Parkway Head Coach Coy Brotherton Coy wanted his Panthers to get off to a fast start against the Haughton Bucs Thursday night.
“That was our challenge to the kids all week,” he said. “Just score early and try to jump on ‘em. They’re coming off a big win last week and probably riding a little bit of a high coming in. So that’s what we told our kids.”
Instead, Haughton, coming off a 36-35 overtime victory over Byrd, got off to a fast start. The Bucs scored on the third play of the game on a 66-yard pass from Taylor Weathersby to Brandon Craig.
“When we gave up that first touchdown I just reminded them on the sideline we knew this was going to happen,” Brotherton said. “We’ve got to get back and respond.”
The Panthers did just that, scoring three touchdowns and two-point conversions before the first 6-minute water break.
By the end of the first quarter, Parkway was up 38-7. The Panthers went on to win their first District 1-5A game 66-31, improving to 3-0. Haughton dropped to 1-2 and 1-1.
Parkway quarterback Kaleb Williams continued his outstanding start to the season. He completed 14-of-17 passes for 231 yards and four touchdowns.
Damian Decaldecal rushed for 135 yards on just 10 carries and scored two touchdowns. AJ Johnson had 68 yards on eight carries. Braxxton Black had 48 on eight and Kai Davis 41 on five.
Antonio Gladney caught three passes for 95 yards. Two of the catches were for touchdowns.
Gary Burney had five catches for 84 yards and a touchdown. Draiden Davis, Dallas Loche and Christian Aguirre also had touchdown catches covering 20, 15 and 3 yards, respectively.
Loche and Mark Copenhaver had interceptions. Copenhaver returned his for a touchdown in the first quarter.
Loche also recovered a fumble forced by Peyton Rayner.
Linebacker Brady Prine led the defense with eight total tackles. Cornerback Avery Price, linebacker Kaden Pugh and safety Cam Davis had five apiece. Rod Johnson and Colby Lee had one sack each.
Backup Brylan Washington tossed a touchdown pass.
“We put it together,” Brotherton said. “I was proud of them. I told the kids we’re going to find something on film to critique them on and try to improve and get better on.
“One of the things that stood out tonight was the three plays Haughton scored on were on third-and-long and fourth-and-long and we’ve got to find ways to get off the field. That’s kind of what we’re going to work on moving forward to get better at.”
Weathersby completed 7-of-18 passes for 170 yards and two touchdowns. He also rushed for 49 yards on five carries and a touchdown.
Ethan Johnson caught nine passes for 127 yards and a touchdown.
Parkway hosts Natchitoches Central next Friday. The Chiefs (1-1) were scheduled to play Captain Shreve Friday night.
Haughton hosts Huntington next Friday. The Raiders (0-2) were scheduled to play Benton Friday night.