I continue to discuss 15 potential must-see games in this upcoming high school football season. In no particular order, the final installment of the three-part series:
PCS vs. MRA
I didn’t have the pleasure of watching this overtime-thriller this season, but it definitely was a dandy.
The Patriots played for a state championship last season, and it’s expected they have another successful season once again. What makes this game intriguing is it’s the regular season finale. It might take a couple of games into the season for PCS to find an offensive identity, but by Oct. 26, the Bobcats should be clicking.
It would be a very nice win if the Bobcats can travel to MRA and end the regular season on a good note.
Oak Grove vs. Hattiesburg
This was another wild game last season, as Oak Grove outlasted Hattiesburg with a late touchdown after the Tigers fought back. Now Tennessee Volunteer Jordan Murphy had a monster game, and the win was Oak Grove’s best performance after starting the season 1-3.
This season it’s the fourth game on the schedule and at Hattiesburg. Both teams bring back a ton of players, but Oak Grove – maybe – has a few more questions answered than Hattiesburg, but the Tigers have more plenty of time to figure things out before this cross-town matchup.
Lumberton vs. East Marion
One of the only reasons why I included this game on the list is because East Marion is moving down from 2A, so I would expect its win total to see a bump. Just glancing at the Eagles’ 2016 schedule, they played a tough one.
When the region was brought up in the preview interview with coach Zach Jones, he quickly talked about East Marion joining the region and how that made it tougher on every team. I think it’ll be a game Lumberton wins easily, but it’s definitely going to be interesting to see how East Marion plays in the 1A classification.
Hattiesburg vs. Petal
For the players, coaches and media members’ sake, let’s all hope this game doesn’t start like it did last year. The two teams combined for five touchdowns in the first quarter, and the scoring didn’t stop there.
Sure, that’s expected in the first game of the season, but I think it’s going to be a little different this season. Like I said earlier in this column, Hattiesburg will have new faces at quarterback and receiver, so I would imagine the Petal defense will try to key in on running back Fabian Franklin earlier in this contest.
Then again, the Panthers aren’t bring back too many players on defense, so it remains to be seen how long it takes for those new players to find their ground.
Sumrall vs. Sacred Heart
This isn’t the first time I’ve included Sumrall on this list, but it is the first of Sacred Heart. Truthfully, I didn’t know exactly what game of Sacred Heart’s to put on this list. The way I see it, the Crusaders have very winnable district games, but there are also a few games in Region 4-1A that are going to be extremely tough to win.
Now at first glance, a 4A versus a 1A team seems like a huge mismatch, and it might be, but I think the Crusaders will be 2-0 with some confidence rolling into this game. It remains to be seen how Sumrall’s rushing attack is, since it’s switching to a run-heavy offense, so will Sacred Heart be able to hold up against it? I’m not sure, but playing at home with a 2-0 record can be beneficial for any team. That is, of course, if can win the first two games of the season.
