March 29, 2024

New team, new field

Creston/O-M football opens up play on the new turf

Creston/O-M got its first look at its new turf field and its first glance at the 2018 football team Friday against Interstate 35 in a scrimmage.

Creston put together two scoring drives and one that came up just short, looking impressive for most of the night.

In the two drives the Panthers punched in touchdowns on, Creston/O-M moved the ball effectively by mixing and matching looks and keeping the Roadrunners guessing.

Both scores came through the air as starting quarterback Eli Loudon hit Mark Waigand for a 27-yard score to cap off Creston/O-M’s second scoring drive.

The first Creston/O-M touchdown caught a speed bump as the Panthers faced a 4th-and-6, but Gavin Gillam hit a leaping Cael Kralik in the back of the end zone for a score.

“A lot of new pieces in place this year and I thought the organization was good. Offensively we did some good things,” said Panther head coach Brian Morrison.

Creston/O-M would have scored on its opening drive if not for a no-contact rule put in place prior to kickoff that prevented Loudon from crossing the goal line. Morrison quickly waved the rule for his quarterback, knowing his running ability will be a big part of the Panther offense.

“He’s going to run the football. We have to have him to run for our offense to work,” said Morrison.

The turf also caught plenty of eyes as it was finished right down to the wire of the opening kickoff, keeping the Panthers from practicing on their new field until the day of.

For some of the Panther seniors, getting to play on a new field for their final campaign marked something special.

“Personally, I think it’s awesome,” said Kylan Smallwood. “I think it shows that Creston has come a long way, got a lot of money and we really take pride in football.”

“It just shows how much our community supports us,” said Waigand.

“That just shows our community is coming together and supporting us a lot more,” added junior Payton Pryor.

Morrison knew the field would be a huge upgrade.

“It plays great. It’s true. I can’t say enough about the turf. The district, the community an outstanding project for different activities and it will be well used,” said Morrison.

As with any early season scrimmage, there were things that needed to be cleaned up.

I-35 hit its main playmaker Richie Griglione twice through the air for scores, besting the Panther secondary.

The second score was a 48-yard strike that featured a miscommunication in coverage.

Another small change on the field is the location of the play clocks, which have flipped on each side of the endzone from their location last season.

Creston/O-M’s JV team opened with a 6-0 win prior to the varsity squad taking the field.

Creston/O-M will open the season at home against Chariton on Friday at 7 p.m.