The Paola backfield combo of Jovanni Blackie and Layton Brandt couldn’t be contained during the Panthers’ 46-14 win over Lansing in the first round of the Class 4A playoffs on Friday.
The dynamic duo combined for six touchdowns and 277 rushing yards to help set up a second round matchup against Piper next Friday. Although Brandt and Blackie had plenty of reasons to smile about their personal statistics, the main thing that mattered to them was getting the win and seeing each other succeed.
“It’s cool to have four touchdowns, but I really enjoy blocking for Jovanni Blackie. He’s one of the best Frontier League players we’ve had in like 12 years,” Brandt said. “It’s just a great honor to be blocking and having him hit those holes, getting those yards and getting those first downs. But I am blessed to have four touchdowns tonight.”
Blackie set the tone for the Panthers by rushing for 50 yards on their opening drive, which he capped off with a 2-yard touchdown run. The senior tailback finished with 210 yards and two touchdowns on 25 carries. Blackie’s other score came in the second quarter on a 14-yard run.
“The offensive line is just creating a lot of holes for me. That’s just how I like it,” Blackie said. “There are a lot of holes to cut in and cut out. They’re doing a really good job.”
Brandt’s first touchdown run was sandwiched between Blackie’s scores, as he found pay dirt from 4 yards out. Much of Brandt’s damage came in the second half, though, and it wasn’t just on the offensive side of the ball. Brandt punched it in on runs of 2, 5 and 19 yards after the break, but arguably the biggest play of the game came on his interception in the third quarter.
“The ball was tipped and I saw it kind of just flipping around. I was like, ‘I better get under it,’ so I got under it and took off,” Brandt said. “I saw No. 5 (Caden Crawford). He’s a really good player and I appreciate playing against him. He really gave us a good look at what we need to improve on. I still saw him coming and completely booked it the other way. He had a great angle and still got me. I was still blessed with my blocks. Isaiah Taylor had a really good block on No. 90 (Calvin Sholey) and really gave me that big run.”
While Brandt was disappointed that he couldn’t quite beat Crawford to the end zone, most of his return was negated by a Paola penalty. Nevertheless, Brandt still scored to end the ensuing drive, which pushed Paola’s lead to 39-14.
Even though the one-two punch of Brandt and Blackie provided plenty of offense for the Panthers, they showed the ability to get it done in the air in the hurry-up to end the first half. Quarterback Trey Moala connected with Christopher Lohaus-Fast for a 28-yard pass before firing a 31-yard touchdown strike to Maxwell Douglass to give the Panthers a 26-7 at the half.
“Our quarterback literally hasn’t played since he’s been in eighth grade and is starting to get more and more comfortable in the game,” Paola coach Mike Dumpert said. “We were very one-dimensional early in the year, but we’re starting to spread it out a little bit and are harder to defend.’
Despite trailing by 19 at the break, Lansing proved it had some big playmaking ability that could keep them in it. Sophomore quarterback Dalton Jorgenson found a rhythm late in the first half and carried it over into the third quarter. Jorgenson connected with Richie Patrick and Caden Howell for 32-yard passes on the Lions’ first drive of the second half, but he was knocked out of the game after completing the pass to Howell. Crawford picked up right where Jorgenson left off, though, and finished the drive with a 12-yard touchdown strike to Howell.
Crawford, who is committed to Iowa to play linebacker, wasn’t at full strength, but one wouldn’t know it by his play on both sides of the ball.
“He’s going to fight through it. His hamstring still isn’t 100%,” Lansing coach Dylan Brown said. “That’s what kept him out of the Platte County game. That’s why we had Jorgenson starting because we knew Caden couldn’t give us a lot running the ball. He just toughed it out and played with a hamstring that probably hurts more than we know. He still plays out of this world.”
Although Paola answered right back with a Brandt touchdown run, Crawford had the Lions on the move again on the ensuing drive with a 36-yard pass to Patrick. Patrick paced the Lansing receiving corps with four catches for 103 yards, including a 23-yard touchdown reception from Jorgenson in the first half. However, Brandt’s interception came on the following play and quickly shifted the momentum right back to the Panthers.
“That was such a big swing in the game because we were trying to narrow it down to a couple of possessions. We thought we were doing well throwing the ball,” Brown said. “Caden rolled out, saw his guy, but the kid from Paola just made a good play getting his hand up on that ball. All it took was the fingertip and then the ball going off a helmet. The bounces just didn’t go our way.”
Lansing closed its season with a record of 2-7. Paola pushed its record to 6-3 going into the second round matchup with Piper. The Panthers edged the Pirates, 24-19, in Week 6.
“Piper presents a lot of problems. We have a lot of respect for them,” Dumpert said. “We know they do things right. They’ve got tremendous speed in their backfield. They’re capable of housing any one play. We’re both familiar with each other. It’s not like anyone is going to fool each other this time of year. We know what’s ahead of us. We’ve got to keep getting better because we know it’s going to be a test.”
