SOUTHAVEN — Columbus High School sophomore cornerback Devon King and the rest of his defensive teammates knew their margin for error was slim.
With the offense having an usual struggle, it was up to the defense to make play after play after play.
“You sometimes get a little nervous out there when it seems like the game hangs on every play,” King said. “You just have to remain confident and you have to believe in what you are doing. As a defense, we really believed in what we were doing.”
The Columbus defense proved up to the challenge Friday night as the offense had a second-half resurgence for a 20-10 win over Southaven in a Mississippi High School Activities Association Class 6A, Region 1 matchup.
Columbus improved to 6-2 overall and 4-0 in region play for the first time in program history. The Falcons are on the doorstep of their first playoff berth since 2012. Columbus will face Olive Branch (5-3, 3-1 region) in its final home game of the season Friday night. The winner there has the inside track for a top two finish in the region and a first-round playoff game at home.
“We know what we are playing for,” Columbus junior defensive end Chris Blair said. “We take pride in all of this because it is something that not been done around here in a long time. Playing a game like this is fun. The defense really showed out. We are about making big plays.”
Columbus trailed 10-0 at halftime. The deficit could not be pinned on the defense. The offense fumbled the ball three times in the first half. One led to a fumble recovery touchdown for the Chargers (4-4, 1-3 region). Southaven also managed a field goal after a bad snap on fourth down set the Chargers up on the Falcons 4-yard line. Again, the defense held and forced a field goal.
Southaven only had one first down in the opening half but held the lead.
“Our defense was put in difficult situations all night long,” Columbus coach Randal Montomgery said. “It is rather amazing that they survived as much as they did.”
In the second half, Columbus changed things around thanks to another sensational rushing game from junior Kylin Hill. Hill ran 24 times for 295 yards with three second-half touchdowns. He topped the 1,000-yard mark for the season with his third 200-yard rushing game – all in region play.
“Big-time players have to make big-time plays,” Hill said. “Nobody got down at halftime. We all knew what we had to do. We just had to stay patient. We won this game I believe because we won the DeSoto Central game. That game changed our season around. It made us believe that anything was possible in this game.”
In its region opener, Columbus erased a 21-10 halftime deficit to edge DeSoto Central 23-21. Montgomery said the team learned valuable lessons in that win that could be applied Friday night.
“There is no doubt that our guys reached back to that experience,” Montgomery said. “This game would have gotten well out of hand a year ago. Now, the kids believe. They have a confidence and they have a mind-set. Beating DeSoto Central the way we did helped that confidence. Nobody was upset at the half. We knew it was still a game. We had to give it to No. 8 (Hill) and No. 28 (junior running back Kendre Conner). That was the only way we were going to win on this night.”
Conner has been slowed in recent weeks due to an ankle injury. After missing two games, Conner did dress last week for a victory over Horn Lake. Montgomery said the ankle was still not at 100 percent and that may have led Conner to run with more fear than usual. An early fumble didn’t help the cause either.
Still, Conner rallied in the second half to give the Columbus coaching staff the 1-2 punch that Montgomery is expecting to give his team a legitimate chance at a playoff run. Conner ran 20 times for 92 yards. As a team, Columbus ran the ball 66 times for 349 yards. In the second half, Columbus ran 37 plays – all were runs.
“It really doesn’t matter how bad things get for us, we are going to keep competing,” Blair said. “Even though the offense had a bad a stretch, we had their back. We have some guys who will get it going. We just have to make sure to not let up. We have to play every play like its the biggest one of the game.”
On this night, the Columbus defense did just that. Christopher Deloach, Damonta Kidd and Cameoron Williams made life miserable for Southaven quarterback Matthew Martin. Derrick Beckom was credited with five pass breakups. Despite his youth, King has become an anchor in the secondary. Kiren Sharp had the pass interception that sealed the win. Hezekiah Manigo also had a couple of big stops.
For the night, Southaven finished with 117 total yards on 46 plays.
“When we get in the other team’s minds that is when the big plays start happening,” King said. “We can sense when they are rattled. After that, we just put more pressure on and try to get the ball back for our offense. It’s a simple mind-set. We are just attacking at all times and being very aggressive.”
Hill capped an 85-yard, 12-play drive with a 30-yard touchdown run midway through the third quarter. In the fourth quarter, Hill capped a 94-yard, 7-play drive with a 27-yard run. While attempting to run out the clock, Hill broke free late and scored again from 36 yards out.
“When we finally got it together and played like a team, we got some things going,” Hill said. “In the locker room at halftime, we talked about being down at the half because it had happened before. We just had to stay true to our identity and do what we do best. When you win games, you have confidence. Right now, we have confidence.”
Follow Dispatch sports writer Scott Walters on Twitter @dispatchscott
Scott was sports editor for The Dispatch.
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