Thanks to BTO for posting the Fairless-Manchester game. Was nice to get to rewatch it and make sure I saw what I thought I saw.
Now that the dust has settled a couple things stuck out to me:
1. Some will see this as a return to the crow buffet for me (it is), but KUDOS to Panthers. I think if you picked the top 10 "athletes" on the field, Manchester might have had 2, maybe 3 guys in that list. That's what I believed going into the game and nothing on the field or video changed my mind. That said - their effort level was tremendous. They out toughed the Falcons again and again. I rewatched play after play and focused on their line finishing block after block.
2. Fairless is SO close to a "special" season (thanks to
@cuyahogacuse for coining that earlier in the year). An undefeated season & PAC title that would be awesome. That said, I don't think this team would have been within 14 points of the 18 CVCA or 18/19 Manchester & Orrville teams. But that's ok, they don't need to be.
3. I missed how often the Panther rush was half a step from getting home during the game. They're going to need to shore that up before playoffs or the QB is going to be in trouble.
4. Thought it Friday and still think it today - I understand going for the win, but I could still see kicking the PAT and playing OT. The OT rules shrink the field and would have minimized Fairless' big play potential. The way Manchester was running the ball you could literally go 3 yards a pop until Fairless stopped you (and they hadn't most of the night).
5. Until Fairless plays someone that can man up on their receivers they're going to be trouble. They are great at busting up zone coverage, especially underneath.
All in all, unless something crazy happens in next 2 weeks, this one is in the lead for PAC Game of the Year by a mile.