Hattiesburg’s bad luck with injuries seemed to carry over from last season.
The Tigers lost both of their quarterbacks in the 21-18 season-opening loss to Petal to add to the pain of blowing a 12-0 halftime lead.
“I thought we played well for the most part,” Hattiesburg coach Tony Vance said. “I thought we played really well on defense for three and half quarters. I thought we just kind of ran out of gas and ran out of bodies down the stretch. Those guys played lights out for the most part. We just have to do it for four quarters. Offensively, we just have to get better each week. There’s no ifs, ands, or buts about that.”
The Tigers lost both of their quarterbacks, Tavares Wade and Deuce Vance, to injuries. Vance says he is uncertain about the timetable for their return and calls them both “day to day.”
While losing both quarterbacks was certainly a factor, the Tiger offense struggled to build momentum and pick up first downs. In total, Hattiesburg ran just 37 plays, and the flip side was that the Tiger defense was simply tired out by the fourth quarter and aided Petal’s comeback.
“We’re still waiting to see,” said Vance on Monday. “We don’t really have a diagnosis or a timeframe. We hope we get that back soon. It’s day-to-day right now.
“I think we plan as usual. If they are at practice, then we will, and if they are not, then it’s next man up.”
To add to the problems of the Tigers, Hattiesburg will have to host Ocean Springs, which is ranked as high as No. 5 in the state.
“(The defense) starts with the nose guard and defensive front,” Vance said. “It’s comparable to Petal’s defensive front. They’ll pose problems, and the linebackers are very active. I think that’s the strength of their defense.
The Greyhound offense is led by quarterback Brayson Hubbard, who recently committed to Alabama.
In Ocean Springs’ 31-13 season-opening win over Clinton, Hubbard was 17-for-18 and threw for 164 yards, two touchdowns, and ran for 151 yards and scored as well.
“The quarterback is as good as advertised,” Vance said. “It’s no secret why he is an Alabama commit. He has some wideouts that are really good and really talented. The constant is the quarterback. If the first read is not there, then he’s not looking at the second. He’s taking it and running. It reminds me of John Rhys Plumlee from Oak Grove, but a little bigger.”
Hattiesburg will host Ocean Springs, with kickoff set for 7:30 p.m.
“We have to do a good job as coaches on offense figuring out how to sustain some drives and keep our defense off the field,” Vance said. “When the offense goes, we go. If we can get at least three first downs on every possession, then we can give our defense a rest and flip the field.”
