Three players to watch in Picayune-West Point 5A state championship game
Picayune is playing for the state title against West Point on Saturday night after a dominant season which saw the Maroon Tide go undefeated against 5A high school football competition.
Cody Stogner’s team has arrived at this point behind a strong running and sound defense and the plan remains the same for the final game of the year.
Here are the three players to watch out for the title clash in Hattiesburg.
Picayune RB Dante Dowdell
Dante Dowdell is one of just a handful of players in Mississippi to cross the 2,000-yard rushing line this season and was just named to the MVP Offense team in his region. Dowdell is the featured running back in Picayune’s multi-weapon offense.
The junior combines his size with speed and uses his physicality to find extra yardage. In 14 games, Dowdell has hit the century mark 12 times.
Dowdell has been on this stage before as a freshman on Picayune’s 2019 team. The Maroon Tide met the Green Wave for the first time that year in the championship game and Dowdell contributed on the special teams unit.
He’s now in the starring role and will touch the ball more than any other skill player on the Picayune sideline.
Picayune LB Amarion Tyson
The Maroon Tide found one of the top breakout players on the coast when Amarion Tyson began dominating from the middle of the Picayune defense and found himself named the Defensive Player of the Year across 5A Region 4.
Tyson, a sophomore, has racked up 169 tackles so far. He shows strong instincts and a nose for the football. Also disruptive, Tyson’s 18 tackles for loss leads the team.
Tyson has been a force for a Maroon Tide defense that has allowed just 18.1 points per game and pitched multiple shutouts.
Beyond just finding the ball, he has play making tendencies that create negative momentum for his opponents. Tyson has recorded three sacks, four forced fumbles and three fumble recoveries.
Anyone making the trip can expect to hear Tyson’s name called frequently.
West Point RB Cameron Young
The Green Wave are similarly run-heavy with their offense and boast two different 1,000-yard rushers in the backfield.
Cameron Young is the top running back in the system and leads the team with 1,344 rushing yards and 18 touchdowns.
He’s scored four touchdowns already this postseason but is coming off his least productive game of the year against Neshoba Central.
Young ran for just 48 yards on 17 carries in the game, giving Stogner’s team the film it needs to game plan around Young’s abilities.
These three athletes are expected to leave their footprints all over the rematch of the 2019 championship game.
The game is set to kick off at 7 p.m. inside M.M. Roberts Stadium on Saturday night.
