The Cougars Top the Panthers in a Dominant Performance

September 8, 2025 – by Mason Holstein. Images by Elijah Goodman.

The excitement that built up over the offseason was finally fulfilled in week one of the 2025 high school football season. The former one and two overall seeds in Quince Orchard and Paint Branch faced off in Burtonsville, MD under Friday night lights on on September 5, 2025. The visiting Quince Orchard Cougars took on the Paint Branch Panthers to kick the season off and rolled to a dominant 35-0 shutout victory.

Quince Orchard was led by senior QB Will Drakeford who accounted for four of the touchdowns, with three through the air and one on the ground. Supporting Drakeford was Senior tight end Diego Rodriguez and Junior running back Jaiden Hebron.

Rodriguez ended the day with two touchdowns and multiple big plays, while Hebron added one touchdown on a dominant running performance. With QO’s recent loss of wide receiver Mason Mizzer, who suffered an ACL tear in the preseason, the supporting cast of wide receivers in St. John’s transfer Rafferty Bankert and Senior Myles Stander were able to step into their new roles and perform well. 

While QO’s offense had a great game, it was the defense that ended up being the star of the show. Led by senior James Madison commit Kacey Gilliam and junior cornerback Rico Jackson, the team was able to hold Paint Branch’s talented offense to zero points and multiple forced turnovers. Gilliam stood out with multiple sacks and over five QB pressures. Other defensive standouts were sophomore Amar’ee Wilson with an interception in the red zone, and Myles Stander, who had a fumble recovery and multiple tackles. 

Although Paint Branch’s offense struggled to gain momentum, several players still had solid games, including Alijah Bah, who had numerous strong runs and played a great game in the loss.

Senior wide receiver Joshua Biando also contributed multiple catches on offense and several tackles at free safety. Paint Branch’s defense held strong on several drives as well, with impressive pass breakups and tackles for loss. While the result isn’t what they wanted, the game was a valuable building experience for the long season still to come. 

Quince Orchard’s efforts are now focused on its Thursday night game at Walter Johnson, who won 44-6 at Gaithersburg High School on Friday. Paint Branch is looking for a bounce back game on Thursday at Einstein High School, who beat Springbrook High School 28-16 on Friday. 

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