Oak Grove picked up where they left off after winning a state title last year. (Image Courtesy of Oak Grove Facebook)
- Each week, veteran sports editor John Pitts will highlight key high school matchups from across the state.
It was the opening week of high school football for MHSAA teams, while MAIS teams got a week’s head start. As always, there were plenty of rivalry games and some surprises.
Oak Grove 38, Grenada 24: A definitive decision in a meeting of two of the state’s best teams. Class 7A host Oak Grove looked every bit the best team in the state after the home-field victory, but Grenada – Class 6A runners-up a year ago – made things interesting after trailing 24-10 at halftime.
Louisville 15, West Point 14: In a stout meeting of strong defenses and defending state champions, Louisville got off to a good start on its quest for an unprecedented third-straight state championship. Powerful West Point has only been held to 14 points in four games since 2019, and Louisville has three of those. West Point led 14-12 at halftime but Louisville went on with win its 27th game in a row.
Brandon 60, Picayune 34: Brandon made a splash on the road, rolling to a big victory margin. The last two scoring plays: a 45-yard scoop-and-score touchdown by Preston Ashley and a 61-yard punt return by Logan Drummond. Trey McQueen returned an interception 38 yards for a 36-14 Brandon lead before halftime.
Madison Central 27, Ocean Springs 20: Madison Central went on the road and picked up a big opening Class 7A win against a highly regarded coast team. Ocean Springs led 13-7 at halftime.
Tupelo 26, Memphis Whitehaven 19: Not unlike some other teams in the north part of the state, Tupelo had to endure a weather delay on the the way to victory. Lightning delayed the start of the game on the blue turf by 90 minutes, but the Golden Wave’s J.J. Hill then struck twice with a kickoff return touchdown and another rushing TD.
West Jones 34, Laurel 6: The defending 6A champs picked up a big win in the backyard brawl with Laurel, last year’s South State 5A winners. The new horseshoe logo on the West Jones helmets proved to be a good-luck symbol as they stuffed an early fourth-and-goal by Laurel and then took command for the Mustangs’ 15th consecutive win dating to last season.
Starkville 43, Noxubee County 22: Starkville led 29-14 at halftime and extended the advantage on a 97-yard pass play by Jaylen Ruffin. It sets up a big home opener for the Yellow Jackets next Friday against West Point.
Oxford 45, Lafayette 0: It was the most lopsided decision in the history of the 54-game Crosstown Classic. Oxford’s Chargers have won 11 of the last 13 meetings.
Poplarville 17, Jefferson Davis County 16: The host Jaguars led 16-14 at halftime after falling behind 7-0 early.
Jackson Prep 37, Adams Christian 7: The Patriots improved to 2-0 with a victory over the defending MAIS Class 5A champs.
Charleston 28, Ripley 6: The defending MHSAA Class 2A champions took advantage of wet conditions on the road for the victory.
