GLENNS FERRY — Early on it looked like it could have been their toughest challenge thus far. But for the Parma football team, Friday was just another day at the office.

And by the end of the day, it was business as usual for the Panthers, as they left Glenns Ferry High with a 49-6 win against the Pilots — their 21st straight victory — and a return trip to the 2A state finals.

Parma (10-0) will play the winner of New Plymouth and Declo game, which will be played today at New Plymouth High. Kickoff for that game is 1 p.m.

"You can hear it. We're so pumped, the town's pumped," Parma junior Randy Riley said. "Everybody showed up tonight, which is great. It's a great atmosphere. We're really excited."

The Panthers were able to escape after a crazy start to the game, which saw two scores and a turnover in the first 35 seconds.

Parma scored on the first play from scrimmage, after the Pilots fumbled the opening kickoff. Quarterback Trevor Kramer connected with Devin Erickson for the 30-yard score and 6-0 Parma lead.

But Glenns Ferry responded as running back Michael Crane dashed 75 yards on the Pilots' first play. It is the only rushing touchdown the Panthers' starting defense has given up all season.

"You've got to see that kind of speed, you can't mimic it in practice," Parma coach Greg Asbury said. "Just watching film, I knew what we were in for."

That first run proved to be one of the only bright spots on the day for the Pilot offense, which was held to 118 total yards outside that opening run.

Meanwhile, Parma's defense put pressure on quarterback Philip Owsley, sacking the senior four times for a combined loss of 30, including one for a safety in the first quarter.

"The pressure we put on was phenomenal," said senior lineman Jed Ferguson, who had one solo sack and assisted on another. "We just pinned our ears back and went in."

The sacks seemed to come at perfect times for the Panthers. The first sack was for a safety. Two more sacks forced Glenns Ferry to either punt or attempt a long field goal.

"I think we're just bigger and stronger than them, it's that simple," Asbury said about the sacks. "Our (defensive line) got after them a bit. It's just one of those things. I thought we played well."

And while their defense was stuffing everything the Pilots threw at them, the Panther offense kept adding to their scoreboard. Parma finished with 352 rushing yards, led by Tyler Ford and Lance Johnson with 113 and 105, respectively.

Kramer finished with 250 passing yards, with two touchdown passes and another touchdown on the ground.

Backups get chance to shine

Even after Asbury put the backups in the game, Parma kept scoring. On the last offensive play of the game for Parma, Scott Jensen ran five yards into the end zone, giving the Panthers a 49-6 lead.

It was the only run of the game for the freshman, but getting a chance to score in the state semifinals game was more than enough to put a smile on his face.

"I'm going to be telling everyone I can about this," Jensen said afterwards. "I'm so excited right now."