Caledonia High School head football coach Michael Kelly said a playoff berth could come down to the final game – even the final play.
The opponent in that game?
Old rivals New Hope.
If that fires you up, give your thanks to the Mississippi High School Athletics Association for their most recent football realignment, handed out last November. It moved Caledonia out of 4A and into District 1-5A with reigning champion West Point and other potent opponents in Lafayette, Pontotoc, fellow newcomer Columbus and, of course, New Hope.
“I mean, now that our rival New Hope is playing in our division, that means a lot to our kids, and it means a lot to our county,” said Kelly, who is entering his eighth season at the helm of Caledonia football.
The Cavs 2025 football schedule has them tackling Ittawamba Agricultural High School, Amory, Lamar, New Albany and East Webster to open the season before embarking on the precipitous path of meaningful Region 1-5A games against a murderer’s row of talented teams now all seeded under one football roof. Each is vying for the same thing – the 5A state title. Kelly said he’s not surprised the MHSAA moved his team up, which he said was one of the largest 4A schools in the state. But the Cavaliers aren’t nervous about playing in 5A.
“I think the good thing for us is there are some teams on that schedule, that will be in our division, that we have played before in 4A,” Kelly said. “Things like playing Pontotoc; they used to be in our division. But there are some teams on that schedule that we’ve never played before. … I think that really excites some of our kids, who have a chance to go play Lafayette this year.
“I’ve been doing this long enough, coaching long enough with these kids to know that when you roll the ball out there in the state of Mississippi, I don’t care if you are in 1A or 7A – football is tough,” Kelly said. “It demands your best and really doesn’t matter the classification. Our kids are looking for a chance to play and compete and hopefully play the best they can play.”
Kelly and his Cavs posted a 2-7 overall record last season, including an 0-4 mark in Region 4-3A games, which ended a streak of four consecutive playoff appearances. It’s another reason why Kelly isn’t too worried about making the jump to 5A. The Cavs have been getting prepared by playing in a tough 4A district that includes Louisville, which won back-to-back 4A state titles in 2022 and 2023.
“There are certainly good football teams and good coaches in (Region 1-5A). Would I say (the region) is heavy compared across the state? Yes. Is it the heaviest? Probably not,” Kelly explained. “The 4A division we played in the last four years hasn’t been too shabby with the likes of Houston, Louisville, Kosciusko and things of that nature, which I think helped us. When you’ve played Louisville six times in the last five years, it doesn’t get much heavier than that in the state of Mississippi.”
Adding another splash of flavor into the upcoming season for Caledonia is getting the chance to play Columbus High School, which dropped out of 6A and into the 5A foray, for the first time ever. Kelly was the defensive coordinator for the Falcons for three years before taking the head job at Caledonia.
“They are not a part of the Lowndes County School district but they are six miles from our school. So, It’s probably going to be another rival game with our kids now. A little bragging rights within Lowndes County. That’s probably going to mean a little more as well.”
He said the players know what’s on the horizon for this upcoming season, and they are working to get ready.
“They’re probably tired of working out and tired of all the conditioning over the summer. They probably wish they’d play next week,” he said. “For my sake and my coach’s sake, we’re glad that’s not the case. We have a lot of preparation still before us before we jump into this 5A season. But our young men will be ready on August 29.”
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