Coming off a disheartening loss to Brandon two weeks ago, the Oak Grove Warriors needed a bounce-back win over Pearl last week. The No. 2 seed in the playoffs was still available, and the Warriors responded with an eight-point win over the defending 6A State Champions.
The Oak Grove defense turned in another solid performance, and the offense had two huge touchdown drives in the second half to help seal the 21-13 win. It was a game Oak Grove needed to improve its playoff standing, and it’ll only make the team better when the postseason does start next week.
“I was glad to see our guys respond in another tight, low-scoring ballgame,” Oak Grove coach Drew Causey said. “I think those types of things can only benefit us going into the playoff because every game is going to be a tight game. There’s not going to be a whole lot of one-sided ballgames in the playoffs because everybody will be talented.”
At this point, Oak Grove can’t help itself anymore. Whether it wins or loses at Jim Hill Friday, it won’t affect the playoff order. The Warriors will either be playing at home in the first round as the No. 2 seed, or they’ll hit the road to the coast as the No. 3.
The outcome of the Pearl-Brandon game will decide that. If Brandon wins or loses by six points or less, Oak Grove will finish second in the region. If Pearl wins by seven or eight points, but no more or less, Oak Grove will finish third. If Pearl wins by more than nine points, Oak Grove will, again, finish third in the region. Pearl can finish anywhere from first to third in the region, and Brandon can only be first or second. Oak Grove can’t win the region.
Causey is just worried about finishing the season on a winning note, though.
“For us, if we can finish off 9-2 then that’s a very successful season,” he said. “Hopefully, we can carry it over to the playoffs.”
After two huge games against the elite teams in the region, the Warriors will travel to Jackson to cap off the regular season against lowly Jim Hill (1-10, 0-6). It’s easy to overlook the Tigers, and even if the Warriors do, it would be a colossal upset if the Warriors came back to Hattiesburg with a loss.
“It doesn’t matter who we’re playing,” Causey said. “Let’s play to our level, let’s play to the standards we’ve set for the season and just try to keep playing to that. We’re not worrying about the opponent as much. There are a lot of things we can get better doing, so if we can continue to get better and feel like we got better this week, that’s the most important thing.”
The Tigers’ lone win came Week 4 against Wingfield, and they’ve been outscored 276-90 in the seven games since, but 64 of those 90 points came in two games. Jim Hill has scored in the 30s twice, but it has been shutout four times and held to single digits three more times.
“I know it’s tough for those guys, but they do have some athletes who are out there,” Causey said. “You can’t take anybody lightly and you have to be ready to play. I told them, you have to be prepared to play like it’s Pearl, Brandon, Petal, Meridian or whoever else that would be a big ballgame.”
