Red Nation came out in force to support Miller Place football for the “Friday Night Lights Red Out,” and the Panthers put on a show.

ROBERT O'ROURK PHOTO | Miller Place halfback Adin Greenfield fights off the Harborfields tackler.

The Panthers rushed for 228 yards — with touchdowns from Matt Hinchy, Adin Greenfield and Alex Greenidge — and shut out Harborfields, 20-0, before a standing room only crowd at Miller Place High School.

The Panthers (1-1 in Division III) outgained the Tornadoes by a 2-to-1 margin, their offensive line opening holes for five different runners. Hinchy, the senior quarterback, led the way with 98 yards on 15 carries while completing four of seven passes for 44 yards. Greenfield had 37 yards on six carries (and caught three passes for 37 yards), Greenidge gained 27 yards on seven carries, Brett Osman added 27 yards on six carries, and Colin Ferrall picked up 36 yards on nine carries.

“The line did a great job, and our wingbacks did a great job blocking,” said Panthers coach Ron Petrie. “We have the ability to take the ball for big chunks, but we can grind it out.”

“The offensive line did phenomenal,” said Hinchy. “Our guards pulled great and our run plays up the middle did real well.”

After beginning the season with a tough loss at Sayville, the defending county champion, the Panthers needed a strong effort at home and needed to do a better job physically, which Petrie said cost the team in the second half of the opener.

“We never used the words ‘a must-win game,’ but we as a coaching staff felt that this was a game that we had to come out and make a statement with,” Petrie said. “We tried to play a more physical brand of football, we tried to run inside a little bit more, and the kids responded to that.”

Defensively, the Panthers bottled up Harborfields quarterback Travis George, holding him to 79 yards rushing on 16 carries and disrupting his passing game to the tune of zero completions in nine attempts. The Tornadoes completed just one pass on the evening, a 37-yard halfback option.

ROBERT O'ROURK PHOTO | Miller Place quarterback Matt Hinchy rushed for one touchdown Friday night.

“We felt that we had an advantage, our secondary against their receivers,” Petrie said. “The goal was to make the quarterback beat us with his legs. We didn’t feel he could beat us with his arm, and I felt we did a great job containing him.”

The Panthers opened the scoring early in the second quarter when Hinchy finished off a seven-play, 66-yard drive with a 15-yard touchdown run that put the Panthers ahead, 6-0. Hinchy rolled right looking to pass but then cut left and breezed into the end zone for the score.

The Panthers defense forced a three-and-out on Harborfields’ ensuing possession and marched right down the field again, going 61 yards in 10 plays, capped by a two-yard dive into the end zone by Greenidge.

The key play on the drive came on fourth-and-nine from the Tornadoes’ 16 yard-line. Hinchy lofted a pass toward the goal line to Greenidge, but Harborfields was flagged for pass interference, giving the Panthers the ball at the eight. They scored two plays later and led 13-0 at the half.

The Panthers took the opening kick of the third quarter and scored again, marching 65 yards on 10 plays in 5:41. Greenfield, who had a 15-yard run to move the ball deep into Tornado territory, finished the drive with a five-yard run around the right end for a 20-0 Panthers lead.

It was a great night for the Panthers fans, many of whom were decked out in red T-shirts emblazoned with “12th Man” and “Red Nation.” The rare night game was part of a fundraiser for the Jimmy V Foundation.

“Everyone in school this week was hyped up for the game, and we wanted to take it to them,” said Hinchy. “And that’s what we did tonight.”

“It was a great night for the community, and I really appreciate the booster club putting all of this together,” added Petrie. “That’s what we like to see at Miller Place. I think it got the guys pretty excited to come out and play tonight and perform.”

The Panthers continue the season with a tough task at Huntington on Saturday. “We’re not going to become complacent,” said Hinchy. “We’re going to go into Huntington looking to go 2-1. We know it’s a game we can win, and we’re just going to play as hard as we did tonight.”