On Nov. 10, the Pumas participated in the quarterfinals for 6A division. They hosted and defeated the Hamilton Huskies for the second time this season. After playing them the first time, and winning by a mere 2 points, the Pumas came out strong and took the game by a landslide beating the Huskies, 72-14.

The players and coaches alike have said that the practices over the past week have been even more intense than usual and that they are working as hard as they can.

Head coach, Preston Jones said “Our defense played much better, we tackled better, and played our responsibilities. They did exactly what they were supposed to do and what they did in practice all week.” The last game against Hamilton was a close one, but they decided to change that the second time around.

Senior defensive lineman, Jobiin Sweatt said that the defensive line “has improved drastically” continuing on to say, “we just stayed on our gaps and worked on what we needed to work on, and just went play by play.” The line had a great game and did a fantastic job of shutting out the Huskies.

Sweatt said that during practice the past week, “We have been running a lot and the coaches make sure we’re staying in shape and just pushing us to the limit.”

Junior quarterback and wide receiver, D’Shayne James said, “We’ve been keeping everybody upbeat and knowing where they are supposed to be at. We can’t miss any steps or any gaps.” The offensive line had a great game as well, with quarterback Brock Purdy throwing touchdown after touchdown throughout the duration of the game.

James said that, “It’s more of a mental thing, and figuring out what’s important. It’s got to be more of a team thing, I can’t do anything without them.” The team is very closely nit this year and they attribute that to their large success in this season.

Friday, November 17th, the Pumas are heading out to play against Mountain Pointe in the 6A division semi-finals. Assistant coach Brad Minor said that “we’ve got some real size up front and going into next week it’s gonna be a real physical game and they’ve got to bring it.” From the grand success that they have had this season, next week will be a great game to watch and see what the the future holds for the Perry Pumas.