By Ray Hamill — It’s been a good year for the Panthers on the football field, and the community they live in is benefitting in more ways than one.
Last weekend, the McKinleyville players posted a memorable 32-29 come-from-behind win over Ferndale, a victory that showcased just how far this program has come in a short time under head coach Jason Benge, who took over a team that gone winless in back-to-back years before the start of the 2025 season.
The Panthers have been the story of the year in H-DNL football this fall.
They are 6-2 heading into a Friday night showdown in Crescent City and have already clinched at least a share of this year’s Redwood League championship, just the program’s second in the last 35 years.
They can clinch the pennant outright with a victory over neighbor and rival Arcata next weekend, a team they’ve already shut out 27-0 earlier in the year.
But their remarkable turnaround on the field of competition is just half the story.
On Saturday morning, just hours after their big win over the Wildcats, the McKinleyville players were up bright and early to volunteer their time to help the community they live in.
Benge, assistant coach Clay Hicks and six of the players showed up at the Mad River Community Hospital to help clean up the hospital’s Peace Garden.
According to David Long, a former coach and educator at McKinleyville High School and a member of the Mad River Community Hospital Advisory Board, the coaches and players “weeded, moved rocks, removed dead plants and soil from pots, moved benches, when necessary, high-pressure water sprayed the facility, removed garbage and the dead plants from the area to be disposed of, and all around did what was asked of them.”
It was something the players seemed more than happy to do and they jumped at the opportunity to give back to the community that has been supporting them all season.
“I asked some of the players, and they said ‘yeah, we’ll come,’” Benge said. “It’s something I’m trying to introduce to our program. I want our players to give back to our community, so the community can see the players they’re supporting on Friday nights.
“It was fun. It was nice getting together after the nice win we had on Friday night.”
Benge and his players will try to keep rolling on Friday night, when they travel to Crescent City to take on a Del Norte team that is always a tough prospect at Mike Whalen Field.
The Warriors have struggled somewhat this year and are 3-5 heading into the penultimate weekend of the season.
Their three wins have come against Arcata, Hoopa and Eureka, three teams that are a combined 4-20, but their five losses have all come against good teams that are a combined 29-11.
“Del Norte’s played a tough schedule, so I don’t think their record is indicative of how good they are,” Benge said. “It’s going to be a tough game for our line. It’s going to be a tough game for us.
“Any time you travel to Crescent City it’s not going to be easy.”
The good news for McKinleyville fans is that the players don’t appear to be getting carried away with last week’s win and they remained grounded this week ahead of the next challenge.
“I think this was the most focused week of practice we’ve had since I’ve been here,” Benge said. “That win showed them we do have a chance to do something, that we can compete with these schools.
“(This week) they came out focused and ready to work, and the coaches and I loved to see that from them.”
Friday night’s game kicks off at 7:30 p.m.
