Mabank Panthers
Mabank slows in district play , finishes 3-7
The Mabank Panthers fell three victories short of their 2021 total after posting a winning non-district campaign .
The Panthers were competitive on defense throughout their schedule and as Coach Zack Hudson predicted featured a grind-it-out style on offense .
Running back Cody Chapman provided much of the offensive spark , piling up 1,019 yards on 178 carries . The senior averaged 5.7 per carry helped him pile up six 100 yard games for the Panthers .
Jaden Rogers carried for 47.7 yards per-outing and led the team with eight scores . Mabank ran for an impressive
2,579 yards for the season .
On the other side of the coin , the passing game was not much of a factor in the run-first offense .
Defensive standout , corner-back Carson Manning , produced 74 tackles to lead the team , while Racer McCullough and Aaron Roden secured 51 and 50 respectively .
Chapman rolled up 124 yards in the opening loss to Bullard . Mabank dropped that one to the Smith County set of Panthers , 28-22 .
Season : 3-7 , 0-5 8-26 Bullard 22-28 9-9 Brownsboro 42-41 9-16 Canton 7-35 9-23 Life Wax . 43-19 9-30 Ford 18-0 10-7 Anna 0-40 10-14 Sulphur Spr . 17-28 10-21 Kaufman 7-31 10-28 Community 14-37 11-3 Paris 12-26
30 | Greater Athens Magazine | January 2023
On Sept . 9 came one of the high spots of the season , when the Panthers and Brownsboro Bears combined for 50 third-quarter points in a 42-21 Mabank win . The Panthers put 30 on the board in the third quarter barrage .
Chapman had his biggest day on Sept . 23 , in the Panthers ’ 43-19 home win over Life of Waxahachie . He burrowed and slashed for 188 yards on 23 carries .
The final Mabank win was on Sept . 30 , when they shut out Quinlan Ford , 18-0 .
District play opened against state-ranked and unbeaten Anna , a 40-0 loss . The Panthers hosted Sulphur Springs the following week , in an evenly fought game , the Wildcats came away with a 28-17 win . Chapman gained 120 yards in the defeat .
Losses followed against Kaufman and Community before Mabank traveled to Paris to close the season .
Mabank ’ s defense shut Paris out for the first half and led 6-0 after the break .
The Wildcats exploded for 20 in the third , en route to a 26-12 win .