Van Alstyne Panthers

VAN ALSTYNE, Texas (KXII) - The Van Alstyne Panthers went through some growing pains in 2020. They had many starters to replace and a pandemic to deal with while trying to bring youngsters up to speed. Despite all that, they made the playoffs.

Now, they expect to build on that playoff appearance with several veteran players returning to Friday nights.

“Last year we were young and had a lot of kids that were first time varsity,” quarterback Gavin Montgomery said. “This year with a full off-season behind them, I think we will be a lot better. Everyone is everyone’s friend and it helps with the chemistry of the team.”

“Last year there weren’t very many experienced people,” receiver Collin Reynolds said. “We were young. So we were just running guys that would never come out of the game. Now we have more experience and we’re going to be able to switch in and out and keep fresh.”

“We started last year with a bunch of guys that had never played on Friday night,” head coach Mikeal Miller said. “They got better and better as the year went on. We never really put it all together. To be out here and see those guys knowing what to do, and where to go and how to get lined up, it puts us ahead of where we were last year.”

Van Alstyne is in a small but mighty district. There are just five teams in the league, but there are some heavyweights in the group. The Panthers are surrounded by Celina, Aubrey, Krum, and Sanger.

“It’s a small district but it is a dog fight every Friday night,” Miller said. “You have Celina and Aubrey. Everybody had great seasons last year and have guys coming back.”

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