Starkville Academy head coach Chase Nicholson wasn’t having any negativity in the wake of his team’s 30-27 victory at Heritage Academy on Friday.
“I have a lot of great memories on this field,” he said, responding to a question about recent bad memories on the same field. “We’ve won some games and lost some games, never a bad thing. This one feels great, and winning is better than losing. I’ve heard that a million times in my life and I believe that’s the only true thing in life.”
The Volunteers (4-5) handed the Patriots (5-4) their third straight loss while setting themselves up to play for a district crown at home against Magnolia Heights next week. The Vols, as they did last year, passed by their rivals in the district standings with hopes of making another playoff run.
Heritage meanwhile hopes to rebound next week against Bayou. Head coach Tobias Smith urged focus for his team to get back to the form that saw them start 5-1.
“We get consumed with who gave up a play or a touchdown, but it comes down to putting a foot wrong or a hand placement that turns a play from a loss to a gain or a touchdown to a sack,” he said, reflecting on small mistakes making a big difference. “It’s those small things that we need to get back on track.”
Both teams showed the talent to make some noise in the postseason, with Vols receiver Blake Little and Pats running back Adyn Westmoreland scoring three touchdowns each in the contest.
Neither player’s impact could be overstated on the night, both stepping up in a big spot for their teams and reflecting the kind of work ethic their respective coaches preach.
— Colin Damms
Freshman Brooks sparking New Hope’s stunning turnaround
“New Hope” is an appropriate name for this year’s Trojans team that is sitting at 6-1 with three weeks left in the regular season a year after finishing 0-10. First-year head coach Allen Glenn and his team live by the motto “deserve to win,” and New Hope’s latest triumph was a 46-7 victory Friday night over Corinth.
Running back Jeremiah Harkins led the Trojans with four touchdowns, but Glenn has entrusted the offense to freshman quarterback Tyrekus Brooks, who is playing well beyond his years.
“He’s an amazing athlete,” Harkins said. “I have never seen such a player in my days in high school. He plays like a senior. He plays like he’s done this before.”
Brooks did make some typical freshman mistakes against the Warriors. Late in the first quarter, he picked up a bad snap and kept on retreating in the backfield when he would have been better off throwing the ball away, resulting in a 10-yard loss. He also fumbled in the red zone after a long run as he fought for extra yards, with Corinth recovering.
But Brooks provided plenty of positive highlights too. His 1-yard rushing touchdown opened the scoring, and he connected on a couple of excellent throws downfield. In the third quarter, Brooks hit Lonnie Shinn Jr. over the middle for a 19-yard touchdown, and after New Hope got the ball back barely a minute later, he went deep to Cameron Mitchell for a 40-yard pickup that set up another touchdown on the next play.
“He’s got that moxie about him. He’s just got a little bit of that ‘it’ factor,” Glenn said. “Proud of Tyrekus. I can’t say enough good things about the kid. He does things the right way, very coachable, comes to work every day with his hard hat.”
— Benjamin Rosenberg
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