After letting opponents score more than 40 points per game through two games this season, Starkville’s defense put up its best performance last Friday against Meridian, while Starkville Academy picked up an early district win. For Caledonia, turnovers cost them a contest against Lamar School.
Starkville 44, Meridian 6
After giving up 48 points to West Point and 54 points to Oak Grove to start the season, Starkville finally battened down its hatches on defense and held Meridian to just six points Friday to spring the Yellow Jackets to 2-1 on the season.
Starkville forced three fumbles, one returned for a touchdown, two interceptions, sacked the Wildcats’ quarterback three times for a loss of 18 yards and held them to -16 rushing yards on the night.
Meanwhile on offense, quarterback Kingston Johnson threw for 215 yards and two touchdowns while running back Torian Knox tallied 96 yards on 13 carries to help their team score 20 points in the first quarter, 14 in the third and 10 more in the fourth. Johnson ran in a score, and Tylan Calvert and Graham Hancock both had scoring runs to produce a victory head coach John Carr called “much needed,” after the loss to West Point left his team feeling a little “embarrassed.”
“At West Point, (we) definitely didn’t play our best, but our guys responded well,” he said. “Defensively, we played a lot more physical and a better brand of football at Meridian.
“We created some turnovers and had some big plays stopping the run. … Defensively, I thought we came and played hard, played well, played fast. We were a lot more physical than (against West Point).”
It wasn’t a perfect game for the Jackets, though, as they were assessed an astonishing 19 penalties for 170 yards.
“That’s not good football,” Carr said. “A lot of those were effort penalties, but at the same time we have some things we have to clean up. Overall it was a good win. It was on the road, had to travel and do all those kinds of things, so our guys handled all that pretty good.”
Both the Jackets’ defense and offense will be challenged again at 7 p.m. Friday with 4A powerhouse Louisville coming to town.
“I think (the Yellow Jackets) are excited about playing,” Carr said. “It’s a long-time rivalry again and a lot of history between these two schools, so our guys are looking forward to it.”
Starkville Academy 28, East Rankin Academy 13
Through four weeks of the football season, the Volunteers are already 3-0 overall and 1-0 in District 2-4A games – not a bad way to start the season, according to head coach Chase Nicholson.
“It’s always good to start out in the district with a win, and that sets you up for success moving forward,” he said. “So, it’s a good win for us. … Anytime you’re undefeated, anytime you’ve got a district win, you’re moving in the right direction.”
Friday’s win gave the Vols their best start since the 2023 season and was the team’s first game against the Patriots since 2014. SA showcased some resolve as it battled back from a 7-0 halftime deficit to score 14 unanswered points in the third quarter and outscore East Rankin 14-6 in the final frame. Nicholson said he’s proud of the way his team battled back from a halftime deficit, but they have to learn to play a full game of offense.
“At the end of the day, we’ve been there and done that,” he said. “That’s our mentality and the way it’s got to be. We can’t worry because it’s going to happen again and it’s not going to be the last time in our lives where we’re down at the half. We just have to learn to play four quarters. It’s more important that we’ve got to start coming out of the game better.”
SA is back in action at 7 p.m. Friday hosting Bayou Academy.
Lamar School 55, Caledonia 15
Thanks to a field goal and a touchdown run by Cohen Clark and a 25-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Tyler Long to Christian Robertson, the Cavaliers held on to a 15-14 edge at halftime in Friday’s home contest against Lamar School, but five second-half turnovers turned the game on its head in favor of the Raiders.
The Cavs lost three fumbles, Long was picked off once and their offense was halted on fourth down. Most of the turnovers left Lamar in the Cavs’ territory, making it much easier to score, and one fumble was returned for a touchdown entirely as the Raiders tacked on 27 points in the third quarter and 14 more in the fourth to pull away.
“The object is to not give the other team the ball, but it was just a tale of two halves for our football team,” head coach Michael Kelly said. “We just can’t learn to get out of our own way sometimes and we struggle doing that. The turnover bug has bitten us at the wrong time of the year and it got us the other night, but tip your hat to Lamar. They created some of those turnovers and they found a way to win a football game in the second half and we didn’t.”
Other than the costly turnovers, Kelly said his team showed some positive signs of offense as it didn’t struggle much with moving the ball against the Raiders in the contest. They just have to figure out how to keep the ball and produce more points.
“I thought we ran the ball well in the first half. I thought we threw a couple of touchdown passes and completed a couple of footballs in the throwing game, which is really big for us,” Kelly said. “I thought we were capitalizing on what they were giving us. … Just hold on to the ball in the second half and you may give yourself a chance to win.”
Kelly said his team works on ball security every day in practice and it’s just some of the growing pains the young Cavs will have to work through as the season progresses.
“I think it’s where it has to be a point of emphasis. I mean it has to be a laser-like focus. You can’t be careless with the football. Sometimes you have to count your losses. If it’s a negative play, just take the negative play, but don’t give the ball to the other team, and you have to learn from your mistakes, but I think a lot of that comes from where your mind is and where your focus is.”
Up next for the Cavs (0-3) is a contest at New Albany (2-1) at 7 p.m. Friday.
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