The Northeastern football team traveled to Knightstown on Friday, Oct. 10, with a chance to clinch at least a tie for the Tri-Eastern Conference championship. Knightstown’s Panthers entered the game with only one league loss and a chance to force a tie at the top of the standings with a win, but the Knights were not in a sharing mood.
The Knights outscored the high-scoring Panthers in every quarter en route to a 61-33 win that clinched at least a tie for the TEC title.
Both teams have outstanding quarterbacks and a stable of sure-handed quick receivers, but the Knights’ ground game ended the night with a clear advantage.
Knight quarterback Marshall Phillips completed four of eight passing attempts for 230 yards, three for touchdowns, and rushed for 196 yards and three TDs on 17 carries. Dylan Ross ran for 168 yards and two TDs on 18 carries. Panther quarterback Bryor Carmichael completed 14 of 28 pass attempts for 227 yards and a touchdown, but he was intercepted twice. Jamison Crawford, the feature back for Knightstown, gained a game-high 223 yards on 23 carries and scored three touchdowns.
Trent Deloney caught passes for the Knights totaling 90 yards, Caden Retter caught passes totaling 80 yards and Quanell Denton had 60 receiving yards. Brody Willard was the leading receiver for the Panthers with 93 yards.
Gavin Platt led the Knight defense with 19 tackles, Riley Isaacs had 11 tackles and Charlie Shaffer added 10 tackles.
The win was the 15th consecutive regular-season TEC win for the Knights. The Knights close out regular-season play on Friday, Oct. 17, when they host Hagerstown. A Knight win would clinch the TEC title outright.
Northeastern (7-1, 7-0 TEC) 21 20 14 6 61
Knightstown (5-3, 5-2 TEC) 13 14 6 0 33
A version of this article will appear in the October 15 2025 print edition of the Western Wayne News.