The Creston Panthers begin district play Friday night with a home matchup against the Atlantic Trojans. The Panthers come into the game 0-4 but Head Coach Brian Morrison says his team is competing at a high level and improving week in and week out.

The Panthers come off a 44-31 loss to a 4-0 Des Moines Christian team. Morrison says despite the loss, there was a lot of good things to take away.

Junior Quarterback Tanner Ray has started every game for Creston throwing one touchdown and six interceptions but has run for over 400 yards on the season, something Morrison utilizes as often as he can.

In the backfield, Senior Running Back Jackson Pettigrew had big shoes to fill after losing Weston Trapp in the offseason, who ran for nearly 1,700 yards in 2024 and 18 touchdowns. The Panther coaching staff has been impressed with his consistency.

Creston has had Atlantic’s number historically as the Panthers have taken 15 of the last 18 meetings. Morrison emphasized his team will have to play as clean as possible to come out on top.

Kickoff is scheduled for 7 pm and you can catch all the action on both KJAN and KJANTV starting at 6:30 pm.