Youthful Panthers grow up through unbeaten league race
In 2023, with many underclassmen playing key roles in both skill positions and linemen, Great Bend football coach Erin Beck watched his team finish with a 6-4 record, but in each of those four losses they lost by a touchdown or less.
He was bound and determined that 2024 would not be a repeat with most of his players returning with a year of experience under their belt.
It has paid off handsomely as the Panthers worked their way through the four Western Athletic Conference opponents without a blemish on the W-L slate, winning the WAC for the first time since 2018 and for only the second time since 2008.
The schedule for this season was also an interesting twist for the Panthers, playing three of four non-conference games at home, but playing three of the four WAC opponents on the road.
“It’s been a fun ride,” Beck said when discussing his team’s run to the WAC title and an unbeaten regular season. “Last year, we had real close games that could have been victories but fell off with losses.”
So, what was the big impetus for the 2024 season to make that next step up?
“We emphasized as a coaching staff to the kids all summer how much the little things matter,” Beck said. “We have really done a good job of paying attention to the game we are playing, each week trying to go 1-0. I think they did a good job of taking care of each week and focus on the now.”
With non-conference wins over McPherson (28-6, the only road game outside of the WAC), followed by home wins over Olathe South (26-14), Buhler (43=26) and Wichita-North (61-7), the Panthers then took the second half of the season for the battle in the WAC.
And, it didn’t necessarily come easily as they first defeated an improved Dodge City team, 28-14, before holding off LIberal on the road for a 14-7 triumph. Their big WAC rivalry game resulted in a 21-0 shutout of Hays at home and capped it off with a 42-6 win at Garden City.
“We’ve been blessed with some really good players,” Beck said. “In 2023, there were a lot of young players, and between them and now they got stronger, more physical.”
Beck said it has been the balance on offense that has carried the team for much of the season, not allowing opponents to focus on either the team’s passing or running games. The statistics bear this out.
The Panthers averaged 305.3 yards of total offense, split nearly equally between passing (155.1) and running (150.2). Junior quarterback Daxton Minton pulls the trigger, completing 96-of-150 passes for 1,385 yards and 17 touchdowns with only six interceptions.
His talented receiving corps includes 6-6, 215-pound junior Ian Premer (30 catches,k 541 yds., 8 TDs), sophomore wideout Cooper Ohnmacht (35 catches, 466 yds., 6 TDs), and juniors Jacob Hall (18 catches, 299 yards, 3 TDs), and Hayden Kelly (14 catches, 201 yds., 3 TDs).
“It is without a doubt the best receiving corps I’ve ever had,” Beck said. “We’ve got size, speed and the guys do a great job of catching the ball. Daxton has shown a lot of poise this year.”
The running game is done by committee, with senior Jace Schartz leading the way with 732 yards and 10 touchdowns. Minton has added 412 yards and 5 TDs.
As with any successful team, Beck doesn’t overlook his offensive and defensive linemen.
“Up front, we had a lot of players returning on both sides,” Beck said. “They’ve done a great job with the fundamentals of the game. They block well on offense and they attack on defense.”
With about eight players going both ways, Beck said the conditioning has been a big part of the off-season training.
“They take a lot of snaps going both ways,” Beck said. “This group just really enjoys playing, and playing together. They don’t care about individual statistics. They would tell you they don’t care who scores, who makes the most catches or has the most tackles. They just want to win. They put the team ahead of self.”
If there was one game that Beck pointed to as sparking the overall success for the season it was the Week 2 win at home against Olathe South.
“Anytime you play a Sunflower League teams, you know you’re getting a quality opponent,” Beck said. “They only had one or two kids going both ways, but our kids want to play every play and it shows their toughness.”
When it came time for the WAC portion of the schedule, Beck knew it would not be an easy road to the final destination.
“It’s a battle every week,” Beck said. “Obviously, getting past Dodge and Liberal set us up for the win against Hays, but I would say our (narrow) win at Liberal was a wake-up call. I don’t think we played particularly well at Liberal after starting fast out of the gate. We kind of got stalled in that game and I think it was a crucial point because it helped us re-focus on the Hays game.”
