STARKVILLE — Starkville and West Point are set to renew their local rivalry on Friday night as the Jackets play host to the defending 5A champions.
It will be the 99th meeting between the two teams, a series Starkville has the upper hand in, but over the past several years it has often been a hotly contested and competitive matchup between title contenders.
“They have a new coach but he’s been a part of their success,” Jackets head coach Chris Jones said of the matchup against Brett Morgan’s West Point team. “He’s an excellent coach and we’re going to have our hands full. They’re always a good team, they play smash-mouth and run it at you. We’ve been playing them for a while now, we both know what to expect, we just have to go play good football.”
The Jackets won 39-28 in West Point last season, scorching the eventual 5A champions with a lightning attack led by senior quarterback Trey Petty. It’s been a near total reload of the offense in 2024 with so many starters graduating in May.
“We have new pieces but it’s guys who have been in the program and know what to do,” Jones said. “We have good players who will hopefully continue to improve the more they play. We have to get up against West Point, that’s a good team and we need to bring our A-game.”
It’s a different team this time around with Jaylen Ruffin now QB1 in Starkville, but the Jackets didn’t miss a beat in their 43-22 win at Noxubee County last week.
“He did a good job, took care of the football and didn’t have turnovers,” Jones said of Ruffin’s performance. “He missed a few reads but that comes with playing the game and getting better. I think ultimately it was a good first game for him and we hope to see him continue to grow from it.”
That matchup also tested the Jackets defense, with 2025 Mississippi State commit KaMario Taylor doing his best to keep pace with Starkville on the scoreboard.
“He’s probably one of the better quarterbacks in the nation,” Jones said of Taylor. “He’s different but I thought we did a good job containing him and limiting big plays. Playing a good team and players always makes you better in the long run.”
Over in West Point, Brett Morgan and the Green Wave regrouped after a heartbreaking loss at home to Louisville. The Wildcats survived 15-14 against a late flurry, but the Green Wave weren’t hanging their heads for long.
“We had a great week of practice,” Morgan said. “It’s probably the best week of practice we’ve had all year honestly. They’ve done everything we’ve asked of them and we’re excited about tomorrow.”
The team didn’t waste time getting over the loss. It’s a program and coaching staff that has been through several seasons together despite the head coaching change. The staff and the players know the drill, and when Monday came around they were focused on the next task once again.
“It’s head down, focusing on ourselves and how to get better,” Morgan said of the process. “We’re a lot better team than we were two weeks ago against Brandon and we’ll be a better team after this week. It’s about learning more about ourselves, what we can and can’t fix, there are so many little things that led to us losing to Louisville that we focused on and we expect to play better tomorrow night because of that.”
Stepping up as head coach came with several new adjustments for Morgan, one of which was moving down to the field level. He still has the same group of offensive coaches he calls plays with, but it’s a different energy and approach than being in the press box like before. After a couple of preseason games and the season opener though, he’s settled into his new vantage point during games.
“It’s an adjustment for all of our staff, but I felt like we saw it and called it, we had good communication between the guys on the field and the guys in the box relaying information,” Morgan said. “I feel like I’m more comfortable and the staff is more comfortable with it. I’ll tell you though, it’s a lot more emotional on the sideline.”
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