DERBY – Free State football got off to a quick start, but couldn’t sustain momentum on Friday as its season came to an end following a 56-14 loss to No. 1-seeded Derby.

“They’re just a lot better than us, and it’s a little bit disappointing because I thought we could have played a better game,” head coach Kevin Stewart said. “I thought our guys were excited at the beginning, but then, you know, we were overwhelmed.”

The Firebirds allowed the Panthers to rush for over 400 yards and gained 540 in total, using the speed of Davon Morrison and Michael Castillo to challenge the Firebirds’ defense at all three levels.

“What was really killing us was they kept going empty and then motioning (Morrison) all the way around,” Stewart said. “He was really fast, and so when they were moving him that much, it was really hard to contain him and box him… And then (Castillo) was really fast, too, so they had two guys (with) a lot of speed, and they were moving them.”

Free State’s offense, on the other hand, mustered just 196 yards on the night, with 190 of those coming from the rushing attack.

The Firebirds couldn’t have gotten off to a better start, forcing a turnover on downs to begin the game as linebacker Mark Ke tipped a fourth-down pass, giving the ball to the offense.

On the second play from scrimmage, quarterback Packson McDaniel waited patiently before finding open space in front of him and turning on the engines for an 84-yard touchdown.

“That was all (McDaniel),” Stewart said. “That was a great play by him… In fact, the play call wasn’t even really executed correctly. And it might have actually helped that it wasn’t executed correctly because I think it kind of confused them.”

Derby needed just two plays to respond, scoring on a 54-yard touchdown to tie the game. A facemask by Free State on the score allowed the hosts to kick off at midfield, in which the Panthers got the ball back by recovering an onside kick.

Nine seconds later, Derby took its first lead with a 40-yard touchdown pass. A 3-yard loss and a pair of incompletions forced Free State to punt for the first time, leading to another short drive as the Panthers completed a 22-yard pass before a run of 20 yards led to a short touchdown carry.

McDaniel found his rhythm with an 8-yard swing pass to Jaionte Walton before the sophomore play caller kept it himself for another eight yards and a first down. He once more picked up a first down with an 8-yard scramble, but an incompletion and a 1-yard loss led to another punt.

“Their D-Line was just physical, and they handled our offensive line at the point of attack,” Stewart said. “We didn’t get blocking on the edge, and honestly, some of that stuff was just the combination of them, but also a combination of us not executing.”

Facing its worst starting field position of the game, the Panther offense was unfazed, driving 65 yards in seven plays. A 28-yard run on the third play allowed for Derby to run three more times, ultimately finding the end zone on an 11-yard quarterback scramble.

Free State’s offense continued to struggle, failing to move the ball an inch before having to punt for the third straight drive. In return, Derby once again capitalized with another big play, this time a 67-yard touchdown run to take a 35-7 lead.

After another punt, the Firebird defense bent, but didn’t break, holding on fourth-and-2 with its back against the red zone and only 1:39 left in the half. The ensuing drive started with a 7-yard run by Maddon Brittingham, but ultimately ended in a punt. The Panthers got the ball back with five seconds and converted on their version of the “Philly Philly Special” as time expired to take a 42-7 lead into the locker room.

Derby’s high-powered offense was on full display in the first half, gaining 398 yards of total offense, 269 of which came on the ground. In comparison, Free State only managed 27 yards after the opening drive to finish the half with 114 total yards.

Continuing the first half trend, the Firebirds began the second half by having to punt after a false start negated a 3-yard run on the first play as the offense failed to recover. The Panthers responded, as they had all game, with a potent rushing attack that resulted in a 44-yard touchdown.

Free State began the ensuing possession with another 3-yard run, this time by Harrison, but another false start and two negative plays stalled the drive as Derby took over at Free State’s 36-yard line.

With the bench emptied, the Panthers extended their lead to 49 points with a 36-yard touchdown run, initiating the running clock.

With a heavy rushing attack, the Firebirds finally found some much-needed success on offense with runs of 21 and 12 yards by Harrison. The junior traded 7-yard runs with sophomore running back Reid Graham before stutter-stepping his way into the end zone for a 24-yard carry.

“He’s going to be a really good football player,” Stewart said of Harrison. “He works hard, he stays healthy, and gets after it in the weight room. I think he’s got a bright future.”

For the fourth straight season, the Firebirds season comes to a close in the Regional round, finishing 2026 with a 4-6 record. Overall, the senior class finishes their time as Firebirds with a 23-17 record.

“I’m going to miss the seniors,” Stewart said. “Those guys are great guys and great teammates… Collectively, (the season) wasn’t what we wanted, but it wasn’t these guys’ fault that were out here.”

How they scored

First quarter

7:13 – Packson McDaniel 84-yard run. AJ Kimzey PAT good. FS 7, DHS 0

6:22 – Blade Clark 54-yard run. Tripp Holtzinger PAT good. FS 7, DHS 7

6:13 – Michael Castillo 40-yard pass from Clark. Holtzinger PAT good. DHS 14, FS 7

4:41 – Davon Morrison 3-yard run. Holtzinger PAT good. DHS 21, FS 7

Second quarter

10:22 – Clark 11-yard run. Holtzinger PAT good. DHS 28, FS 7

7:47 – Clark 67-yard run. Holtzinger PAT good. DHS 35, FS 7

0:00 – Clark 11-yard pass from Tyler Pontious. Holtzinger PAT good. DHS 42, FS 7

Third quarter

8:11 – Morrison 44-yard run. Holtzinger PAT good. DHS 49, FS 7

5:08 – Je’Marrius Willis 36-yard run. Holtzinger PAT good. DHS 56, FS 7

Fourth quarter

9:58 – Michael Harrison 24-yard run. Kimzey PAT good. DHS 56, FS 14