When the Pocono Mountain West administrators asked for the game between the Panthers and the Trojans to be moved from its original Friday night kickoff to Saturday, the time of the game was still up in the air. It could have been an early afternoon kickoff, a late afternoon kickoff, or a night game.

Head coach Jim Morgans was adamant about what we wanted and his voice was heard. He wanted the game to be at 1:00 so his team did not have to wait all day to play, and can get any extra rest and preparation time they can for this weekend.

It didn't matter what time or where the game was played, Parkland was the better team.

Compared to their previous three games, in which the Trojans moved the ball a majority of time on the ground, Morgans and his offense aired it out.

Junior quarterback Devante Cross completed 19-of-25 for 287 yards and four touchdowns in a 41-8 victory at Parkland School District stadium last Saturday afternoon over Pocono Mountain West.

"That was the plan that we had going into this one," said Morgans. "We wanted to work on throwing the football, and this was an opportunity for us to do that in a game atmosphere."

Three of Cross's four scores were to senior wideout Jarey Elder. Elder has been utilized in the offense out of the slot and outside, as Morgans wants to move the speedster around the field to open him up.

Elder had touchdown grabs of 31 yards, 18 yards, and 32 yards, all in the first half.

The Trojans defense, which has held teams without a touchdown all season while the first unit is on the field, also got into the mix with scoring of their own.

Mitchell Powell (15 yards) and Nick Zambelli (20 yards) each had interceptions that were returned for touchdowns.

With a 34-0 lead at halftime, Parkland was looking to activate the mercy rule so its starters could rest with a short week ahead of them.

Cross found Kenny Yeboah from 14 yards away to open up the third quarter, and put the Trojans into a comfortable position up 41-0.

"Once we got to 34-0, we got the ball and ran a couple plays to score, then I pulled the kids," said Morgans. "I wanted them to get some rest in a short week."

Now Parkland (4-0 overall, 2-0 conference) sets its sights on its first true test of the season in rival Whitehall (4-0 overall, 2-0 conference) on the road Friday night.

The Zephyrs, like the Trojans, are undefeated and feature an explosive offense.

Senior tailback and Penn State commit Saquon Barkley has been the main man and will be a featured player who will receive a number of touches. Morgans knows the talent Barkley has, but is also concerned about the other weapons that Whitehall's offense can feature.

"He's not their only guy," said Morgans. "Their quarterback [Gianni Sinatore] is a great player. They have some good skilled players. You can't just concentrate one guy, and they move that one guy around anyway. He's going to get his, we just have to try to control him the best we can."

One thing going for Parkland is its stingy defense, which has not allowed a touchdown this season. They will be tested in this one, especially with some banged up players, including senior linebacker Omar Haddad.

The Trojans will be able to put points on the board, if they can keep Barkley under control, they will come out of this one still unblemished.