FLOWOOD — As his defense scrambled off the field, Heritage Academy head coach Sean Harrison shouted his relief into the Flowood night.
“Yes!” Harrison yelled from the sideline. “Thank God!”
The Patriots had just brought down Jackson Prep quarterback Riley Maddox five yards short of a first down, forcing Prep to punt and giving Heritage Academy the ball back late in the first half with a chance to tie the game. It was clear to everyone assembled at Prep’s Patriot Field for Friday’s season opener that Harrison’s team had its best opportunity of the night to topple a private school powerhouse for the second straight season.
This time, though, there would be no upset.
Heritage Academy sophomore quarterback Mack Howard threw an interception on the first play after the punt, Jackson Prep recovered its own fumble two snaps later and threw a touchdown pass on the following play, and the visiting Patriots never recovered. They lost, 41-13, snapping a 14-game winning streak dating back to Nov. 9, 2018.
“We had some times that we could have made big plays, but we didn’t,” senior lineman Reed Brewer said. “That’s what we need to get done next time.”
Friday’s result wasn’t unexpected, though, considering Heritage Academy lost 13 star seniors after cruising, undefeated, to last year’s MAIS Class 5A title.
“I told them after the game I think we’re that far off from doing a lot of great things,” Harrison said. “I think the film’s going to show we were a finished block, tackle, catch away from being in this game.”
Several times, the margin did feel just that razor thin, as when the football bounced crazily away from Prep following Howard’s interception. But when the host Patriots corralled it again and Maddox fired over the middle to Thaxton Berch for a 36-yard catch-and-run touchdown to put Prep up 21-7, the overwhelming talent on Jackson Prep’s roster — more than twice the size of Harrison’s team — shined brightly.
“I figured it would be tough,” Brewer said. “They’re always a good team to play.”
Prep running back Matt Jones gashed the Heritage Academy defense for 137 yards and two touchdowns on 21 carries, while Maddox added two rushing scores of his own in a 15-for-26 performance.
On the other side, Howard — making his first start ever — alternated good plays and bad ones. He stood in the pocket for several key completions, but a second interception before the half was run back 45 yards for a touchdown by Prep’s Jeffrey Ince to put Heritage Academy down three scores.
“I thought in the first half, he did some really special things, but I thought he looked like a sophomore quarterback starting his first game,” Harrison said.
But in the second half, Howard showed why he already received a Power Five offer from Kansas before ever starting a game. After Prep went three and out to open the third quarter, Howard led a touchdown drive featuring consecutive first-down completions of 6, 16, 16 and 21 yards. After an incompletion and an 18-yard catch by Mitchell Woodard, Howard found wide receiver Trey Naugher in the end zone from 4 yards out.
“Give me the ball!” Naugher screamed as he ran back toward the sideline after scoring for the second time. “They can’t guard me!”
Naugher finished with seven catches for an even 100 yards along with his two scores, a promising start to his sophomore season.
“Trey’s a heck of a player who’s going to be really hard to cover in this league,” Harrison said.
The touchdown put Heritage Academy within two scores, but Ince returned the ensuing kickoff to the visitors’ 45-yard line. Five plays later, Jones took the handoff and ran to the right side for a 25-yard touchdown, his second score of the day.
Maddox added a 12-yard rushing score a few minutes into the fourth quarter, and Prep’s subs took it from there.
Only outscored 14-6 in the third and fourth quarters by a 25-time state champion, Heritage Academy’s performance late was promising, Harrison said. Running back Braden Davidson and the team’s offensive line stepped up; defenders made beelines to the ball to make tackles.
“I thought in the second half that we have a chance of being really good this year,” Harrison said.
The mistakes and missed opportunities that cost Heritage Academy a win Friday should subside as the year goes on, the coach said.
“I think everything we did wrong is fixable,” Harrison said. “I don’t think we have anybody in a spot where we’re going to go get beat.”
Jackson Prep 41, Heritage Academy 13
First quarter
JP — Riley Maddox 15 run (Louie Gatlin kick), clock 7:58
Second quarter
JP — Matt Jones 1 run (Gatlin kick), clock 10:25
HA — Trey Naugher 11 pass from Mack Howard (Luke Fisher kick), clock 7:24
JP — Thaxton Berch 36 pass from Maddox (Gatlin kick), clock 3:09
JP — Jeffrey Ince 45 interception return (kick failed), clock 2:40
Third quarter
HA — Naugher 4 pass from Howard (kick failed), clock 6:29
JP — Jones 25 run (Gatlin kick), clock 4:53
Fourth quarter
JP — Maddox 12 run (Gatlin kick), clock 8:02
Team statistics
HA JP
First downs: 18 18
Rushes-yards: 20-43 33-204
Passing yards: 220 150
Comp.-att.-int.: 18-34-2 17-30-1
Sacks: 0 1
Penalties-yards: 1-5 10-100
Fumbles-lost: 1-0 1-0
Individual statistics
RUSHING: Heritage Academy — Braden Davidson 11-38, Mack Howard 3-11, Jaylan Stewart 6-(-6); Jackson Prep — Matt Jones 21-137, Riley Maddox 8-60, Sam McMullan 2-4, Duncan Mathews 1-4, Braedon Mabry 1-(-1)
PASSING: Heritage Academy — Mack Howard 17-32, 213; Jack Ketchum 1-2, 7; Jackson Prep — Riley Maddox 15-26, 136; Will Gibbs 2-4, 14.
RECEIVING: Heritage Academy — Trey Naugher 7-100, Mitchell Woodard 5-77, Sam Hannon 1-16, Harris Gunter 2-11, Ethan Oswalt 1-7, Braden Davidson 1-6, Wesley Miller 1-3; Jackson Prep — Thaxton Berch 9-111, Mills Murphy 1-11, Will Upton 1-10, Matt Jones 2-8, Walker Box 1-4, Garner Watkins 1-3, Jeffrey Ince 1-2, Sam Graves 1-1.
Theo DeRosa reports on Mississippi State sports for The Dispatch. Follow him on Twitter at @Theo_DeRosa.
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