St. Stanislaus finishes 2015 atop Sun Herald Top 10
The 2015 football season came to a close over the weekend in Oxford. Two Coast schools successfully maneuvered their way to state championship games, but South Mississippi missed out on bringing home its first title since Picayne defeated Oxford in 2013.
The Rockachaws (11-4) went full circle in 2015. After starting the year atop the Sun Herald Top 10, SSC struggled against larger competition and fell out of the poll. As the Rockachaws got into region play, they gathered momentum that took them all the way to the Class 4A state championship game and back atop the Sun Herald Top 10 at No. 1. For the second year in a row, Noxubee County ended SSC's season with a 21-point decision.
"We had a great season," said quarterback Myles Brennan, who picked up an offer from Wake Forest on Wednesday. "No one thought we'd ever come back here, especially starting off 1-3."
All season, Resurrection proved to be one of the toughest defenses in the state. The No. 4 Eagles (13-1) allowed just eight points in its march to the Class 1A championship game, eliminating Sebastopol, Stringer and Lumberton in the process. In the title tilt, Hollandale-Simmons proved to be too fast for the Eagles.
"Either way, whether we won or lost, we still made it to State," RCS defensive end Renzell Johnson said. "That's all that matters. We made history."
Led by its three-headed rushing monster of Christian Roberts, Hunter Holifield and Michael Tatman, No. 2 Pearl River Central (11-2) nearly doubled last year's win total as it won Region 4-5A and made it to the second-round of the Class 5A playoffs before losing to eventual state champion Wayne County.
No. 3 Gulfport (9-3) claimed the Region 4-6A championship to earn a home game to open the 6A playoffs. All season, GHS found ways to win, sometimes in more dramatic finishes than others. The Admirals had a hard time slowing down Meridian in their playoff opener, however, losing 42-6.
Like their Region 4-6A counterparts, the No. 5 Ocean Springs Greyhounds (8-4) couldn't get past the first round of the playoffs. After spending a bulk of the season atop the Sun Herald's Top 10, OSHS finished the season on a three-game skid.
All season, No. 6 Pascagoula (9-4) overcame adversity and injuries. The Panthers won their final two regular season games to clinch home-field in the Class 5A opener against Brookhaven. After annihilating BHS, the Panthers proved to be overwhelmed by a potent Laurel squad.
It came down to the final seconds of the regular season, but No. 7 St. Martin came up just short of making the playoffs for the first time since 2003. The Yellow Jackets (9-3) seemed unstoppable offensively for much of the season but couldn't get a stop late against D'Iberville when they needed it most. SMHS returns plenty of playmakers as it will look to snap its streak in 2016.
No. 8 East Central (7-5) edged Northeast Jones in the Class 4A playoff opener but then lost a heartbreaker in double overtime to Lawrence County.
Early in the season it looked like Casey Cain's first year at No. 9 Harrison Central (6-7) would be a long one. The Red Rebels rebounded, however, and ripped off a three-game winning streak at the end of the regular season to not only make the playoffs but secure home field. Class 6A runnerup Petal cut Harrison Central's playoff run short, but just making the post-season for the first time since 2013 was an accomplishment.
Perhaps the biggest surprise of the season came from No. 10 Moss Point (7-6). The Tigers edged Bay High by three points and then defeated West Lauderdale and North Pike soundly before falling to St. Stanislaus in the Class 4A South State Championship Game.
"No one was expecting us to get here," Moss Point coach Willie Brown said after the defeat. "We had a few kids who were hurt early, but I'm proud of the kids. We're trying to take the next step and in order to do that we're going to have to go through St. Stanislaus. You can't go around them, you're going to have to go through them. Right now we're going to have to go back to the drawing board and do what we need to do to improve."
D'Iberville (6-7) fell out of the final poll of the year. Poplarville (7-5) received two points to finish just outside the Sun Herald Top 10.
This story was originally published December 10, 2015 at 5:32 PM with the headline "St. Stanislaus finishes 2015 atop Sun Herald Top 10 ."