YORK COUNTY— “Friday Night Lights” is a series looking in on area high school football programs ahead of the 2025 season.
The Bruton High School Panthers are eyeing another history-making season. In 2024, the team ended with a 9-3 record, one of the highest win percentages in Bruton football history, and was also the football team in York County schools with the best end-of-season record.
“We made history for Bruton. We were the best team in York County. We went to the second year of the playoffs and lost a tight game,” Bruton head coach Barrington Morrison said.
The Panthers lost 17 players to graduation.
Returning to the program this year are safety and running back Darrin Banks-Harrold; cornerback and running back Rodney Versher, safety and backup quarterback James Carlyle Greene, safety Abraham Owens; Edge Troy Walson; defensive end Aaron Selby; defensive tackle Rumante Todd; defensive tackle Jadyn Moore; linebacker Derrick Reynolds; linebacker Gavin Thomas; wide receiver and quarterback Peter Henderson; wide receiver Khalon Murrell; wide receiver Sharron Gayles; tight end Troy Walson; tackle Nate Henry; center Justin Smith; and tackle Jermaine Moore.
Morrison enters his fifth year as head coach of the program.
“This is going to be a good year for us. There are a lot of unknowns this year, but we have a good core coming back with a lot of our starters returning. I think that this year we will still be looked at as underdogs, but we’ll have another successful year ahead,” Morrison said.
As the season gets closer, Morrison knows that the Bruton team will play most of the season without rest.
“We have a week zero bye, so we start the season on a bye week and then we have to play 10 straight games. Six of our opponents have a bye week before they play us. That’s the reward for doing well. You go 9-3 and the district throws it at us,” Morrison says.
Official practices kicked off this week and Morrison has been encouraging the guys to see the bigger picture. After their success in 2024, the Panthers know that while they may be seen as underdogs, the guys have targets on their backs.
“We just want to look at the bigger picture and also understand that we’re going to be the hunted this year. Being Bruton, we’re always underdogs and everybody is always looking away at us and passing over us on the schedule. What happens with winning, you know we’ve been 5-5 for awhile, now we’re 9-3, and we beat a lot of teams. Those teams are coming back for blood and they are looking at us to get their revenge. Our main challenge this year will be adjusting from being the team that are hunting people to being a team that now is hunted,” Morrison shared.
Morrison has set the goal for 2025 in the simplest of ways.
“Do better than last year. We want to get past that second round of the regional playoffs. We lost a very close game to King William in the second round of the playoffs and that’s been a goal for me every year is to just be better than the previous season. That’s how you build success,” Morrison said.
Bruton High School will kick off its 2025 season at home at 7 p.m. on Sept. 5 against York County rival Tabb High School.
2025 Bruton High School Football Schedule
- Sept. 5 — home vs Tabb High School
- Sept. 12 — away vs. Smithfield High School
- Sept. 18 — away vs. Lafayette High School
- Sept. 26 — away vs. Jamestown High School
- Oct. 10 — home vs. Warhill High School
- Oct. 16 — away vs. New Kent High School
- Oct. 24 — home vs. Grafton High School
- Oct. 31 — home vs. Poquoson High School
- Nov. 7 — home vs. York High School