The Starkville High School football team is in the middle of a COVID-19-induced quarantine, but that didn’t stop the Yellow Jackets (7-1) from gaining a spot in the Class 6A rankings when the new Associated Press Mississippi high school football poll was released Tuesday.
Nine Mississippi media outlets, including The Commercial Dispatch, were polled on the top five teams in each class and the top 10 overall.
Teams earned 10 points for a first-place vote, nine for a second-place vote, and so on.
Starkville went from fourth last week to third this week in Class 6A while remaining fifth in the overall rankings. Oak Grove (7-0) topped the poll in both categories.
Oxford was second in Class 6A, D’Iberville was fourth, and Northwest Rankin entered the rankings at fifth.
Starkville has forfeited this week’s scheduled home game against Warren Central, which fell out of the rankings after a loss to Clinton last Friday. Clinton will be Starkville’s final opponent of the regular season on Nov. 6.
In other polls
— West Point (5-3) received one fewer vote than it did last week among Class 5A schools despite a 47-14 win over Columbus at home Friday. After falling out of the poll entirely with back-to-back losses to Lake Cormorant and Grenada, West Point received two fifth-place votes; this week, the Green Wave received just one. Picayune (8-0) took over the top spot in Class 5A after top-ranked Neshoba Central lost to Ridgeland, putting the Rockets third and the Titans fourth. West Jones was second in the class, and Lafayette was fifth. West Point is on the road Friday to face New Hope (2-6).
— Heritage Academy (7-2) is again receiving votes among private schools after beating Washington School 35-6 on Friday in Greenville. The Patriots earned two fifth-place votes, including The Dispatch’s selection. They got the second-most votes of teams outside the top five, which consists of Madison-Ridgeland Academy, Leake Academy, Jackson Prep, Jackson Academy and Greenville Christian. The Patriots have a bye this week and await the winner of Friday’s first-round MAIS Class 5A playoff game against Starkville Academy and Simpson Academy for a Nov. 6 home game.
— Noxubee County (5-1) remained second behind Magee after a dominant 29-0 home win over Choctaw County to clinch home-field advantage in the Class 3A playoffs. The Tigers finished ahead of Columbia and West Marion, which tied for third, and fifth-place North Panola. Noxubee County earned three first-place votes, including The Dispatch’s choice.
Here’s the ballot Theo DeRosa submitted for The Dispatch:
Overall top 10
1. Oak Grove (7-0)
2. Starkville (7-1)
3. Madison-Ridgeland Academy (9-0)
4. Oxford (7-0)
5. Picayune (8-0)
6. West Jones (8-1)
7. Leake Academy (10-0)
8. D’Iberville (7-0)
9. Lafayette (6-2)
10. Ridgeland (8-1)
Class 1A
1. Nanih Waiya (7-0)
2. Lumberton (7-1)
3. Biggersville (8-0)
4. TCPS (5-2)
5. Simmons (6-1)
Class 2A
1. Taylorsville (7-1)
2. North Side (4-0)
3. Enterprise Clarke (6-1)
4. Scott Central (6-1)
5. Union (6-2)
Class 3A
1. Noxubee County (5-1)
2. West Marion (6-2)
3. Columbia (7-1)
4. Magee (6-0)
5. North Panola (5-1)
Class 4A
1. Louisville (7-1)
2. Newton County (8-0)
3. Corinth (5-2)
4. Pontotoc (7-1)
5. Poplarville (5-3)
Class 5A
1. Picayune (8-0)
2. West Jones (8-1)
3. Lafayette (6-2)
4. Ridgeland (8-1)
5. Neshoba Central (8-1)
Class 6A
1. Oak Grove (7-0)
2. Starkville (7-1)
3. Oxford (7-0)
4. D’Iberville (7-0)
5. Northwest Rankin (7-1)
Private schools
1. Madison-Ridgeland Academy (9-0)
2. Leake Academy (10-0)
3. Jackson Prep (7-2)
4. Greenville Christian (8-1)
5. Heritage Academy (7-2)
Theo DeRosa reports on Mississippi State sports for The Dispatch. Follow him on Twitter at @Theo_DeRosa.
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