JACKSON — Trust has been the bedrock upon which Chase Nicholson has fortified the Starkville Academy football program.
As an assistant coach to Jeff Terrill, Nicholson was on staff to help plant the seeds that helped transform a program that had fallen on hard times. After Terrill retired following a trip to the Mississippi Association of Independent Schools (MAIS) Class AAA, Division II championship game in 2014, Nicholson set out to build that trust with his coaches and with his players.
Nicholson established open lines of communication. He reinforced expectations and made sure players were held accountable when they didn’t meet them. Most importantly, he displayed a confidence and a belief in his players that helped the Volunteers’ coaches to get the most out of everyone, even in some of the toughest situations.
Nicholson’s trust in his players enabled Starkville Academy to realize its biggest goal Saturday.
Taylor Arnold’s 10-yard pass to Kyle Faver provided the points, and the Starkville Academy defense then held on fourth down to secure a 21-14 overtime victory against top-seeded and previously undefeated Indianola Academy in the MAIS Class AAA, Division II State title game at Jackson Academy.
“We really haven’t had to use it, so we were saving it for a big moment,” Faver said. “They had never seen it, but they were there and I had two people on me. He just threw it up and we tipped it around and I caught it somehow.”
The victory helped second-seeded Starkville Academy (13-1) win the program’s seventh state title, and first since 2005. The Volunteers ended the season on an 11-game winning streak and avenged a 35-21 loss to the Colonels on Sept. 1 in Indianola.
The Volunteers did it with a play they run every Thursday in practice, but not with Arnold, a junior running back/defensive back, at quarterback. Typically, Noah Methvin or Ben Owens are at quarterback to run the play that has Faver’s nickname — Flavor — in it to help identify it. Methvin, Faver, and Arnold agreed the play works just about all of the time in practice because it includes the element of surprise.
Against Indianola Academy, Arnold might have been the only one who was surprised.
“I got in the huddle and Noah told me to go to quarterback, and I was like, ‘All right,’ ” Arnold said. “He said, ‘We are running 391 Kyle corner,’ so I said, ‘I am throwing this?’ He was like, ‘Yeah,’ so I was like, ‘All right.’ I just put it up there and Kyle made a heck of a play.”
Arnold didn’t allow his surprise to prevent him from making the play. With plenty of time on second down, he had time to spin the football to get a good grip before he lofted a touch pass to the left corner. Faver didn’t have the element of surprise because two Colonels were with him. The ball appeared to hit off one of them, which could have spelled doom — until it didn’t.
Faver said he didn’t know if the pass deflected off one of the Indianola Academy players or if it hit off his hand and went up in the air. Faver said the Indianola Academy player rolled off him and he was able to snare the football. The ball appeared to stick to his forearm as he fell to the ground.
Nicholson said Arnold, who used to play quarterback, throws the ball all the time in practice, so he felt it was a good time to try him as a quarterback.
“I was thinking about it two or three possessions earlier,” Nicholson said. “I thought about letting (Noah) lead for (Taylor) or putting somebody else in there at lead (blocker) because Meth was doing a good job of running. Tay might be able to break a big one for us, too. It was second down, so we really have two to waste, so I said let’s take a shot here and we might catch them.
“I was thinking about it earlier when we called a timeout and coach (Trace) Lee said it wasn’t there, but I knew if we had our backs against the wall down here we had a chance at it.”
Methvin believed the play was going to work because he knows Arnold is a great athlete with a versatile skill set.
“He is the guy who is always telling us to keep plugging,” Methvin said. “In the end, he is the guy who ends up being big for us. He is one of the best pitchers on our team. He plays shortstop. He can throw the football. He can throw anything. He is just that kind of athlete. I trusted him and coach Nicholson 100 percent when he made the play call.
“It says a lot about him and the guy he is to make a really good throw like that to finish us out on top.”
Methvin had just as much confidence in Faver, who was a source of inspiration all season. The senior defensive lineman took to reminding the Volunteers what they were playing for by saying “Nov. 18” throughout the season. Faver’s words provided constant motivation and confidence the Volunteers could make it to Jackson.
Methvin said it was fitting Faver was in on the final offensive play that helped seal the deal.
“The Indianola player kind of dove for it and Kyle just kind of jumped in front of him and dove and rolled over and caught it,” Methvin said. “He has really good ball skills. We don’t use him a lot on offense because he is probably our best player on defense, so he has to be 100 percent. He comes in with the base package when we needed him to. He has really good ball skills, and he is another great athlete, so he just really made a great play on it.”
Cameron McKee’s kick gave the Volunteers and set the stage for the defense. Starting at the 10-yard line, the Colonels gained 1 yard on first down and threw an incompletion on second down. A bubble screen on third down gained 8 yards and had Starkville Academy defensive coordinator Brad Butler’s heart fluttering as the Volunteers were pushed back to the 1. But the Colonels couldn’t complete the center-to-quarterback exchange and the defense swarmed quarterback Will Davis to end the game.
Starkville Academy’s defense was stellar in the postseason. The 14 points Indianola Academy scored were the only ones Starkville Academy allowed in four postseason games.
As well as the defense played, the offense persevered and made the plays when it had to because it trusted its abilities and the play calls of Nicholson.
“It’s a great feeling. It’s a once-in-a-lifetime kind of thing,” Methvin said. “I am really enjoying this. We dreamed it all season. We really believed in ourselves. I was talking to the captains before the game and we’re like, ‘Did you think we would be here?’ Yeah. We thought we would be here, especially after we lost to Indianola. We were saying the whole season, ‘Let’s get back because we want to play these guys again, and we got our chance at it.
“For it to end on Kyle, who has been reminding us all season about a state championship, it is really awesome.”
Follow Dispatch sports editor Adam Minichino on Twitter @ctsportseditor
Adam Minichino is the former Sports Editor for The Commercial Dispatch.
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