The return from Injuries by Jamarion Gardner played a major role in a big bounceback by the Russellville Panthers Friday. Gardner, a junior who had rushed for 1,700 yards in his first two seasons, had carried the ball only 19 times for 32 yards in those five running-clock losses going to the RHS homecoming.

He helped several other key Panthers pile up 521 yards total offense.

Game 6 featured a healthy Gardner running the ball 16 times for 206 yards and three touchdowns on the way to a 44-17 win over Class 3A’s Hopkins County Central. His 65-yard scoring run with 9:44 remaining in the half put the Panthers up 10-3, and they never trailed.

Coach Mikie Benton’s team led by 14 points three times—at 17-3 on a 66-yard run by LaBryan Nourse, 24-10 on a 79-yard JaCoveon Temple-Dickerson catch of a Jerius Coleman pass, and 31-17 on a 4-yard run by Gardner, set up by a 32-yard Coleman-to-Nourse pass and a 34-yard reception by Amarus Morrow on a Coleman pass.

The Panthers gained separation when Gardner’s third touchdown run made the score 37-17, and then Nourse returned an interception 80 yards for a touchdown. The point after kick was good to make it 44-17 with 5:04 remaining to close out the game.

Kicking was great for the Panthers. Alex Arnold kicked one of the two field goals he attempted and also connected on a long PAT after a penalty. Madden Bloodworth was 4 of 5 on extra points. Temple-Dickerson not only kept The Storm backed up, but he converted an onside kick that he had kicked himself. That was nullified, however, not by anything the Panthers had done wrong but because HCC had lined up offsides before the play began.

Coleman completed 9 of 15 passes for 176 yards and a touchdown with two interceptions. He ran 4 times for 37 yards. For good measure, he led the team in tackles with 8, all but one of them a solo.

Morrow made 7 solo tackles, 4 of them for losses, including a sack. He also forced a fumble and caught a pair of passes for 46 yards.

Temple-Dickerson caught three passes for 79 yards and a touchdown and made three solo tackles in addition to his kicking excellence.

Nourse had the 80-yard interception return, rushed 8 times for 96 yards and a TD, caught 3 passes for 42 yards, and totaled 5 tackles, 3 of them solos.

Four of Anthony Allen’ six tackles were solos, two of them tackles for losses.

Taven Anderson’s four tackles included two solos for losses. Kendarius Boyd and freshman Averyon Allen both were credited with a tackle for a loss.

Freshman Randall Morrow, who played the last few minutes at quarterback, intercepted an HCC pass and returned it 18 yards.

The Panthers begin district play Friday at Ballard Memorial.