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BELMONT -- Buckeye Local and head coach Chris Kiedaisch learned a few things in their season-opening defeat to Bellaire.
One, the importance of holding onto the ball.
While Buckeye struggled to run the ball against a tough Bellaire defense, the Panthers' two fumbles and interception near midfield didn't help mattes.
Second, and perhaps more important, is that despite that adversity, there were no head hanging from the visitors' sideline.
The Panthers still played hard from whistle to whistle and continued to fight where in the past, they may have called it a day early and went through the motions.
If nothing else, that counts as progress.
"Our guys came out and played really, really hard, especially in the first half, but you can't turn the ball over and you can't make day one mistakes like we did in the first half and expect to stay in the game," Kiedaisch lamented after the loss.
There's no time to rest as another road trip and another dangerous foe awaits Friday night in Morristown, as the Panthers travel to take on Union Local (1-0).
The Jets are coming off a 34-20 win against Southern Local in a game they led 14-0 at halftime but had to keep scoring to keep pace with a resurgent Indians team in a 34-20 final.
UL's opportunistic defense certainly helped matters, forcing six fumbles and recovering four.
Southern ran for 197 yards and passed for 165 in a balanced effort of moving the ball, further exemplifying the costly nature of those four turnovers.
Offensively, The Jets mostly moved the ball on the ground while utilizing their two-quarterback system in Colby Carpenter and Isaiah Tomolonis.
Brody Perzanowski led the charge offensively with 124 yards rushing and two touchdowns, while Tomolonis wasn't far behind with 91 and one.
Carpenter threw for only 60 yards on 5 of 10 passing.
Dre Saunders displayed his versatility with a 75-yard punt return for six in the first quarter while Tomolonis capped the scoring with a dazzling 83-yard scoring scamper with 5:23 remaining.
Limiting big plays will be paramount for the Panthers, as well as mounting more of an offense push.
Buckeye was held to nine yards on 27 carries running the ball while the passing game experienced a bit more success, with A.J. McDiffitt throwing for 58 yards and a touchdown on 9-of-17 passing.
Last season the Jets came to World War II Memorial in Yorkville and cruised to a 48-7 win in the Week 2 matchup.