Panthers, Demons play for playoff berth

WASHINGTON - With both squads in the top 16 in the RPI, this Friday's Mt. Pleasant-Washington football game looks to be for all the marbles. While Solon has wrapped up the district crown, the Panthers and Demons are in all likelyhood playing for one of the 16 spots in Class 3A's playoff bracket.

The two teams have identical records at 6-2 overall and 3-1 in district play. They've both beaten the same district teams; Keokuk, Ft. Madison and Fairfield, and they've both suffered their only league loss to Solon.

Washington will be looking for its eighth win in eight years against the Panthers. Mt. Pleasant hasn't beaten Washington since the two teams started playing on a yearly basis again after an awkward two-year stretch of not playing each other in 2010 and 2011.

The last two meetings between the two teams have been right down to the wire. In 2017, Washington edged Mt. Pleasant 16-14 in the district opener at Washington. The Demons knocked the Panthers off 28-23 in last season's regular season finale at Mt. Pleasant.

Washington starting quarterback Luke Turner is undefeated against the Panthers, starting both of the last two years. In 2017, his feet did the heavy lifting, running past Mt. Pleasant for 124 yards. Last year, the Demon gunslinger lit the Panthers up for 348 yards and two touchdowns through the air.

Mt. Pleasant's defense will have to watch out for senior wide receiver Ethan Hunt. In last year's game, Hunt was a star for Washington, catching five passes for 111 yards and a touchdown.

Mt. Pleasant's offense is full of names new to the rivalry, but one name that won't be fresh for the Demon defense to watch out for is Rylan Seberg. The senior receiver caught four passes for 99 yards and a score in last year's showdown.

The Demons and Panthers will start play at 7:30 p.m., at Case Field in Washington. The winner will await the revalation of the final RPI rankings and playoff bracket later that night.