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YORKVILLE -- Make no mistake, the time is now for Buckeye Local.
The Panthers are mired in a three-game losing streak to start the season, searching for an identity with new faces in new places, coupled with yet another round of the injury bug making its way through the locker room.
"We are pretty banged up and were playing three freshmen at times, and those kids just aren't ready to be out there," Hoover admitted following a 26-0 loss to Shadyside. "We have been our own worse enemy all season and we have got to find our identity on offense. Turnovers and
penalties will kill you. We just have to get better."
Through three games, the Panthers have been shut out twice and have scored only one touchdown -- a special teams score during the 48-7 loss to Union Local in Week 2.
It's certainly not what head coach Jim Hoover expected to start the season, and if the Panthers want to turn things around, there's no better place to do so than World War II Memorial Stadium come Friday night.
Why? The opponent, Brownsville (Pa.) is in a bit of a losing streak itself. A quite lengthy one, in fact.
The last time the Falcons won a football game was the 2019 season. Since then the program
has suffered 32 straight losses, the longest streak in Western Pennsylvania.
The most recent defeat saw Brownsville fall to Uniontown 34-8. In that game, the Falcons failed to take flight, finishing with nary a passing yard and 187 of rushing.
The team is a bit of a throwback, choosing to have quarterback Harlan Davis (6-1, 210) to come out primarily under center in I-backfield and Pro-Set formations.
Against Uniontown, Davis had some success running the ball on designed rollouts, and the Falcons will throw in some option plays. But passing is not their forte.
Saying this is Buckeye's best chance to get a win is not a knock at Brownsville. Far from it. But the Panthers know what it's like to endure a multi-season losing streak. They know how easily one little thing going wrong in a game can snowball mentally with the team thinking "here we go
again" and start mentally checking out.
A couple Panthers' scores early could go a long way to taking the fight out of the Falcons before the game even gets rolling.
Monroe Central (1-2) and Shenandoah (1-2) followed the Brownsville game. Neither has a winning record presently, but neither is a slouch. After that it's Toronto, unbeaten Edison, River, and the regular-season finale against rival Harrison Central at home.
None of those games have been decided either, but if Hoover and company hope to turn around 2023, it begins Friday night against the recently flightless Falcons.
Next week, Brownsville will host OVAC opponent Shadyside (1-2).