JACKSON — Starkville Academy’s appearance in the Mississippi Association of Independent Schools Class AAA, Division II state championship game has been three years in the making.
“It started out when were all sophomores,” Starkville Academy senior defensive end/fullback Jonathon Black said. “There have been some ups and downs, but we always knew where we wanted to get in the end. This is extremely satisfying to be playing for the state championship.”
Starkville Academy (11-1) will face Oak Forest (La.) Academy (12-1) at 2 p.m. Saturday at Robinson-Hale Stadium on the Mississippi College campus in Clinton.
“This is what you play for,” Starkville Academy fifth-year coach Jeff Terrill said. “These are the moments you will remember for a lifetime. It is an honor to be playing this game. Oak Forest is one of the best teams in the state, so we have a major challenge ahead. However, on this level and in this game, you would expect to be playing the best.”
Starkville Academy last played for the state championship in 2011, when it lost to Greenville Washington School 20-0. A bevy of seniors were lost off that team, which forced Terrill to rebuild. The following squads finished under .500. However, the belief was the youth would be served.
“We got knocked around some, but we always believed,” Starkville Academy senior free safety/wide receiver Blake Slaughter said. “The thing about this team is how much it is a family. We have been through the good times and bad times together. With so many seniors, we thought we had a chance to have a special season.”
More than half of Starkville Academy’s 33-man roster will play in their final prep game.
Terrill challenged his team to start the season strong. It did in a 42-21 win against defending state champion Lamar School. However, the victory that allowed the Volunteers to begin thinking the playoffs happened in the fifth week of the season.
“The win over Magnolia Heights (a 27-7 win at home) put us over the top,” Starkville Academy senior running back/middle linebacker Drew Harrell said. “There was a buzz in school all week. They were highly ranked (second) and we knew how important the game was. When we were able to win that game, we were really ready to set our sights really high.”
Starkville Academy won its first six games and moved to the top spot in The Associated Press academy rankings. Three days later, Starkville Academy suffered its only loss, a 17-10 decision at Madison-Ridgeland Academy.
MRA will face Jackson Prep on Friday night for the Class AAA, Division I title.
“We had our chances at an undefeated season,” Starkville Academy senior tight end/outside linebacker Josh Crittenden said. “After that loss, we just had to focus in on the fundamentals a little bit more and a work a little harder.”
Starkville Academy saw the hard work pay off with its first win against Jackson Academy. A shutout of Pillow Academy put an exclamation on the regular season.
In its playoff opener last week, Starkville Academy beat Lamar School 42-0 at home. For a team that didn’t reach the postseason last year, a home playoff win was sweet.
“That was an emotional game. Everybody at school was really hyped for it,” Harrell said. “We knew what was riding on the game.”
Starkville Academy will look to make the most of its chance Saturday to win its first football state championship since 2005.
“We know it hasn’t been done in a while,” Slaughter said. “Everybody is talking about the bringing the championship back home. There is a little more pressure on us since it has been a while, but we are OK with that.”
Follow Scott Walters on Twitter @dispatchscott
Scott was sports editor for The Dispatch.
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