The state playoffs started for half of the six total classifications in Mississippi Friday night, as Class 4A, 3A and 2A all got underway.
In the “Southern Six”, home-standing Moss Point thumped Forrest County AHS 48-6. The Tigers are the number two seed out of region 8-4A, and now stand 3-7 overall on the season. MPHS jumped out to a 21-6 halftime lead and coasted to the win.
Monstrous 6-foot-5, 275-pound Ole Miss commit Jamarious “J.B.” Brown, a defensive tackle, also served time as the tailback a lot of the night for MPHS. He picked up over 100 yards rushing in the first half alone and scored on a 2-yard run in the second stanza.
The Tigers got off to a quick 15-0 start as Jabarious “J.B.” Charles scored on a 1-yard plunge and then Kevon Ford picked off an Aggie pass and returned it 30 yards for a score. Ford also added a two-point conversion after Charles’ scoring run.
After Moss Point recovered an onside kickoff to open the second half, Brown added another short scoring run to extend the lead to 27-6. Minutes later, quarterback Ryan Smith hit Kaleb “K.T.” Ralston on a 76-yard scoring strike to make the count 33-6. Charles added a 31-yard scoring scamper to make the count 41-6 late in the third frame.
Forrest County AHS ends the season at 6-5. This marked just the third meeting all-time between the two teams on the gridiron and the first in 14 years since 2008. The Tigers have won all three meetings.
Stone, which won the Region 8-4A title, hosted Sumrall and got off to a successful postseason start as well as the Tomcats tallied a 41-6 win. Tomcat quarterback Connor Tice accounted for three touchdowns in the first half as Stone jumped out to a 20-0 halftime lead. He ran for one score and hit Andrew Bradford on a pair of scoring strikes, one from 11 yards out and the other from 29-yards away. After winning its first district title in 28 years, Stone moved to 7-2 overall with the win over the Bobcats.
Also, Poplarville jumped out to a commanding 34-0 halftime lead over visiting Pass Christian and cruised to a 40-12 over the Pirates. The Hornets are looking to advance to their seventh consecutive Class 4A South State championship game. Maurice Travis ran for a pair of touchdowns and hauled in a pass for yet another in the first half. Poplarville, the Region 7-4A champs, moved to 10-1 overall with the win, while PCHS was the fourth seed from Region 8-4A and finished 5-5 on the season. This game was a rematch from a regular season encounter just six weeks ago which Poplarville won 42-7.
Defending Class 4A state champion Columbia opened defense of its crown by knocking off visiting Greene County 42-21. Greene County was the third seed out of Region 8-4A.
In Class 3A, home-standing St. Stanislaus hammered Port Gibson 45-15. Rock-a-chaws quarterback Hudson Osborne tossed a trio or scoring strikes in the first quarter alone to get SSC off to a successful postseason start.
