The NRHEG football team recovered from a one-point Homecoming loss by pounding Gibbon-Fairfax-Winthrop.

The Panthers (2-4 overall, 1-3 Gopher Valley AA Conference) produced 482 yards of total offense in a 60-14 win Friday at Gibbon.

“Our record isn’t what we hoped for, but we continue to improve every day and hope to be playing our best football at the end of the season,” said NRHEG coach Dan Stork.

The Panthers led 24-0 at halftime and outscored the Thunderbirds 36-14 in the second half.

NRHEG had almost four times as many rushing yards as Gibbon-Fairfax-Winthrop. The Panthers also averaged 8.9 yards per play, while the T-birds were held to 4.2.

“Our offensive and defensive lines controlled the game from start to finish,” Stork said.

Two running backs rushed for more than 100 yards. Alex Merritt carried the ball 12 times for 146 yards and Jason Jongbloedt had 128 yards on 12 carries.

Perry Peterson led the Panthers with two rushing touchdowns. He had 61 yards on five carries.

Trevor Tracy was 3-of-6 from the pocket with 43 yards and a touchdown. Spencer Tollefson caught all three passes.

Next, NRHEG will host winless Medford at 7 p.m. next Friday. The Panthers will finish the regular season at 7 p.m. Oct. 15 at home against undefeated Blooming Prairie. The Awesome Blossoms’ closest game this season was a 33-14 win at Waterville-Elysian-Morristown.