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CARROLLTON - For the last four seasons whenever the two schools are scheduled to play against each other, the Carrollton Hawks and the Camp Point Central Panthers are always in the spotlight.
The Panthers will travel roughly two south to Carrollton High School and face the Hawks in a vital week nine WIVC cross-over game. Kickoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. which will be broadcast live here on Riverbender.comThe reasoning is justified.
Since 2012, both teams have finished with winning records, made numerous playoff runs, and have won at least multiple conference championships.
The two programs have established a rivalry, albeit a friendly one. Most importantly, it’s all about football plus respect on and off the field between them every time.
“It’s been about respectful programs playing the game of football, and that’s what’s been neat about this cross-over game in the past,” Carrollton head coach Nick Flowers said. “It’s going to be a good one. It’s going to go down to execution and who makes the fewest penalty mistakes.
Tonight will be the eighth meeting between Carrollton and Central since they first met in 2012.
Carrollton leads the series 4-3. The Panthers have gotten the better of Carrollton in their regular season matchups going 3-1, but the Hawks have always come out on top when the stakes are raised. The teams have met up during the playoffs in 2014, 2016, and 2017 with Carrollton coming away victorious in all of them.
Just about every game has been close, but there have been a couple of years where each side managed to dominate the other.
“In [2013] they kicked our butt pretty good and then in [2016] we whipped them pretty good on their field,” Flowers said. Other than that they’ve been close games.”
With both teams coming in with 7-0 records, the Panthers came into Carrollton and shutout the Hawks 33-0 in 2013. Three seasons later, the Hawks on the road in Camp Point, destroyed the Panthers in the first round of the playoffs 46-0.
Coming into this season, Central was ranked No. 4 in the Class 1A AP poll, with Carrollton right behind them at No. 5. The Hawks were out after a week one 22-14 to the Triopia Trojans while the Panthers have been mainstays in the top ten all season long. They’re currently ranked No. 6.
Right now the Hawks are 6-2 and riding a six-game winning streak. Central is 7-1 and both teams previous loss is the to the Beardstown Tigers. They roughed up Carrollton 40-6 in week two and then did so somewhat similar to the Panthers in week six 42-24.
“We know their schemes well both offense and defensively. They know our schemes pretty well from the past,” Flowers said. “I don’t think either of us [is] going to do anything different than what we’ve done other than try to throw a wrinkle or two maybe here and there. It’s going to come down to blocking and tackling.”
Blocking and tackling is what the Panther do particularly well. So far, their defense has allowed an average of nine points per game, which leads the entire WIVC.
Offensively, Central operates under a wing-t that’s led to them running riot in most of their games.
All-state running back Cole Williams has rushed for 615 yards with 67 carries, nine touchdowns, and averages 9.2 yards per carry. Chayse Houston is just as capable. He’s tallied 52 carries with nine touchdowns and 10.4 yards per run. Fullback, Noah Strohkirch has 64 carries with 368 yards and six touchdowns. Additionally, the Panthers have five other backs with at least ten carries, and two of them have over 100 yards rushing.
Central can pass as well.
Eric Jones is 28-for-49 (57%) through the air with 633 yards. He’s thrown nine touchdowns and two interceptions. Houston and Williams are his two most prominent targets while Tristan Brocksieck and Collin Sally each have over 100 receiving yards.
“We have to slow them down. To win big ball games you gotta play good defense,” Flowers said. “The old saying keeps resurfacing. Offense will win you games, but championship games have to be won defensively. It’s going to come down to defense, and we’ve been improving each game throughout the season.”
Since losing to Triopia and Beardstown, the Hawks have won six-straight games and surrendered 38 points on defense.
Offensively, Carrollton’s spread offense will test Central’s secondary.
“They’re used to defending and playing on a third of the field, and they do it well, but I think once we make them defend the whole field that’s a whole different ball game,” Flowers said. “Their coaches know it, and we’re going to find some holes and give them trouble.”
Hunter Flowers needs 64 passing yards to get over 2,000 yards for the second season in a row. The junior quarterback 125-for-207 (60%) with 24 touchdowns with and eight interceptions. All-state wide receiver Nathan Walker has caught 35 passes with 12 touchdowns and 604 yards. Zach Flowers has hauled in 34 passes with 474 yards and four touchdowns. Junior Garrett Settles has tallied 380 yards with three touchdowns and 23 receptions. Brett Lehr also has caught three touchdown passes.
For the most part, the Hawks run game hasn’t made a significant impact, however last week, Byron Holmes rushed for 96 yards on 11 carries and scored a touchdown, while Hunter Flowers found the end zone three times on the ground.
Flowers and the Hawks are confident they can put up points against the Panthers not only straight up, but also to potentially tire them out in what should be a war of attrition.
“Eventually they could wear us down, so that’s why we’re going to have to score a lot of points and wear them out,” Nick Flowers said. “They’re going to have to defend us, and it is different defending a spread team than a traditional offense.”
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