SOSO – Since the start of region play, it has seemed that the only team that can beat Hattiesburg – is Hattiesburg. That notion was on full display on Friday night as the Tigers were flagged 17 times and racked up over 150 penalty yards in Hattiesburg’s 20-14 road win over West Jones.
And despite the field being littered with yellow flags along with Hattiesburg overcoming an 0-4 start to the season, the Tigers not only extended their win streak to six straight games but locked up Region 3-5A with the help of Wayne County, defeating rival Laurel. By comparison, West Jones was flagged eight times for 55 yards.
“We bounced back and found a way to win regardless,” Hattiesburg coach Tony Vance said. “We have to do a better job as coaches with keeping our composure. It starts with us. Our players have to follow us and keep their composure. It’s part of the game. When you play a lot of zero coverage, you are going to get a lot of passing interference and holding calls; that’s part of it. I was just disappointed that we didn’t get any in our favor."
Although it can be argued that some of the penalties down the stretch were questionable, there are two things that were not debatable. The first was how inefficient the Tiger offense played in the second half as it ran just 20 plays and accounted for only 67 yards, with 47 of those coming on one play as well as failing to punch in a touchdown. The second nondebatable fact was how elite the Tiger defense played, as it held West Jones to 133 yards of total offense on 66 plays.
“There were too many mental mistakes down the stretch,” Vance said. “They didn’t do a good job of executing in the second half at all offensively. The defense took too many snaps in the second half, and it kind of wore them down. Hats off to West Jones and the game they played.
“I can’t say enough about our guys and the resolve they showed with just finding a way to get it done even when things weren’t going our way in the second half.”
At the start of the matchup, Hattiesburg (6-4, 6-0) looked to be clicking on all cylinders, with quarterback Deuce Vance putting together his best half of football this season. The sophomore helped lead a 12-play, 85-yard scoring drive on the opening drive. On second and 30, Vance connected with Lebranden Graham for a 34-yard touchdown. A missed PAT gave Hattiesburg a 6-0 lead.
West Jones (6-3, 4-2) struggled on offense after the game’s third drive as starting quarterback Marlon Lindsey left the game with an injury in the first quarter. Yet in the second quarter, The Mustangs got on the board after having short field position, with Isaiah Lindsey scoring on a 14-yard touchdown run to give the Mustangs a 7-6.
On West Jones’ next drive, a bad snap and a penalty pinned the Mustangs on their 1-yard line. The Hattiesburg defense took advantage, with Cameron Craft coming up with a safety to give the Tigers an 8-7 lead.
Deuce Vance then led a 12-play scoring drive that was capped off by a 1-yard touchdown run by Dillon Brown. On West Jones’ ensuing drive, the Mustangs had another bad snap on a punt, which again gave Hattiesburg favorable field position. On the next play, Vance hit freshman Tristan Key for a 12-yard touchdown and pushed the lead to 20-7.
Deuce Vance finished the game 11-for-19 and threw for 219 yards and two touchdowns, while Keys hauled in six catches for 137 yards and a score.
“(Deuce’s) growth has been amazing to watch,” Tony Vance said. “He’s just a sophomore. I have to remind myself sometimes that he’s just a 15-year-old. Then Tristan is just a freshman. The sky is the limit for him as far as his abilities go. They have a special connection going with that freshman-sophomore connection. We had some other guys step up and make some plays, but I think they stole the show.”
West Jones’ second touchdown came in the second half, with Mustangs scoring on a 15-play, 74-yard drive that was aided by 45 yards in penalties against Hattiesburg. From there, the Tiger defense kept West Jones in check as they held the Mustangs to 59 yards of total offense on 43 plays in the second half.
“It’s a special group on defense,” Tony Vance said. “Those guys have been our backbone all year. They have bailed us out time and time again all year and again tonight. They came to play. I can’t say enough about our defensive coaches on that side of the ball. When those guys go to line it up, we know we have a chance to get off the field.
“We are just fortunate enough to win. We talked about it all week that if you want to advance in the playoffs and go deep, then you have to go into a tough, hostile environment and beat good people on the road. We were able to do that tonight.”
Hattiesburg will now host Laurel at D.I. Patrick Stadium to close out the regular season on Nov. 5, with kickoff set for 7 p.m.
