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Panthers face test against look-alike program By DON HUNT Both teams feature high-powered offenses, big quarterbacks with strong arms and a nice collection of wide receivers. Both are expected to be in the hunt for conference championships. Both know each other as if they were next-door neighbors, and they've even got the same nickname - Panthers. They are the South Medford Panthers and the Redmond Panthers, and they meet Friday night in Redmond in one of the more intriguing non-league football games of the week. "Our teams are definitely similar," nods South Medford coach Bill Singler. "I look at them and it's kind of like looking in a mirror. This is going to be a fun game for both teams to play." The two squads have gotten together each of the past two summers at a team camp put on by Redmond coach Robby Robinson. The South Medford players stayed in the homes of Redmond players each year. Mutual respect formed. Friendships followed. On the field, each squad had difficulty stopping the other, and that figures to be the case again on Friday. Redmond is led by quarterback Josh Wagenblast, a 6-foot-4, 200-pound senior who led the Intermountain Conference in passing last season with 1,580 yards. Wagenblast started off this season impressively by completing 18 of 26 passes for 391 yards and five touchdowns in a 43-12 victory over Crater last Friday. "It's a fair statement to say he's one of the best (quarterbacks) in the state," Robinson said. "But then so is their guy." That would be Boomer Marshall, South Medford's 6-2, 215-pound junior who completed 11 of 16 attempts for 167 yards and two TDs in leading the local Panthers to a season-opening 43-19 victory over Del Norte, Calif. Although both school's defenses are improved from last season, many expect a shootout Friday with the two gunslingers eager to unload. "I know our kids think they can score on anybody, and I'm sure theirs do, too," Robinson says. "It could be a wild game." South Medford's inexperienced secondary will certainly get tested. Cornerbacks Dave Henneman and Dan Hilgendorf and strong safety Bryson Healy are all first-year starters, while free safety Danny Kime missed several games last season with a concussion. "Our best bet is to use our blitz packages and take some chances," Singler says. "We've got to get some pressure on (Wagenblast)." Singler also hopes to crank up his team's running game and control the ball to some extent. The Panthers' 1-2 running punch of Andres Reed and Rob Brown combined for 186 yards and four touchdowns last Friday. In other games involving SOC teams Friday, North Medford (1-0) plays host to Bend (0-2), Ashland (1-0) travels to Gresham (0-1), Crater (0-1) journeys to Crook County (1-0), Mountain View (0-1) ventures to Grants Pass (1-0), Roseburg (1-0) goes to Sheldon (1-0) and Klamath Union (0-1) travels to Summit (0-1). On Saturday afternoon, Eagle Point plays at Benson in a non-conference game. ASHLAND AT GRESHAM - The Grizzlies drove 57 yards in the game's final two minutes to squeak past College Park, Calif., 26-25 last week, but coach Jim Nagel admits they dodged more than a few bullets. College Park racked up 320 yards rushing and held a 411-258 edge in total offense, but the Grizz walked off with the win. Ashland has spent much of the week figuring out how to stop the option, a play that burned the Grizzlies badly last Friday. "We need to be more disciplined," Nagel says. "We had two guys on (College Park's) pitch back and no one on their quarterback, and he killed us." Gresham was highly regarded in the preseason but lost 48-16 to Glencoe in its season-opener. The Gophers suffered another setback a few days later when twins Ronald and Randall Richmond transferred to Franklin High of Portland. Ronald Richmond, a 6-0, 190-pound senior tailback, is one of the state's top college prospects. CRATER AT CROOK COUNTY - Two teams struggling to establish credibility square off at Ward Rhoden Stadium in Prineville. Crater went 0-9 last season and began 2001 with a 43-12 loss to Redmond. Crook County went 1-8 a year ago and launched its 2001 campaign with a not-so-impressive 33-30 victory over Illinois Valley, a Class 3A school. MOUNTAIN VIEW AT GRANTS PASS - It only took one game for the Cavemen to prove their offense is superior to last season's. Tom Cohen is the reason. The senior quarterback passed for 310 yards and three touchdowns in GP's 34-19 season-opening victory over South Eugene. Cohen could have another field day against Mountain View, which yielded 306 yards through the air in a loss to North Medford last Friday. ROSEBURG AT SHELDON - This is the game of the week in the state. No. 2-ranked Sheldon is led by quarterback Alex Brink, who led the Midwestern League in passing last season as a sophomore and made his 2001 debut by throwing for 270 yards and three TDs in a 57-0 romp over North Bend. No. 7 Roseburg will lean on the running of senior tailback Rod Cope, who ran for 144 yards in the Indians' 35-27 victory over Bend last week. KLAMATH UNION AT SUMMIT - Klamath Union will be determined to finish what it starts after allowing a 19-0 halftime lead to slip away last week in a 23-19 loss to Mazama. Senior tailback Brad Mejia, who ran for 169 yards and scored all 19 of the Pelicans' points in that game, could have an encore. Summit yielded 318 yards rushing in a 42-7 loss to Eagle Point. EAGLE POINT AT BENSON - Don't look now, but Eagle Point has the top-ranked quarterback in the SOC in Robert Slayton, who completed 9 of 14 passes for 127 yards and three touchdowns in the Eagles' victory over Summit. Believe it or not, Eagle Point hasn't been 2-0 since 1984, when it opened with a 26-0 victory over Redmond and followed with a 17-13 upset win over Medford High. Reach reporter Don Hunt at 776-4469, or e-mail [email protected] Mail Tribune Home | Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. | Dow Jones & Co., Inc. | Privacy | Contact Us Copyright � 2001 Mail Tribune, Inc.