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Superior Sun
The No. 3-ranked Superior football team enjoyed its bye week and is more-than-ready for Saturday’s quarterfinal playoff game versus No. 6 Gilbert Christian, a team the Panthers beat on Oct. 9, 62 – 37.
“This is a tough 2nd round match up for us, but we will be ready to meet the challenge,” Panthers’ head coach Ryan Palmer told the Superior Sun. “You have to beat the best, sometimes twice, to be the best and our kids are eager to prove themselves once again.”
At this time of year, the extra rest has to be considered an advantage. It gives the players a chance to rest their bodies and get additional treatment on injuries that may have been lingering. Maintaining the players’ anxiety as they waited to find out who their opponent would be might have been the most difficult challenge as a result of the first-round bye.
“We earned the bye,” Palmer said. “This team did everything right in the regular season and the bye was our reward. With that being said, we attacked last week like a championship team; we worked hard, as we will this week, in preparation for victory on (Saturday).
Junior quarterback Nicolas Cruz accounted for six touchdowns in the game a few weeks ago between the teams. He ran for nearly 300 yards and scored four rushing touchdowns.
The Panthers did allow 37 points – their most in any game this season – to the Knights in the first game. That may be one area they’ll need to improve in the playoffs because as they saying goes, defense wins championships.
“In the first match up with Gilbert Christian we made plenty of mistakes,” Palmer answered when asked what his team needs to control to have success on Saturday. “We need to reduce our mental errors on offense and focus on executing the fundamentals of tackling and playing assignment football on defense.”
He added, “We need to play as a team, win the turnover battle, and outplay them in all three phases of the game; offense, defense, and special teams.”
A reminder that the AIA operates the playoff games, which means there may be different admission fees for Saturday’s game: $8 Adults and $5 Students with School ID; Children five and under admitted free
Saturday’s kickoff is scheduled for 6 p.m.
Andrew Luberda began writing for Copper Area News Publishers (CANP) in February 2013 after working 15 years in Healthcare Financial Management. Andy covers sports for 11 high schools. His stories are published in Copper Basin News, San Manuel Miner and Superior Sun, in addition to the San Tan Valley Daily PRSS and CopperArea websites. Additionally, he has written human interest stories and business profiles. In May 2012, he earned an AAS in Sports Management at Central Arizona College before graduating with a BS in Communication from Arizona State University in 2014. He and his wife, Kelli, have three sons – AJ, Kyle, and Kade.
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