4 South MS teams could make history again in South State playoffs. Here’s what to know.
High school football in South Mississippi has reached a new competitive height. For the first time ever, four schools from the lower six counties will be playing in the South State title round on Friday night.
Ocean Springs, Picayune, Gautier and Stone have all fought their way to the semi-final round of the statewide playoffs.
The Greyhounds arrive as only the second 6A team from the Coast to reach South State. The first, of course, being OSHS in 2009.
Picayune is back for the third time in the last four years and hoping to reach Hattiesburg for the second straight year. It’ll have to go through a hungry Gautier team that’s on this stage for the first time in program history.
Stone has been here before, but it’s been over 30 years since. The Tomcats are still on the prowl for their first state championship win and it will take a generational first to get there.
The four schools have an opportunity to represent the Coast in a way never seen before on the gridiron.
“It’s definitely a good thing for the programs still playing,” Ocean Springs coach Blake Pennock told the Sun Herald. “There is a lot of talent on the Coast, glad it is being represented.”
Here’s everything you need to know about an historic Friday night in South Mississippi.
6A
Ocean Springs (12-0) at Brandon (11-1)
The Greyhounds seemed destined to eventually arrive here. An undefeated OSHS team was denied entry to South State by Oak Grove last year, but raced past the Warriors this time around to clinch Blake Pennock and Bray Hubbard’s shot at reaching the final game.
In order to get there, the Greyhounds will have to get through a heavyweight bout with visiting state power Brandon. The Bulldogs have reached this point in each of the two years Sam Williams has led the team.
6A Mr. Football and Alabama commit Bray Hubbard is the main attraction on the field, where everything runs through him. Hubbard has career highs in passing and rushing yards and is responsible for 40 touchdowns.
In 24 games over the last two seasons, Hubbard’s offense has failed to score 30 points only once and hasn’t scored less than 21 since the beginning of last year.
The Bulldogs are bringing their own potent offense to town, scoring 36.7 points per game. They’re led by a 2,500-yard passer in Landon Varnes, a 1,500-yard rusher in Nate Blount and a 1,000-yard receiver in Akron commit Lester Miller.
“I think playing at home is a real advantage,” Pennock said. “We’ve been clicking on offense and defense during the playoffs. We will need both to win this week.”
Expect fireworks from start to finish in what should be an electric game. The matchup is set to kick off at 7 p.m. Friday.
5A
Picayune (13-0) vs Gautier (10-2)
Picayune has not lost a football game in 14 months, riding a program-record 24-game win streak with Gautier coming to town for the second time this month.
The state’s top two 5A players, Mr. Football winner Dante Dowdell and fellow U.S. Army Bowl All-American Kaden Irving, will reconvene in a contest full of elite talent.
Gautier nearly knocked off the Maroon Tide in the district title game on Nov. 3, but fell in overtime 48-42. It was the closest anybody had come to beating Picayune in the regular season during its win streak.
Irving recently reached a rare milestone in joining the 10,000-yard club and has led his team to back-to-back double-digit playoff wins to earn this rematch.
On the other side, Picayune boasts a bevy of college-level stars led by Dowdell on offense and Amarion Tyson on defense.
The Tide had to overcome a 17-7 halftime deficit last week against West Jones and did so by shutting out the Mustangs in the second half. Picayune’s defense has allowed only one team to reach 20 points all season: Gautier.
The game will kick off at 7 p.m. Friday.
4A
Stone (9-2) vs Mendenhall (12-1)
Neither roster is carrying an athlete that was around for the first round of this South State rematch. These two met in the semi-final in 1990 and the Tomcats took down Mendenhall, 14-13. It’s also the first time since 1991 Stone has reached the South State final.
Stone played for a state championship in each season and came up short both times. But these aren’t your father’s Tomcats. Studded with athleticism across the offense and anchored by a stifling defense, John Feaster’s team has defied every odd stacked against them.
Playing with a shorter roster list than many of its opponents, Stone took a pair of 6A programs to the wire before rattling off nine straight wins. In that stretch, Stone has allowed just 10.4 points per game.
Its defense has been led in the middle by C.C. Herrien, who has 22 tackles and three sacks over three playoff games.
Herrien and his group will have their hands full with a Mendenhall team that has won 12 games in a row behind first-year starting quarterback Tayton James’ 26 total touchdowns. The Tigers’ true strength lies on the other side of the ball, where they’re allowing just 8.2 points a contest.
Stone is led at quarterback by Connor Tice and he’s got athletic playmakers in Chasden and Daylon Collins, who have accounted for over 2,000 yards of offense together.
The game will be played in Perkinston and, like the rest, kicks off at 7 p.m.
