Bogue Chitto junior running back Hunter Goebel didn’t score a touchdown this week. What Goebel did do though was exactly what his team needed on Friday night.

Facing Puckett on the road with a freshman quarterback making his first career start, BC coach Gareth Sartin needed someone to eat up yards on the ground and keep the Bobcats moving forward.

Goebel rushed 18 times for 114 yards and averaged 6.3 yard per carry in a 13-7 win — the first for BC at Puckett since 1999. For his efforts, Goebel has been named The Daily Leader Offensive Player of the Week.

Junior quarterback Colton Frith was unavailable for the Bobcats after being knocked out with an injury in the game against Mize a week earlier. Freshman signal caller Jax Leggett performed admirably in his place as he went 3-of-4 passing for 25 yards and one score.

Bogue Chitto junior wing-back Cameron Williams rushed 10 times for 61 yards and one score and also caught all three completions from Leggett.

With the BC defense holding Puckett at bay, Goebel and his offensive cohorts allowed the Bobcats to play possession football for the win.

Depth and the ability to keep players fresh with substitutes is a key for 2A schools like Bogue Chitto. The emergence of Goebel as a ball carrier has allowed senior linebacker Colten Bales to focus more on that side of the ball this season.

As a sophomore Goebel rushed 30 times for 121 yards on the season while also making 35 tackles as a linebacker. His need as a defender was more pressing in 2020 than that as a ball carrier.

With the graduation of last year’s primary offensive playmaker Owen Anderson, Sartin listed Goebel as one of the Bobcats that we would be expecting more out of in 2021 prior to the season.

Through five games for the Bobcats (4-1) Goebel has delivered, rushing 49 times for 398 yards and two scores.

He’s deceptively fast, runs with good vision and knows what his job is on each play. And he tries really hard.

That might seem like a given for every player, but it’s not. You can see the effort in Goebel’s eyes at field level when the ball hits his stomach on a handoff. Sure, he knows where he’s headed — but all of his effort is focused on getting there and continuing to move forward.

When his helmet is off, there’s a smile on his face. Some high school football players look like they’re racked with nerves between plays on a Friday night.

Not Goebel though — his smile says he’s enjoying every minute of leading the Bobcat ground attack this season.