PORTAL — The Portal Panthers early season struggles continued Friday night as they fell 35-0 to Johnson County at the Portal Athletic Complex.
    Portal (0-3) was shut out for the second consecutive week as the Trojans exploded for 28 points in the second quarter to put the game out of reach.
    “We don’t block. We don’t tackle. We make too many mental mistakes,” Panthers’ head coach David Nesmith said after the game. “We’re not going to win a game until we start doing what we’re supposed to be doing.”
    Defensively, the Trojans (3-0) held Portal to 164 total yards, including minus-2 yards passing on the night. The second quarter exemplified Portal’s offensive struggles, as the Panthers ran only 10 offensive plays in the period and punted three times. Making matters worse, their third punt of the quarter was blocked and returned by Johnson County’s Robert Dunn for a touchdown to give the Trojans a 28-0 lead heading into halftime.
    Offensively, the Panthers were led by Darius Huff, who rushed for 79 yards on eight carries, including a 59-yard run in the third quarter that provided the Panthers with their best scoring opportunity.
    After stopping the Trojans on fourth down at the Portal 25, Huff took a second-and-14 handoff and went straight up the middle before being tracked down at the JCHS 20 yard line. Two plays later, the Panthers found themselves with a first-and-goal on the Trojan 6-yard line, but back-to-back false-start penalties pushed PHS back to its 16.
    The next two plays saw the Panthers recover their own fumbles before a 2-yard loss on third down. Edgar Diaz missed the 35-yard field goal attempt.
    The Panthers had trouble stopping the rushing attack of Johnson County as the Trojans averaged more than 7 yards per carry. Glendarrius Darrisaw ran for 181 yards on 21 carries while Robkevious Norris found the end zone three times and finished with 44 yards on six carries.
    “We’re still a work in progress,” Nesmith said. “Our older guys are making mental mistakes and not doing what they need to do, and that’s affecting our younger guys.”
    The Panthers lost two fumbles and were fortunate to recover several more on the night. Those fumbles, often in the backfield, combined with the pressure from the Johnson County defensive line resulted in 13 plays of zero or negative yards for the PHS offense.
    With an open date next Friday, Nesmith said he intends on continuing to work on the fundamentals of blocking and tackling as the Panthers prepare for region play.
    “We’re going to work to get better each and every week,” he said.
    Following the bye week, the Panthers will travel to Emanuel County Institute on Sept. 28 for a matchup with the Bulldogs.