This can't come as much of a surprise. Moving from D3, Ferrum and the fan base had to know that this will be a hard climb. Yesterday, the Panthers got a taste of what things will likely be like a lot of the time this season.
First let me say that the Indians of Catawba are likely in a stronger conference than Conference Carolinas. This was a good team that Ferrum faced, and the stats show that, but they also show where Ferrum did have bright spots. For Ferrum, I was happy to see the size and ability of the quarterback Eli Foutz. In his first game for the Panthers, Foutz passed for 108 yards, and ran for 50 yards. His size is a definite asset. The Emory and Henry transfer is 6'2" 225lbs, seems to have a strong arm, and is not afraid to take off and pick up yardage. I was also glad to see the kicking position bringing points to the board. After being spoiled by the Deaton brothers over the last several years, Jon Davis stepped up in a big way to hit 2 nice field goals.
There are areas to improve upon however. First of all, I am left with concern about the pass defense. The Catawba quarterback was 11 of 11 for 202 yards 3 touchdowns, and was not sacked. Also, giving up 293 rushing yards and 3 touchdowns on the ground should be a point of emphasis for this weeks practices. I have to remember that Catawba is an established D2 program with returning scholarship athletes. This is not the case for Ferrum, and that makes all the difference. Yesterday was nothing to be ashamed of. It was baseline for where the program is. Things will get better......maybe not next week, but they will get better.
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