Defensively, the Panthers have many of the same players on that side of the ball as on offense. Junior linebacker Trenton Kern led the team and the WAC during the regular season with 92 tackles, and finished with 113. Senior lineman Aidan Davidson recorded 73 stops and had 9 sacks while Hall and Premer had three pics each.
“I’m fortunate to have really good play from the offense, defense and special teams,” Beck said. “We’ve blocked some punts, got some big kickoff returns and overall have been solid. We were fortunate to get our placekicker from the soccer team.”
The Panthers’ breakthrough in the WAC snapped a four-year run in which Hays had either won the title outright (twice) or shared it (twice).
“It’s a big accomplishment for us, but is just the first step along some of our bigger goals,” Beck said.
Following its run through the regular season of eight wins, the Panthers opened Class 5A playoffs with a resounding 49-7 victory over Newton before a WAC rematch with rival Hays ended in a heartbreaking 19-14 setback to end the season at 9-1. It was the third straight year the Panthers have lost the regional battle.
But with that strong junior class returning, there is little doubt that the 2025 Panthers will be a force to be reckoned with, not only in the WAC but also in the 5A playoffs.
IAN PREMER/TRENTON KERN, Great Bend, Juniors
WAC Offensive and Defensive Players of the Year
Even before the 2024 football season began in earnest with early August practices, two of Great Bend’s junior players knew that good things were looming on the horizon for them and their Panther teammates.
Ian Premer and Trenton Kern were just getting ready to begin their third season of varsity Football for the Class 5A school in central Kansas and were coming off 7-3 and 6-4 records with a large contingent of returners.
And to nobody’s surprise in Great Bend, those two, along with a strong supporting cast, swept through the Western Athletic Conference with a spotless 4-0 record, finishing the regular season at 8-0 and reaching the second round to complete a 9-1 season record.
Premer, an imposing 6-6, 215-pound tight end, wide receiver, running back (linebacker on defense), and Kern, a brick wall at 6-2, 225-pound linebacker (offensive lineman) were tabbed as the WAC’s Offensive and Defensive Players of the Year by the conference’s coaches.
“Our junior class has always been solid going back to middle school,” said Premer, whose all-around skills included catching 30 passes for 541 yards (18.03 average) and grabbing 8 of those for touchdowns. With limited duty at running back, Premer carried the ball 37 times for 260 yards and two scores.
“The main thing is just doing as much good for the team as I can,” said Premer of his role on the team. “My freshman year I played more defense but this year they moved me around from tight end to wide receiver and occasionally running back. Being in the offense for three years has given me a pretty good understanding of what I need to do at each position.”
Premer said he felt he was much improved as a blocker when in the tight end position.
“Either way, I really do enjoy blocking but when I’m split out, I like that as well,” Premer said. “If I’m getting double-teamed it makes it easier for the other receivers to get open and I think that’s made our passing game more balanced with the running game.”
Premer said it was an exciting season to go 4-0 in the WAC and capture their first title in six years.
“I think it meant a lot to us and certainly those were our expectations,” Premer said. “With three (WAC) games on the road that made it a little more difficult. Traveling to Liberal has always been a tough game for us (14-7 this year).”
A second-week victory (26-14) over Class 6A Sunflower League school Olathe South provided the impetus for the Panthers for the rest of the season, Premer said.
“We beat a good team that was really a major challenge,” Premer said.
Falling to Hays in the second round of the playoffs ended what Premer and his team had hoped to be a deep run in Class 5A.
“It was a disappointment for us,” Premer said. “The weather was really rainy and to know that we beat both Hays and Buhler (another 5A semifinalist) just tells us that we can make a deeper run next year. We just need to take care of business in 2025.”
Premer is being recruited by schools at all levels, but said he would wait until early next summer to decide on where he wants to play.
“I’m sure I will be looking at playing tight end at the next level,” Premer said. “I want to enjoy my high school time so making the decision when I’m not in school makes the most sense to me.”
Kern, meanwhile, was the face of the Panther defense, racking up 113 tackles, 40 of those being unassisted. Playing both ways, Kern also was solid on the offensive line for Coach Beck.
