WEST POINT — The weather was far from kind to Starkville and West Point football on Friday night.
Severe thunderstorms rolled through the Golden Triangle, causing an hour delay for a highly-anticipated matchup between two of the most accomplished programs in Mississippi.
A rivalry that dates back nearly 100 years wouldn’t be denied a game on Friday, and the sloppy conditions made the running game all the more important.
West Point, a ground-and-pound offense, took full advantage with long drives, getting yards in bunches, but a Starkville team that was initially neutralized found a rhythm quickly and never looked back, winning 39-28.
“We had a different game plan coming into it,” Starkville head coach Chris Jones said. “Honestly, this kind of came out of nowhere. Earlier in the week, we didn’t have rain in the forecast, but it’s all about adjusting from the jump.”
Despite rainy conditions, Starkville (2-0) got things started with a bang on Friday, a 67-yard touchdown pass from Trey Petty to Braylon Burnside.
That connection produced two touchdowns in a 49-18 season-opening victory against Noxubee County last Friday, but the running game, specifically Courtland Cooper and Jay Stevenson, was the real star of the show.
The two combined for four touchdowns in the win, with Petty picking up big chunks of yardage as well.
“It was just keep the ball high and tight, hold onto the ball at all times,” Stevenson said. “I just wanna give it to me O-line tonight. They did an excellent job blocking, snapping the ball. Everything was good tonight. We played hard as a team.”
However, for every shot Starkville threw at West Point, the Green Wave (0-2) had a counter, that counter being senior Kahnen Daniels.
The Florida commit had one of his best-ever high school performances, running for 240 yards, three rushing touchdowns and a 10.9 yards-per-carry average.
A 65-yard run capped off the flourish, but all three TD runs were at least 20 yards or more.
Teammate Quinterion Tillman-Evans had a rushing touchdown of his own, but for as much as the Green Wave fought to stay in the game, by the fourth quarter, West Point was left playing catch-up.
“There was nothing wrong with their effort tonight,” West Point head coach Chris Chambless said. “They played their butts off. Both teams did. It was a war, and we wouldn’t expect anything less. I’m proud of our guys’ effort, but now, we have to start fixing the little things.”
The Green Wave have set the standard for 5A schools in the Mississippi High School Activities Association, but for the second-straight year, West Point has gotten out to an uncharacteristic 0-2 start.
It’s something Chambless and the program will look to correct immediately, but on the other side of the field, Starkville, playing to West Point’s game, beat the Green Wave on the ground and stayed red hot, scoring at least 39 points for the second-straight week to begin the season.
“I’m proud of my guys,” Jones said. “They made adjustments. They did what they needed to do. That’s a really good team over there. They hit us in the mouth, but we found ways to get stops and scores.”
Starkville 39, West Point 28
Starkville (2-0) 7 13 7 6 – 39
West Point (0-2) 6 8 8 0 – 28
First quarter
S – Braylon Burnside 67 pass from Trey Petty (Ja Cori Gallegos kick), clock 11:45
WP – Quinterion Tillman-Evans 14 run (kick failed), clock 4:57
Second quarter
WP – Kahnen Daniels 20 run (Tillman-Evans two-point), clock 9:46
S – Jay Stevenson 19 run (Gallegos kick), clock 6:54
S – Petty 1 run (kick failed), clock 0:13
Third quarter
WP – Daniels 37 run (Tillman-Evans two-point), clock 8:11
S – Courtland Cooper 5 run (Gallegos kick), clock 6:37
S – Cooper 3 run (two-point no good), clock 1:46
WP – Daniels 65 run (two-point no good), clock 1:28
Fourth quarter
S – Stevenson 26 rush (kick failed), clock 10:02
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