By Caleb Garner
Special to The Dispatch
STARKVILLE — It was a brand-new ballgame.
That is what Noxubee County coach Tyrone Shorter told his team at halftime of Friday night’s game at Starkville, in which the Tigers trailed by three at the break. The host Yellow Jackets wound up on the winning end, taking a 24-21 victory in a nail biter that came down to the final minutes of the contest.
Shorter and the Tigers (0-1) are no stranger to close games against Starkville (1-0), winning last year’s meeting 26-20 in a game that took two overtimes to decide. Despite the loss to the reigning Mississippi High School Activities Association (MHSAA) Class 6A champions to open the year, Shorter said his team has nothing to be ashamed about.
“I told our kids that they have no reason to hang their heads,” Shorter said. “We played a heck of a football game and we should have won. We missed a few opportunities that could have changed the game but walked off this field with our heads held high because we know how good we can be.”
For almost the entire first half, defense dominated. Both teams traded turns punting back to one another or forcing the opposing offense to make miscues, but Shorter said his defense has plenty of room to improve moving forward.
“We played well early on but I thought we started to get tired because the defense played a lot of snaps,” Shorter said. “Starkville has a good football team with good running backs. They kept them fresh by rotating them in and out and it wore us down at the end. We will continue to get better.”
The Tigers faced as much as an 11-point deficit in the third quarter, but relied on the arm of sophomore quarterback Maliek Stallings to battle back. Stallings, making his debut as the Tigers’ starting quarterback, completed 18 of 36 passes for 203 yards in his first game under center.
Shorter liked what he saw out of his young quarterback, who faced a tough task of replacing three-year starter and two-time state champion Timorrius Conner. Once Stallings got under control and started finding his receivers, Shorter began to see Stallings mature as a passer.
“It was his first start and he was so nervous,” Shorter said. “I just talked to him and told him to settle down because I know what type of athlete he is. Once he settled down, his teammates rallied around him. I have no doubt in this football team and how far we can go.”
Stallings connected with fellow sophomore Kyziah Pruitt six times, including a crucial score late in the contest that pulled the Tigers within a touchdown of the Yellow Jackets. Pruitt said that this game against a tough Starkville team helped the two sophomores grow up a little more.
“(Stallings) is a sophomore like me and we both have some growing up to do,” Pruitt said. “I think he did well. This game tested us and we kept fighting until the end. I am proud of the way we fought.”
Noxubee County’s road does not get any easier, with another tough 6A test on this Friday at Columbus (1-0), who topped Kemper County 26-12 on Friday night. Shorter likes his team to play against tough competition early in the year, and said it helps them when region play begins.
“I play teams like (Starkville) because they will help us get better,” Shorter said. “We have another tough one next week and we just have to get better.”
The Dispatch Editorial Board is made up of publisher Peter Imes, columnist Slim Smith, managing editor Zack Plair and senior newsroom staff.
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