The McNeil varsity football team lost their home opener last Friday to the Pflugerville Panthers 51-21. After this loss, the Mavericks are now 1-1 in non-district play.

The Mavericks had no answer for the Panthers’ ground game. The Panthers rushed for 347 yards total, led by senior running back Elijah Oakmon and senior quarterback Jaylon Reeves.

“We could’ve played better. We weren’t as physical as we needed to be,” senior offensive lineman Will McLean said.

Offensively, the Mavericks were led by junior running back Brad Whittenburg and senior quarterback Luke Hutchinson who both rushed for touchdowns. However, the Maverick offense was not able to overcome some crucial mistakes. The Mavericks had two snapping miscues, one leading to a safety early in the first quarter. The Mavericks also fumbled inside the one-yard line.

“I think we had too many costly mistakes to put ourselves in a position to win,” McLean said.

The Mavericks will travel to Harker Heights this Thursday to take on the Harker Heights Knights to wrap up non-district play.