It's been a long time since D'Iberville hit the road for a football game - as in five weeks - but that is one of the challenges facing the Warriors tonight in the third round of the 4A state playoffs.
The 12-0 Warriors are the only South Mississippi football team still in contention for a state championship as they head to Northeast Jones.
If you're going to get to Jackson to play for a state championship, you're going to have to show you can win on the road.
D'Iberville's 2002 state championship team had only one road test in the playoffs before venturing to Jackson, knocking off Gautier. The 2001 team won a third-round road thriller at Picayune before getting knocked off in the South State finals at South Pike.
The Warriors were knocked out of the playoffs the last three years - all on the road, at Terry twice and West Jones once.
So these seniors know what they have to do.
Doug's Picks won't be able to pick up ground the rest of the season, and we are hoping we will be picking into early December. We went 3-3 last week, missing on the Harrison Central upset as well as St. Patrick and Ocean Springs.
For the season, we are 110-32, for a winning percentage of .774.
At this time of the year, you can expect a chill in the air. It shouldn't be as bad as it was in 1990 when Stone beat Mendenhall 14-13 in the South State finals in sub-freezing temperatures. That's a game we'll never forget.
Make no mistake, this will be a tough test for a talented D'Iberville team. Northeast Jones has played well against South Mississippi teams the last two years. Most recently, they came to Moss Point and shut out the Tigers 10-0.
We think the close call against Mendenhall two weeks ago was a wakeup call for the Warriors. There's no point looking ahead to a possible South State showdown with Wayne County next week.
D'Iberville is averaging more than 41 points a game. Northeast Jones is talented, especially at the quarterback position. But we don't expect a high-scoring fest tonight, probably something in the mid-ranges. Still, this Warrior team has a lot of offensive firepower to go with a hard-hitting defense.
With that in mind... D'Iberville 27, Northeast Jones 17.
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