Petal did what hit had to do to make its 13th straight playoff appearance and did it with style.
Last week, Petal closed out its regular season with a 56-34 win over Terry. In the win, quarterback Jackson Allen threw for eight touchdowns and 276 yards, along with Jeremiah Robinson catching five of those touchdowns and 112 yards.
“Obviously, our offense played pretty well,” Petal coach Marcus Boyles said. “I thought we executed on a high level on offense. The one thing I got upset about was that we got up big and eased up a bit. I wasn’t pleased with that, but other than that it was a good game. It was a game that we had to win to get into the playoffs.”
The Panthers (6-4) face a tall order for the first round of the 6A playoffs as Petal will take on No. 1 seeded D’Iberville (9-0), which is off to its best start since its undefeated 2008 state final appearance.
“This is the second year under coach Larry Dolan, and he does a great job,” Boyles said. “They have some really good football players that have bought into what he is doing. If you know anything about Larry Dolan, they will be tough and physical.”
D’Ibverille’s offense has averaged 29.5 points per game. According to Boyles, the Warriors will often change their offense, which makes it challenging to stop.
“They are really fast,” Boyles said. “They have a lot of speed on both sides of the ball. Talking about their offense, they have a lot of different formations. It’ll be Wing-T or double-wing and then all of a sudden, it’ll be an empty backfield and throwing the ball all over the field. They make you defend from sideline to sideline. It’ll be a challenge for our defense.”
One of the main keys to D’Iberville’s success is Justin Walley, who some consider to be the best football player in Mississippi. Walley, who is committed to Minnesota as a cornerback, plays on both sides of the ball.
On offense, Walley leads the team in rushing and is second on the team in receiving. As a running back, he has rushed for 741 yards and 12 touchdowns. Complimenting him in the backfield are running backs Drey Lenoir and Justice Davis, who have combined for 954 yards and 11 touchdowns. Walley has hauled in a team-leading 23 catches and 299 yards and one touchdown.
“He’s really good,” Boyles said. “He plays on both sides of the ball. He makes plays on both sides of the ball.
“On offense, you have to know where he is at. They get the ball to him in a lot of different ways. They hand it to him, run speed sweeps with him, or they’ll throw it to him. They move him around, so that makes him even more dangerous because you don’t know where he is going to be at. You have to find him because they will get the ball to him.”
At quarterback is Dwight J. Williams, who has passed for 1,153 yards, nine touchdowns, and eight interceptions on 121 attempts.
As a defense, D’Iberville has held teams to just 12 points per game. Walley is fourth on the team in tackles with 49, as well as two interceptions on the year.
“Defensively, they play a lot of stack or four down,” Boyles said. “They’ll mix it up with both. The coverages are almost always the same. It’s a man concept. They do a good job. They have really good guys on the back end that can play man coverage. It’s all about their speed.”
