Paetow has always been a team that is led by its defense.

The Panthers (3-1, 2-0) program was built on that strength. When the team made its run to win a state championship three seasons ago, it was the defense that led the way, when David Hicks Sr. took the reins of the program the defense continued to lead and was a huge bright spot for the team despite some struggles last year and coming into this year there was no doubt that it was going to be a strength again, especially heading into the team’s second year under Hicks and in his system.

“The kids have just gotten so much more comfortable and we have the best staff around in my opinion and you can see the difference,” Hicks said. “Having great coaches and pairing them with great kids makes it easy. They dove into it and it’s gotten the most out of them.”

That comfort has helped as Paetow’s defense has stepped up in a huge way early in this year’s district schedule. The Panthers have been exceptional on that side of the ball allowing under 15 points per game so far this season, with that number being even better over the team’s three game win streak where they have only given up 11 points per game.

That has led to Paetow jumping out to a 2-0 start in district and as of now a third-place spot in the District 19-6A standings.

“Coming into this year we felt a bit disrespected,” said senior defensive back Deyjhon Pettaway. “People thought of us as an undisciplined or not physical team and that’s two things we pride ourselves on, so every game we have just been coming out and trying to show people how physical this defense is. When you play us, no matter what happens you are going to take a beating, we’re going to fight four quarters and we want to show that we are one of if not the best defense in the district.”

It’s not hard to see why the Panthers have success on that side of the ball. Hicks is a former NFL defensive lineman, Charlie Ayro has experience at the collegiate level and Hicks and Ayro have a wealth of talent to work with, whether its Pettaway, a Texas A&M commit, Carmello Brooks, a University of Houston commit, Nicholas Elko, Daryl Campbell, Jaeden Spelmon, Cordae Crist or plenty of other players on the defense. The coaches have put them in a position to succeed and the players have done just that with their play.

A big part of that success has come from turnover differential, the Panthers are plus nine in that stat right now on the season and it is one of the biggest predictors of having a successful team or not. The defense has created takeaways all year and the offense hasn’t given the ball up and just as importantly, has given the defense time to rest on the bench in between series, controlling the clock and keep their time of possession up compared to opponents.

“We preach every day about creating takeaways and putting ourselves in winning positions, the kids have really done a great job of that this year,” Hicks said. “Our biggest focuses are winning on third down, dominating the line of scrimmage, not turning the ball over and creating those turnovers for us on the defensive end. We made that a focus and the kids completely bought it, have risen up and performed.”

The Panthers have put themselves in the driver’s seat for a playoff spot early in district play but there is still plenty of work to be done for the Panthers to reach their goals. They have started well, with wins over Tompkins and Mayde Creek, but still have battles ahead against plenty of playoff contenders. While there’s time to celebrate the day and the win, but the Panthers are focused on improving and making sure those goals are achieved.

“I always show them the Kobe Bryant clip, that’s what we will go back too right now,” Hicks said. “We have 24 hours to be happy, but like Kobe said, ‘job’s not finished.’”