The playoff push continues in earnest tonight for five Lowndes County football teams.
Some need a victory to keep their postseason hopes alive, while others will look to improve their playoff standing in hopes of earning a chance to play host to one of those matchups.
Columbus High School, New Hope High, Heritage Academy, and Victory Christian also will participate in homecoming ceremonies tonight. That pageantry will add to the possible list of distractions, but all the coaches at those schools feel their players are ready.
Columbus High School coach Tony Stanford feels his Falcons (2-5, 0-3 Class 6A, Region 1) are ready to rebound from a 44-0 loss to defending Class 6A champion South Panola last week. Stanford felt the Falcons played well despite a slow start and moved the ball well at times against one of the state’s best teams. He knows his team needs a win tonight against winless DeSoto Central if it has any hopes of making the postseason.
“We’re trying to convince our kids that if we win these last four games we have a chance to get in the playoffs,” Stanford said. “We’ll see how it goes from there. Our kids have hung in there and believe they have a chance. I think they’re going to play a good football game.”
South Panola and Starkville are undefeated at the top of the region, while Tupelo and Southaven, with one loss are next in line at the final two playoff spots. Columbus can inject itself into the conversation if it wins its final four games, which includes matchups against Horn Lake, Olive Branch, and Starkville.
The playoffs looked like a strong possibility for Columbus after it defeated New Hope 39-22 on Sept. 10. But the Falcons lost consecutive games to Louisville and to Tupelo it could have won. Those losses started what has grown to a four-game slide, one Stanford wants to stop tonight.
“Our kids need a victory,” Stanford said. “After the New Hope game we felt like we were in pretty good shape. We just about got over our injuries, but then some kids had to be disciplined a little and that hurt some of our progress.”
Stanford said the South Panola gives him and the players confident they can compete with anyone in the region. He said focus and intensity will be keys to help the Falcons keep their hopes alive.
Columbus will welcome back senior defensive back/running back Randy Brown, who missed last week with a foot injury.
New Hope coach Michael Bradley won’t be as fortunate. The Trojans again will be without senior running back Terrance Dentry, who was injured Oct. 1 on the first play in a 24-14 loss to defending Class 5A champion West Point. Dentry missed New Hope’s 21-0 victory against Lake Cormorant last week. The Trojans (4-3, 2-1 region) received solid contributions from Franklin Richardson Jr., Horace “Roc” Carr, and Jameel Johnson to help them make up for Dentry’s absence.
More importantly, Bradley said he saw a solid all-around effort from his players in their second region game.
“Friday night was the best total team effort of the season,” Bradley said. “We were playing a quality opponent that we didn’t match up well against in spots and the kids stepped up and played well.”
Even though his team has more losses than it did all of last year when it was the Class 5A North Half runner-up, Bradley said his team is in the same spot as last season. At 2-1 in region play, New Hope will play host to Saltillo tonight in the second of three consecutive home games. A game at Hernando is sandwiched between home games against Clarksdale and Indianola Gentry to end the regular season. If they take care of business, the Trojans will earn the right to play host to a first-round playoff game, something they did last season.
But Bradley and his players aren’t thinking ahead. With a team that has been banged up and that doesn’t have as much depth as other Class 5A teams, Bradley said his team needs to take things slowly to ensure it puts itself in the same position it faced last season.
“We are excited about where our team is,” Bradley said. “We can’t worry about the ifs and buts and candy nuts. I think our kids understand what they have to do to get a home playoff game. We have to win out, but we can’t do that by thinking about the last game in the season. We have to think about the next game and that is Saltillo.”
Like Columbus, Heritage Academy coach Brad Butler hopes his team can get back on the winning track. A game tonight against Mississippi Association of Independent Schools Class AAA, Division II leader Pillow Academy (6-1) won’t be an easy task, but Butler feels his team is up for the challenge.
The Patriots (3-5) have lost four in a row since a 22-14 victory against Lamar School. They have scored only 20 points in losses to Madison-Ridgeland Academy, Presbyterian Christian, Magnolia Heights, and Jackson Academy, but still has a shot to move into contention if it sweeps its final three games.
“I told them (Thursday) we hold our destiny in our hands,” Butler said, “and that if we win out we can still get in the playoffs. It is going to be a challenge because we still have to play three good teams, and they are going to be the three biggest games we play.
“We are all sick of losing. It is kind of frustrating, but this is when the true character comes out, to see if we’re going to fight for a position in the playoffs or if we’re going to give up on it.”
Butler credited Jackson Academy for playing a strong game last week, but said his team hurt itself with its share of mistakes. He praised the play of running back Aaron Studdard and said the Patriots need to execute better and to hold on to the football to avoid giving opponents short fields.
If that happens, Heritage Academy will be two steps closer to ending its losing skid.
“Hopefully we have the right kind of character shine through and get this thing going in the right direction,” Butler said. “If you’re going to make the playoffs you have to beat those kind of folks (Pillow Academy). We have to do better. Hopefully we will step up to the challenge.”
The challenge for Victory Christian is simple: Win its final two games and it will be the top seed for the Christian Football Association playoffs.
The Eagles (5-0) have won 27 consecutive games and are the two-time defending CFA champions. A victory tonight against North River Christian would wrap up a first-round home playoff game. A win next week at Tuscaloosa Christian would lock up the top seed.
Hamm said his team has had a good week of practice following an open week. Victory Christian is coming off an 82-14 victory against Heritage Christian (Brantley, Ala.). He said that game gave his team plenty of chances to use younger players and they gained confidence from the experience.
Tonight, he hopes his veterans can step up and shake off any distractions from the homecoming festivities and keep things rolling.
“I think they’re itching and ready to play,” Hamm said “Some of our kids watched North River Christian (which defeated Tabernacle last wee) and some of our guys watched Tuscaloosa Christian. Watching those guys play made them want to be out there.”
Hamm feels his team matches up well against North River and that it wants to go out and play a good game to make sure it will get a chance to play another home game.
“We have had good senior leadership, and we have emphasized it is going to be a good game the past few weeks,” Hamm said. “Hopefully that is going to push us and require our seniors to step up. It could be this week, it could be next week, or it could be both. The guys know what is at stake, and they have to come out and let the other stuff take its place.”
The playoffs are already here for Shawn Gates and Immanuel Christian. The Rams (3-5) are coming off a 46-8 loss at Heidelberg Academy and will look to tonight’s MAIS Class A, District 3 game against Hebron Christian (1-6) as an elimination game. Both teams are 0-1 in the district, so the winner will put itself back into contention with
Adam Minichino is the former Sports Editor for The Commercial Dispatch.
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