Pregame show at 6:45 p.m., kickoff at 7 p.m. from Panther Stadium
A top-10 showdown is coming to Wise County. No. 3 Paradise returns home tonight to face No. 10 Graham in a meeting of unbeaten, state-ranked teams at Panther Stadium, and you can follow every snap live right here.
The pregame show, presented by Barefoot Pools, starts at 6:45 p.m., with kickoff set for 7 p.m. Thomas Brown has the play-by-play call tonight, with Brody Gates on production. Prefer to listen on the go? The full broadcast is also available for free on the NTX Varsity Sports app. Download it free and take Panther football with you wherever Friday night finds you.
Two Unbeatens, One Common Opponent
In this week’s Dave Campbell’s Texas Football state rankings, Paradise holds the No. 3 spot in Class 3A Division I while Graham checks in at No. 10 in Class 4A Division II. Regular-season meetings between two ranked, unbeaten teams from different classifications don’t come around often, and this one comes with a built-in measuring stick. Both teams have already faced Godley. Graham opened its season by handling the Wildcats 42-12. Paradise went to Godley last Friday and won 50-29. Tonight, the two teams that solved the same test get to solve each other, in Paradise’s third straight game against a 4A opponent.
The Panthers Are Rolling
Through two weeks, the Paradise offense has been close to unstoppable: 92 points and 924 total yards, an average of 46 points and 462 yards a game.
Last week’s road win showed this team’s toughness to go with its firepower. Trailing 15-14 at halftime in Godley, the Panthers outscored the Wildcats 36-14 after the break, slamming the door with a 21-0 fourth quarter on their way to the 50-29 final.
Senior quarterback Ayden Olalde has been the engine. He’s completed 45 of 63 passes for 560 yards and eight touchdowns without an interception this season, and he’s added two rushing scores. Running back Harmon delivered a breakout night at Godley, piling up 149 rushing yards with touchdown runs of 53 and 63 yards and adding a 13-yard scoring catch for a three-touchdown performance. He’s found the end zone five times already this year.
The weapons keep multiplying. Sophomore Sawyer Murphy has three touchdown catches through two games, including a 35-yarder at Godley, and Brittian and Jennings each hauled in scoring passes last week. The defense has done its part with five takeaways in two games.
Scouting the Steers
Graham is the most proven opponent Paradise has seen this season. The Steers went 9-4 a year ago and reached the third round of the Class 4A Division II playoffs, winning an area-round matchup before falling to Greenwood in the regional semifinals. This fall, they’ve been even scarier. Graham followed the 42-12 dismantling of Godley with a 48-0 shutout of Eagle Mountain, a 90-12 combined scoring margin that vaulted the Steers into the state’s 4A Division II top 10 after opening the year outside it.
That makes tonight a genuine heavyweight non-district clash: two ranked, unbeaten programs with playoff-sized ambitions, separated by a classification and not much else.
What to Watch
Something gives tonight. Paradise hasn’t been held under 42 points this season, and Graham hasn’t looked like a team that gets pushed around. If Olalde keeps distributing to Murphy, Harmon and company at his current clip, the Panthers will be hard to slow down at home. Watch the second half, too. Paradise buried Godley after halftime last week, and that kind of finishing power tends to travel from week to week.
Game Information
Who: Graham Steers (2-0) at Paradise Panthers (2-0) When: Tonight. Pregame at 6:45 p.m., kickoff at 7 p.m. Where:Panther Stadium, Paradise, Texas
How to listen: For FREE, listen right here on NTXVarsitySports.com, or on the NTX Varsity Sports app, with Thomas Brown on the call and Brody Gates on production, presented by Barefoot Pools
Tune In Tonight
A top-10 team on each sideline, a rolling home offense, and a visiting defense that moves like a machine. This is the game of the week in Wise County, and one of the best small-school matchups in Texas tonight.
Join us at 6:45 p.m. for the pregame show presented by Barefoot Pools, stick around for kickoff at 7, and follow the Panthers all season long right here on NTXVarsitySports.com and the NTX Varsity Sports app.