O’Fallon finishes season strong with win over Cahokia, readies for playoffs
O’Fallon’s football team showed they’re ready for the upcoming posteason following a dominating 49-20 win against Cahokia on Friday night.
The Panthers finish with their best regular season record since 2011 when they were 8-1 and placed second in the Southwestern Conference.
“We have a good group and they’re focused,” O’Fallon coach Byron Gettis said. “We’re going to watch film then watch the selection show (Saturday night) and get to work.”
The Panthers now will face a familiar foe in the opening round of the Class 8A playoffs. O’Fallon, seeded No. 11, is set to host Edwardsville (6-3), seeded 22nd at 7 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 29. The Panthers rallied to defeat their fellow Southwestern Conference foe 32-31 earlier this season.
The Panthers started strong as, on their first drive, quarterback Colt Michael scored from three yards out for a 7-0 lead.
With 36.3 seconds left in the first quarter Kylan Green scored a 6-yard rushing touchdown to give O’fallon a 13-0 lead.
Wide receiver Jalen Smith later hauled in a 14-yard touchdown from Michael with 10:58 left in the second quarter.
Then, just 51 seconds later, running back Christopher Caldwell put the Panthers up 27-0 with his 3-yard touchdown run. Caldwell led O’Fallon in rushing with 82 yards.
“We wanted to get here, we didn’t want to have the same feeling from last year,” Caldwell said. “We’re going to take a lot from this game, learn from it and build upon it.”
Cahokia got on the board following Nicholas DeLouch Jr.’s 5 yard touchdown reception from quarterback Omarion Gooden with 3:37 left in the second quarter.
O’Fallon, however, answered, as Michael threw a 5-yard touchdown to Xavier Deatherage just 2:47 before halftime for a 33-6 margin.
Panthers’ kicker Brogan Hartman kicked a 34-yard field goal in the final seconds of the half for a 36-6 lead.
Later, Gooden scored a 1-yard touchdown on the Comanches first drive of the second half to cut the lead to 36-12.
O’Fallon responded as wide receiver Camryn Sheehan grabbed a 3-yard touchdown pass from Michael with 6:15 left in the third quarter.
O’Fallon’s Zach Novy then snagged a big interception in the third quarter with 5:14 left.
Overall, the Panthers defense was strong with five quarterback hits, three sacks and one fumble recovery. Linebacker Drake Mosely led the Panthers with eight tackles and one sack.
DeLouch Jr. caught an 11-yard touchdown with 2:14 left in the third quarter and then ran it in for a two-point conversion, making the score 42-20.
The Panthers put the game to end following Green’s 3-yard touchdown run with 3:35 left in the fourth quarter.
Reunion of sorts
Both Gooden and Gettis played and starred at Cahokia in football. And, in the end, both their teams put up a solid battle on the field.
“We know being from Cahokia, we’re going to get after it and may the best man win,” Gettis said.
What’s next
With Friday’s loss, Cahokia missed its chance for a state playoff berth, finishing the season 4-5.
“Just knowing that the regular season is over (is tough), especially fighting to get into the playoffs,” Comanches coach Orlando Gooden said.
O’Fallon, meanwhile, will be awaiting their state playoff matchup when the Class 8A schedule is released Saturday night.
This story was originally published October 22, 2022 at 7:30 AM.