“Playing defense you can just fly around and go crazy,” Kern said of his style at the inside linebacker position. “You’ve got to read things real quick and know what’s coming at you.”
Kern says in watching films of the opponents, he focuses on what he calls the triangle of offense.
“Looking from the guard to the back and to where the play is going, I have to be able to see that and make a play,” Kern said. “You’ve got to be sure not to go the wrong direction.”
As one of the captains on the team, Kern says that adds responsibility both on and off the field.
“You’ve got lead by example, and to me that means being consistent with your effort and doing all the right things,” Kern said.
Kern says he feels he has good speed when pursuing opponents’ running backs and feels there is room for improvement in his overall speed.
“I think my lateral speed is good and when I am in wrestling that always helps my work on leverage and quickness,” said Kern, who will wrestle at 215 pounds for the Panthers this winter.
Kern believes the 2024 success puts the Panthers’ program on the statewide map and sees 2025 as the opportunity to chase a coveted state championship.
“They can’t overlook us and I think the best is yet to come for our team,” Kern said. “When we were in fifth grade, we would wear Panther jerseys and watch the high school team play and we all wanted to be part of the high school program and have success.”
Having lost in the second round only gives Kern more motivation for the 2025 season.
“We want to go get us a state title,” Kern stated.
2024 WAC All-Conference Football
First-Team Selections
| NAME | POS | YR | SCHOOL |
|---|---|---|---|
| OFFENSE | |||
| Daxton Minton | QB | 11 | Great Bend |
| Xavier Porras | RB | 12 | Liberal |
| Holden Lind | RB | 11 | Hays |
| Gus Corsair | OL | 10 | Hays |
| Owen Kaiser | OL | 12 | Great Bend |
| Hudson Rice | OL | 12 | Liberal |
| Mathew Trejo | OL | 12 | Liberal |
| Nery Quinones | OL | 12 | Dodge City |
| Ian Premer | WR | 11 | Great Bend |
| James Fieser | WR | 12 | Liberal |
| Jayden Amaro | WR | 12 | Dodge City |
| Cooper Olanmacht | ATH | 10 | Great Bend |
| DEFENSE | |||
| Tanner Geist | DL | 10 | Hays |
| David Holguin | DL | 12 | Garden City |
| Tyren Holmes | DL | 12 | Liberal |
| *Trent Kern | LB | 11 | Great Bend |
| Ayden Juarez | LB | 12 | Liberal |
| Wyatt Kirkpatrick | LB | 12 | Hays |
| Dalton Meyers | LB | 12 | Hays |
| Jacob Hall | LB | 11 | Great Bend |
| Bryson Unzueta | DB | 12 | Dodge City |
| Iam Premer | DB | 11 | Great Bend |
| Cooper Lindenmeyer | DB | 12 | Hays |
Second-Team Selections
| NAME | POS | YR | SCHOOL |
|---|---|---|---|
| OFFENSE | |||
| Alan Flores | QB | 12 | Dodge City |
| Jace Schartz | RB | 12 | Great Bend |
| Cooper Speer | RB | 12 | Dodge City |
| Aldo Reyes | OL | 11 | Dodge City |
| Karter Brown | OL | 11 | Great Bend |
| Dio Holguin | OL | 12 | Garden City |
| David Holguin | OL | 12 | Garden City |
| Trent Kern | OL | 11 | Great Bend |
| Jonathan Cano | WR | 12 | Hays |
| Parker McGuire | WR/TE | 11 | Hays |
| Easten Smith | WR/TE | 11 | Dodge City |
| DEFENSE | |||
| Aidan Davidson | DL | 12 | Great Bend |
| Marco Alonso | DL | 12 | Liberal |
| Amir Rodriguez | DL | 12 | Dodge City |
| Dylan Sonday | LB | 12 | Dodge City |
| Xavier Tafoya | LB | 11 | Liberal |
| Kale Kern | LB | 10 | Great Bend |
| Connor Holloday | LB | 11 | Great Bend |
| Cade Barnett | LB | 12 | Dodge City |
| Landon Martinez | DB | 12 | Liberal |
| Adan Amador | DB | 12 | Liberal |
| Culden Plankenhorn | DB | 12 | Garden City |
