Defending state champion Panthers pick up where they left off with another dominant performance

CAMP POINT, Ill. — So far, so good.

Camp Point Central opened defense of its Class 1A state football championship with a resounding exclamation point Friday night.

The Panthers completely overwhelmed an overmatched North Greene team 69-0, winning their 23rd consecutive regular-season game. 

In a contest where a running clock was in place the entire second half, Central never had to throw the ball, never had to punt and was able to run the ball with both power and precision to the tune of 412 yards. Oh, there were also the six turnovers forced by the equally potent Panthers’ defense.

For North Greene, the loss was its 28th in a row, dating to late in the 2020 season. The Spartans are 0-12 against Central since both schools became members of the Western Illinois Valley Conference and have been outscored 215-14 over the last four meetings with Central.

The only downside of opening night for Central found the concession stand running out of all meat-related items before halftime and threatening skies keeping a skydiver from delivering the gameball to midfield in a pregame ceremony.

Other than that, it was difficult for anyone attired in the Panthers’ black and gold to have any sort of complaint about what unfolded in front of a turnout of around 1,600.

“We’re just getting started, and we’ll keep building,” said Central senior center Jaden Summy, who with offensive line mates Wyatt VanDeVelde, Jase Wallace, Kadin Niekamp and Jack Weese, opened one gaping hole after another.

The Panthers rushed for 10 touchdowns — all during the first three quarters. Elijah Genenbacher and Nate Peters each scored three touchdowns. Kellen Meyer added a pair of scores, with Curtis Rigg and Zack Wear each reaching the end zone once.

The longest scoring runs were provided by Riggs (54 yards), Peters (42 yards) and Genenbacher (22 yards). Genenbacher, who ran for 1,108 yards and 27 touchdowns as a junior a year ago, led all ball carriers Friday night with 104 yards on just 10 carries. As a team, Central averaged 11.2 yards per rush while scoring in its 91st consecutive game. The Panthers have not been shut out since 2016.

“Our offensive line did a heckuva job,” Summy said. “Everyone’s effort was phenomenal. We knew we weren’t playing Lena-Winslow (the team Central defeated for the 2023 state title), but we try and treat every opponent with the same kind of respect.”

Central led 26-0 after the first quarter and 48-0 at intermission.

Central coach Brad Dixon admitted this kind of game can be a treacherous path when trying to both set an example of good sportsmanship and getting in needed reps for his front-line players.

“We only used our starters one series in the second half,” Dixon said. “I understand what North Green is going through, but our guys also need to play to be ready for next week’s game at Calhoun.”

Central ventures to Hardin next Friday for the meeting of two of the state’s premier small-school programs. The game will also be a rematch of last year’s 32-14 Central playoff win at Calhoun.

“Calhoun is going to be a tall order,” Dixon said. “We know they’ve had this game circled for a long time.”

Genenbacher said he felt the Panthers did a credible job of not getting caught “looking ahead to Calhoun.”

“At this point, we’re working on not getting ahead of ourselves,” he said. “We still have a lot to prove, but we’ll be ready (for Calhoun).”

Dixon said there will be plenty to refine in the coming week, but opening night most assuredly provided plenty of pluses.

“Offensively, I felt our line did a great job, but we still need to concentrate on getting better,” he said. “Defensively, our takeaways were a real bright spot.”

Central’s six forced turnovers came via interceptions by Peters, Rigg and Kale Niekamp, plus fumble recoveries provided by Genenbacher, Evan Walker and Kaden Kiekamp.

The 69 points scored by Central represent the second-most produced during Dixon’s 14 years at the school. Central defeated Jacksonville School for the Deaf 71-6 in 2013.