HATTIESBURG – In Saturday’s season opener, Hattiesburg quarterback Jarod “Snoop” Conner showed he hasn’t skipped a beat from his phenomenal junior season in 2017.
Behind his efforts, Hattiesburg took down Petal for the second straight season, 35-26.
A mere 365 days ago, not too many knew about Conner and his skillset. Fast forward to Saturday, he proved he isn’t going anywhere. The senior Memphis commit finished with 153 rushing yards and three touchdowns on the ground, and 158 passing yards on 7-for-14 attempts. He also threw for a score.
“He’s extremely strong and runs that way,” Hattiesburg coach Tony Vance said. “When he makes up his mind to go, he’s pretty tough to bring down.”
Conner’s touchdown runs came from the 26-, 12- and 1-yard lines, and his most impressive one was the second of the three. With Hattiesburg leading 14-7 midway through the second quarter, Conner took the snap and began his run up the middle. He met a Petal defender, promptly sent him to the ground with a loud clap of the pads, then finished his run easily for the 12-yard score to put the Tigers up 21-7.
“It was a big moment on that one,” Conner said. “They called it to my side and they wanted me to score, so I had to get it in there.
His longest touchdown scamper, from 26 yards, gave Hattiesburg the 14-7 lead after the Panthers tied it. It came a possession before his 12-yard scoring run, too.
With a combination of Conner and senior running back Drexlan Allen, the Tigers moved down the field easily. On a read-option play, Conner pulled the ball from Allen’s hands and dashed up the middle untouched to break the 7-7 tie.
His final touchdown was a read play, as well, and he walked into the end zone with ease from the 1-yard line to push Hattiesburg’s lead to 28-20 after the Panthers scored to open the second half.
Don’t be fooled, though, Conner can still hurt opponents with his arm. He tossed a high pass in senior receiver Darius Ruffin’s direction, and Ruffin camped underneath the ball like a centerfielder on a baseball team. He fought off the Petal defender then darted to the end zone for a 58-yard touchdown. That gave Hattiesburg a commanding 35-20 lead.
“I have a lot of trust in him,” Conner said. “I know if I throw the ball up, he’s going to get the job done.”
Ruffin was Conner’s first option on that play either, he said after the game. He looked at the underneath route first, then hit Ruffin downfield.
Conner’s ability to run the ball is complemented well with Allen next to him in the backfield. Allen added 113 rushing yards on 20 carries, which included three straight runs of more than 10 yards to start the game.
Questions answered
Entering the 2018 season, Petal coach Marcus Boyles had a lot of questions he needed answered from a personnel standpoint. The Panthers lost a ton of production from the skill positions and at quarterback, and new faces had to step up in order for them to see success this season.
Juniors Micah McGowan and Rashad Handford did their best to show Boyles and Petal coaches they belong on the field when the lights come on. McGowen led the Petal offense with 145 rushing yards and two scores on 28 attempts, and Handford added 77 rushing yards with a touchdown and a 4-yard touchdown reception.
Boyles was also encouraged by what he saw from junior quarterback DeCarlos Nicholson, who started his first varsity game for the Panthers.
“I thought he played well at times,” Boyles said. “I thought he made some good throws, but he missed some long throws also. He didn’t give us a chance on some deep balls he threw out of bounds. Again, he’s going to get better and I know he will.”
Up next
Hattiesburg will host Laurel for the Battle of the Little Brown Jug Saturday at D.I. Patrick Stadium, while Petal will travel to Gulfport on Friday.
“It’s kind of what we’ve come to expect,” Vance said of the grueling two-game start the season. “It’s what we do and that’s the pageantry of playing the schedule we play.”
