Hattiesburg is now in a prime spot to control its destiny.
The Tigers have rattled off five straight wins to stay unbeaten in region play as the Tigers defeated Wayne County 35-6 last week. Hattiesburg coach Tony Vance called the game a complete win as the Tigers scored a touchdown in all three phases of the game. Running back Dillon Brown scored two touchdowns, with LeBranden Graham adding a third rushing touchdown. Malcolm Boykin recorded a punt return for a touchdown, while Makel Jones scored on a pick-six.
“I was definitely proud of that complete team effort,” Vance said. “We had a lot of guys step up and contribute and make plays for us, and some that won’t show up in the stat column. Huge plays are made over the course of the game on special teams, defense and offense. It was probably the most complete game we played all year.”
Hattiesburg (5-4, 5-0) now has a chance to clinch the Region 3-5A title if the Tigers defeat West Jones this week and if Laurel loses to Wayne County. However, if Laurel wins, then that could set up a showdown between the Tigers and Tornados for the region title in the Little Brown Jug game.
“We control our own destiny,” Vance said. “That’s where we want to be; where we don’t have to count on anyone else to do anything for us, and we just go win and take care of themselves.”
Last week, West Jones was down 28-7 before coming up just short in a 28-21 loss to Laurel. Despite the loss, the Mustangs are 6-2 overall and 4-1 in region play. On offense, West Jones has averaged 29 points per game and has held teams to 14 per game.
“Anytime you talk about West Jones, it starts with their defense,” Vance said. “There is just going to be a complete team on defense. That front seven is as good as anybody. They are going to play hard, and they’re going to be well-coached and disciplined. They are going to get after that front seven. Then those guys on the back end do not give up big plays. They don’t break down in the secondary.
“Offensively, they have a quarterback that is probably as an elusive kid as we have played all year. He makes plays with him, but he’s very elusive. He can, too, so you have to make sure that you have somebody watching him on every snap. He doesn’t hesitate to pull it down and go run and get the first down himself. Their running backs run hard between the tackles and do a great job of taking care of the football.”
Hattiesburg goes on the road to face West Jones on Friday at 7 p.m.
“We can’t look behind,” Vance said. “We can’t say we lost four in a row or won five in a row. We just have to go 1-0 this week and keep in perspective that what you did last week doesn’t matter. It’s all about this week.”
