STARKVILLE – While Starkville High School has maintained perfection through its first 10 games of the football season, the Yellow Jackets still have no hardware to show for that success.
“It’s hard to believe you could win 10 games and not win district,” Starkville junior wide receiver A.J. Brown said. “That’s okay though. It just means we have to keep proving ourselves. We want to win them all.”
Top-ranked Starkville actually enters the final weekend of the Mississippi High School Activities Association regular season with its region championship in doubt.
Starkville (10-0, 6-0 region) will face Clinton (9-1, 6-0) today for the Class 6A, Region 2 championship and pivotal home-field advantage in the playoffs.
Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. at Burkett Field in Clinton.
“This is how you want every season to play out,” Starkville coach Jamie Mitchell said. “You want to play the last game competing for a championship. The kids are excited about this opportunity that’s for sure.”
South Panola has already clinched the Class 6A, Region 1 championship. That means the Starkville-Clinton winner would play host to the North State championship game on Nov. 28 should it and South Panola both win in the first two rounds of the playoffs.
“We are excited about this opportunity,” Starkville senior running back Matt Fuller said. “The goal is to always win the state championship. However, the first goal is the region championship. We want to do that first before we move on.”
Clinton may be the surprise team in Class 6A this season. A year ago, the Arrows only won three games. However, coaches and players around the region knew what Clinton was putting together. As many as seven sophomores started on both sides of the ball as the Arrows took their lumps but got better throughout the season.
Starkville won 24-7 a season ago. A similar defensive effort will be needed to walk away from the Jackson-metro area with a region championship.
“The first thing you see is their speed,” Mitchell said. “They have a good offensive game plan. Their receivers are long and athletic. As a team, they have a lot of speed.”
Last week, Starkville rallied from down 17-0 in the third quarter to defeat Warren Central 27-17 at Yellow Jacket Stadium. It was the first time all season that Starkville had trailed in a game all season.
“That game was really a challenge for us,” Starkville sophomore defensive back Abdural Lee said. “I think we learned a lot about our team. You always say you are going to overcome adversity. Then it was really a chance to prove to one another that we really could dig deep like that and get it done.”
Starkville turned the game on defense. The Yellow Jackets forced three turnovers, including two forced fumbles by Lee, during the decisive third quarter. Warren Central entered the contest allowing seven points per game. However, the Yellow Jackets eventually broke through.
“We feel like one big play can turn a game for us,” Brown said. “It took a little longer than normal but we eventually found a way to get some points. Once we scored, they had a tough time slowing us down after that.”
Senior quarterback Brady Davis threw two touchdowns apiece to Brown and Raphael Leonard. For the season, Davis has now thrown for 2,349 yards and 31 touchdowns. Davis has thrown for 200 or better yards in seven of Starkville’s 10 games.
“You saw the offense step it up in the second half (against Warren Central),” Fuller said. “It was really the first time we had faced adversity all season. I think that win will help us out a lot for the rest of the season.”
Clinton scored a late touchdown to win 14-13 at Warren Central. The Arrows have not lost since a 21-7 setback at Brandon on Sept. 5.
Sophomore quarterback Cam Akers has thrown for 1,316 yards and 13 touchdowns. Akers has also rushed for a team-high 725 yards and 14 touchdowns. Clinton is averaging 31 points per game.
“It is an explosive high-scoring offense,” Mitchell said. “Our defense has risen to the challenge all year. When their backs were against the wall last week, they really delivered. I expect a similar effort this week.”
Follow Scott Walters on Twitter @dispatchscott.
Scott was sports editor for The Dispatch.
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