End of a near two-decade playoff drought headlines MS Coast’s biggest playoff stories
The first and second round of the postseason dwindled the number of teams representing the Mississippi Coast down to seven.
We saw region champs both dominate and struggle, a playoff mainstay pull off another nail-biting win and a nearly two-decade long drought come to an end.
The full breakdown of the week’s games can be found at SunHerald.com.
Here are the biggest stories from first and second round playoff games.
Gators show flaws in narrow escape
Gautier entered the 5A postseason bracket as one of the Coast’s top contenders for a trip to Hattiesburg, but only narrowly avoided a first-round exit in a game marred with self-inflected wounds.
The Gators escaped Natchez, 36-30, after making three consecutive trips the red zone without a score. With an opportunity to build a three-score lead, Trey Irving threw an interception in the end zone just before halftime. Gautier then missed a field goal on the opening drive of the second half and followed that up by fumbling at the Natchez 20-yard line.
The Bulldogs not only closed the gap, in the meantime, they took the lead. A back-and-forth fourth quarter ended with Kasin Thomas taking a swing pass 55 yards for the go-ahead score.
“We played all right in spots, but we didn’t play our brand of football,” Gautier coach Marc High said after the game.
Gautier will have a chance to clean things up against a familiar opponent in the second round against a Wayne County team it beat 31-8 earlier this year.
Third time’s not the charm
Gulfport hosted a playoff game for the third year in a row and this season’s result was no different than the last two.
Petal knocked in a 28-yard field goal in the final moments to put another quick end to the Admirals’ trip to the 7A postseason with a 20-17 defeat. Gulfport had just tied the game when Cooper Crosby took a Dane Sullivan pass 66 yards for a touchdown before the Pirates marched downfield for the winning kick.
The Admirals will have to wait another year for a shot at seeing the second round for the first time since 2019. Gulfport has lost four playoff games in a row and has won just one playoff game in its last 13 tries.
Upset ends drought
George County took its fight to defending 6A state champions West Jones after losing its last two games in district play and landed the knock out blow in the form of a 55-yard go-ahead score.
DJ McNair caught a short pass from Deuce Knight on the sideline, spin off a defender and raced untouched down the sideline to give the Rebels a 26-22 win over the Mustangs in the first round of the 6A bracket.
McNair’s 168-yard night helped put an end to a 17-year playoff drought that included seven straight losses. Coach James Ray is the first program head to win a playoff game since the legendary Al Jones in 2007.
George County’s win earned itself a rematch at district champ Picayune, where the Rebels saw a second-half lead disappear in a 27-20 loss on Nov. 1. Picayune has played a rematch playoff game in each of the last two years, beating Pascagoula 38-0 and Gautier 49-14 in Part II playoff battles.
Team of destiny
Poplarville has opened its 4A postseason run with back-to-back one-point wins after taking down one-seed Columbia on the road.
The Hornets trailed 20-14 in the third quarter before taking the lead with a short touchdown plunge and subsequent extra point. Columbia then missed a short, 22-yard field goal with nine minutes left in the fourth quarter. Poplarville took over and mounted a game-ending drive that included a pair of gutsy fourth down conversions.
The game featured the return of star Poplarville running back Ty Keys, who had made only previous appearance this season as he dealt with a collarbone injury. The sophomore led with 91 rushing yards and was one of three different hornets with a touchdown, joining Nick Miller and Sydney Blackmon.
Poplarville moves to the third round for the ninth consecutive season and will host McComb.
Complimentary star emerging
Darrell “Robo” Smith can do it all. The Picayune running back is one of the state’s leading rushers who just eclipsed 2,000 yards, lines up at corner and is a holder and returner on special teams. With the workload comes mileage, though, and the Maroon Tide have been managing that lately.
Smith took a rest week in the regular season finale against Hancock and leaned on senior Triston Cooper out of the backfield. Cooper exploded with a career-high 215 yards and two touchdowns. This came one week after picking up a previous career-high 124 yards against George County.
Cooper carried the momentum into the first round with three rushing touchdowns and a pick six during the Tide’s 48-7 rout of Pearl River Central.
Now that Picayune has a partner for Smith — who gained 115 yards on just five carries Friday — the Tide have become even more dangerous at just the right time.
