MANNFORD — If opening night’s supposed to be like a shakedown cruise, Mannford fired up the outboards and blasted through Perry’s no-wake zone on full plane.
“It was a great way to start the season,” said Mannford Head Coach Kenny Gooch. ”I thought the performance was a solid way to start the year. I liked the mentality of the team to start the game. We needed to maintain that throughout the second half but it was a very good start to our year. I thought we executed offensively from the very beginning of the game especially with the early start on Week 0. Defensively, we did a good job of getting lined up and running to the football and being physical.”
The fuse was short. One snap. Boom. “The first play offensively was a fantastic start,” said Gooch. “Luke Naylor went 65 yards for a TD. We had great blocking on the play from Jerrett Robinson, Brayden Rodriguez and Lyndon Hamilton. Then we got two interceptions early from Trey Scott and Max Moore. Max Moore ran his back for a TD. So a great first half overall.”
Around this time, Perry started to worry, “We’re gonna’ need a bigger boat.”
From there the 48–6 rout looked like a Joe Moss Town & Country repair job — every tool came out of Gooch’s tool box and every tool worked. After Naylor’s 65-yard bolt, JJ Hindsman banged in an 11-yard score. Naylor struck again from 52, Max Moore jumped a Maroon route and took it back for six, then Moore flipped over the game table and hit Hagen Anderson for a 23yard score. Brayden Rodriguez ripped a 28-yard touchdown, and Zane Warnock added a 28-yard romp in the fourth. By night’s end, the Pirates stacked 540 total yards to Perry’s meager 154, with 476 rushing, a 64-yard passing strike package, a 19–7 edge in first downs, and a +3 turnover margin (four takeaways). Alex Guzman punched through six PATs to keep the scoreboard operator focused.
“There were a bunch of players that stood out for us.”
Gooch wasn’t kidding, and neither were the box scores. Naylor (So., 5'6', 140) needed just five carries to stack 149 yards and two TDs; Rodriguez (Sr.) churned 85 yards and a score on 10 totes; Hindsman (Jr.) added 30 yards and a TD; Bailey Westcott (Jr.) pounded out 39; D. Sanderson matched 39; Cooper Dodd (Jr., 6'1', 200) moved bodies at tight end; and Warnock hit paydirt from 28. When Jerrett Robinson (Sr.) wasn’t clearing lanes, he snagged two catches for 41 to flip field position, while Anderson (Sr., 6'1', 210) cashed Moore’s dart for six. Moore (Sr., 6'4', 205) also kept it honest with 33 on the ground and 64 through the air.
“Offensively—All of our backs played well, running for 476 yards,” said Gooch The offensive line was pretty shiny as well.
Roll call up front: Nick Hockersmith (Sr., 5'6', 195) and Ayden Passmore (Jr., 5'10', 215) manned the middle; Jaxton McFarland (Jr., 5'10', 240), Rodrigo Esparza (Sr.), Braden Harger (Jr.), Sebaschyn Gaches (Sr., 5'10', 210), Cooper Boyer (So.), Luke Colson (Sr.), and Steven Condit (Jr., 6'2', 255) took turns paving lanes; and Kendal Howard (Sr.) kept the edges sealed like a brand-new gasket. If the Perry ball carriers saw any daylight, it was because a Pirate lineman was holding the spotlight.
“Defensively—It was a team effort,” said Gooch. “The defensive line, led by Kendal Howard and Hagen Anerson played very physically. The two interceptions were great for our team.”
Watch the game tape and you’ll see Howard setting the tone and Anderson punching timecards at the line of scrimmage. In the back seven, Trey Scott (Sr.) and Moore turned the early picks into momentum, with Moore’s return turning the volume on the Perry sideline all the way down to zero. You could hear the pelicans arguing over shad two coves over.
ZaneUpton(So.)andIsaacBrown (So.) filled thew gaps downhill, R. Tidwell knifed into the backfield for a tackle for loss and a blocked kick, and C. Dodd, Hockersmith, Boyer, Condit, Leslie, Harvey, Rodriguez, Warnock, and Sanderson stacked stops like they were shipping crates at Post Boxey. Mannford finished +3 in turnovers, and Perry’s longest breath was a late 6-yard run after the boats were already on the trailers.
Gooch loved the throttle response off the line and his team’s ability to sustain game intensity.
“We have a lot to learn from this game,” he said. “We will watch the film and get better. Tougher competition is coming for our football team and we need to improve every week to get where we want to get too. The focus this week will be all about us and improving before our matchup with rival Cleveland, coming up September 12.”
The Tigers in Cleveland are going to be hungry and confident, coming off a 62-0 rout of the Blackwell Maroons.
This is just one game,” said Gooch. “We have to get better if we want to get to places we would like to get too.”
Consider it a friendly warning to Class 3A football: the Pirates just spent last Friday night turning Perry’s defense into chum.
In summary: fast start, four takeaways, 476 on the ground, and enough helmet stickers to cover an ice chest. Mannford didn’t just open the season; they opened a channel straight toward Sept. 12— steady as she goes, holding course for the post season.