Panthers rout Falcons, make history

For the first time in Porterville High School’s history, the Panthers will be practicing football on Thanksgiving.

Why is that so significant? It means that for the first time ever, Porterville has advanced beyond the first round of the postseason.

The No. 3 Panthers shook off a sluggish start and routed No. 14 Independence (Bakersfield), 42-5, Friday night at Jacob Rankin Stadium.

No longer is the weight of King Kong a burden on their backs.

“It’s amazing,” said Porterville senior Casey Erickson, who had four tackles. “We’ve had so much history and we’d never won a playoff game. Some teams would go 10-0 and still couldn’t win.”

This year’s Panthers finished 7-3 during the regular season and returned to the playoffs for the second straight year after a 16-year drought.

“We started calling it a curse and it’s finally broken,” Erickson continued. “We’re just ecstatic.”

In his seven years of coaching, Porterville’s Rick Stewart also earned his first trip beyond the first round after taking McFarland, Corcoran and now Porterville (twice).

This year, the Panthers won’t be participating in the occasional Turkey Bowls on Thanksgiving Day with friends, as they’ll be preparing for No. 6 Ridgeview (who defeated Hanford West, 42-30, Friday) for the following day.

“That’s a big honor to say you practiced on Thanksgiving morning,” Stewart said. “People don’t realize how hard it is (to advance past the first round).”

Not surprisingly, a senior helped guide the much more experienced Panthers past a Falcons squad that didn’t have any in its first year of existence.

Quarterback Richie Coppenbarger connected on an efficient 7-of-10 passes for 94 yards and a touchdown while rushing for another on a 1-yard quarterback sneak. He also added four tackles on the other side of the ball.

Porterville receiver Tyler Moody caught the lone touchdown pass from five yards out and dragged his feet in the end zone before falling out of bounds. Had the officials ruled otherwise, Independence would’ve held a 3-0 lead early in the second quarter when its kicker nailed a 40-yard field goal.

But that was all the scoring Porterville’s stuffy defense would allow while its offense would go on to score six more touchdowns.

“It was a great defensive effort,” Panthers lineman Larry Fleisher said. “We only gave up three (points) on defense. During warmups, we were slacking off a little bit, but we got it going.”

After his 1-yard sneak, Coppenbarger deceptively handed the ball to running back David Ali, who carried it 31 yards into the end zone for the first of his two scores. Ali ended up carrying 15 times for 127 yards despite seeing little action in the fourth quarter.

Bruce Volaski recovered the ball on the ensuing onside kick, Ali scampered 22 yards and then again for 13 yards for his second touchdown between gaping holes to make it 28-3 just before the half.

The Falcons rarely got a sniff of the red zone as quarterback Tyler Schilhabel was held to 122 yards on 10-of-22 passing while taking a beating from Porterville’s front line. Numerous Panthers sacked the sophomore for large chunks of loss, including a crushing nine-yard sack by Matt Clark in the third quarter.

“I’m really happy with our defense,” Stewart said. “They played outstanding football.”

Except for the 17 penalties, Stewart added.

“We must’ve had over 100 yards in penalties,” Stewart said. “We’re like the Oakland Raiders every Friday. The offense went like 30 yards backwards. I don’t know if it’s lack of focus or what. If somebody has the answer, they need to call me. I’d pay big money for the answer.”

Cornerback Michael Clark was hit with a pass interference that gave the Falcons possession at Porterville’s 13-yard line — one of the many tales of the tape in regards to Porterville’s pass defense.

“(Independence) still had wide open receivers,” Stewart said. “That’s a young quarterback. He was missing them, but a good, experienced quarterback is gonna hit those.”

But following Matt Clark’s sack, Austin Flynn intercepted Schilhabel at the 3-yard line and prevented the Falcons their best shot of scoring all night, though the they would later get two points on a safety by Dale Pierson.

Each Clark scored a touchdown in the second half, the first one off a 5-yard Michael Clark run that capitalized on an eight-play, 59-yard drive early in the third quarter. Later in the fourth, Matt Clark covered the same amount of territory in one play — a 61-yard dash down the middle that beat the rest of the field by 15 yards.

Jordan McIntire turned in an all-around performance of five receptions for 73 yards as well as three carries for 23 yards.

Stewart chalked up the historical win to the idea that if the Panthers hoped to advance this year, they’d have to put in the time.

“I would like to think that they’ve worked harder than any Panther before them,” Stewart said. “That was our motto this year: To go where no Panther has gone before, we have to work harder than any Panther before us.”

Though Stewart, who has turned around each program he’s helmed, should certainly get some of the credit for the Panthers’ recent transformation, he was quick to attribute the glory to the players on the field.

“It’s all about these kids making school history,” he said. “We talked about leaving your legacy. People will be talking about this team 5 and 10 years from now.”

Fleisher, for one, quickly deflected the glory to the fans who have been long in waiting for this moment.

“This is for Porterville,” Fleisher said. “It feels great.”