, so that’s something we’ve got to clean up.
“Play to play, we’ve been efficient. But situationally, we’ve stopped ourselves. Quarterback, new face, Max Warner, has been really sharp so far with everything we ask of him, throwing the football, making reads, protections, everything we do in the run game. I’m pleased with his progress and where he stands as of today.”
In last year’s 10-2 campaign, the Panthers were stingy on defense. They allowed an average of 19 points per game, but held six opponents to under 10 points. Stone also recorded two shutouts.
“Defensively, what Bledsoe does is tough to prepare for on a short week at this point in the season. And so, again, I was really pleased.” Samber said. “We really threw our No. 1s out there for the most part the first series.
“Second series, we subbed some guys, and that was a mixed bag. But on the whole, for where we are, I was pleased with the progress we made defensively and how effective we were.”
Stone’s final scrimmage of the preseason will be Thursday, Aug. 13, at SMHS. The night’s activities will be in a Jamboree format.
The Junior Panthers are tentatively set to open the night with a game at 5 p.m. The Stone Memorial Middle School game will be at 6 and the high school Panthers will scrimmage Cookeville High School immediately following that game.