Football: Odessa High-Permian series highlight games

>> 1959: The first meeting was played on Friday the 13th in windy, freezing, rainy weather. Permian led 6-0 on Larry Tatum’s 35-yard run in the first quarter, but OHS got a 79-yard pass from David Gibson to Belmont Westbrook in the second quarter and went ahead on James Ingram’s PAT kick. Ingram added a 2-yard TD run in the fourth quarter.

>> 1962: Permian took a 14-0 lead on a 32-yard run by Nickey Harries and a 67-yard pass from Alan Moravcik to Harmon Smith, who ran for two points after the first TD. OHS quarterback Bill Parks scored twice in the fourth quarter, but two conversion runs failed as Permian held on, 14-12.

>> 1964: Larry Gatlin made no mistakes leading the Bronchos in ‘64. Before his country music fame, Gatlin was known as the Odessa High quarterback that last beat Permian before 1997. Gatlin and Co. won 13-0.

>> 1973: Permian held on for a 41-36 victory when Mike Olden recovered an OHS fumble at the Permian 1-yard line in the final seconds. Panther quarterback Steve Looney passed for 234 yards and four touchdowns.

>> 1976: A blizzard postponed the game to Saturday and negated Odessa High’s speed advantage. The icy conditions helped the Panthers outgain the Bronchos 176 to 157 in total yards. Mike Hanson’s 53-yard TD run in the fourth quarter sealed a 14-6 Permian victory.

>> 1980: Odessa High snapped a 15-year losing streak with a 14-14 tie, but it would be another 17 years before the Bronchos got their fourth win in the series. Down 14-6 in the fourth quarter, OHS pulled even when QB Johnny Subia scored on a 2-yard run and added the tying two-point conversion with 53 seconds left. The Bronchos would have made the playoffs with a win. Instead, Permian went on to claim its third state title.

>> 1997: After 33 years without a victory over its rival, Odessa High slayed its Panther demons and won 20-17, a win that Paul Harvey recapped as the “rest of the story.”

>> 1998: In the game’s final seconds, Odessa High quarterback Rick Leach found Josh Ashley at the Permian 28-yard line, but time ran out before the Bronchos could call a timeout. Permian won 36-33.

>> 2003: Daniel Robles kicked a 36-yard field goal with 30 seconds left in the game to give Permian a 24-23 win over Odessa High, the Panthers’ sixth straight over the Bronchos.

>> 2004: After Daniel Robles kicked a 31-yard field goal with 4:49 to play, it looked like another Panthers’ victory. But Odessa High running back Adrian Jackson went 75 yards for a touchdown just 56 seconds later for a Bronchos’ 20-19 victory, their first over Permian since 1997.

>> 2005: After leading most of the game, the Bronchos watched the Panthers score twice in the second half, but miss both extra points. Then, with 17 seconds remaining, Permian lined up for a 40-yard field goal and Ratliff Stadium went silent. The Bronchos’ side came to life moments later when the kick was short, preserving a second consecutive victory over the Panthers for just the second time in Odessa High history.