It’s been a rollercoaster ride this season for the Sumrall Bobcats, starting the season with a 7-0 record before losing three of their final four games heading into the playoffs. The moment the Bobcats have been building for starts Friday night with a road trip to South Pike.
As the fourth seed, Sumrall (8-3) visits the Eagles (9-2), which won Region 6-4A with a two-game lead.
“Everybody starts over right now throughout the state,” Sumrall coach Shannon White said. “Yeah, there’s more urgency about it because you’re one and done if you lose. It’s just different. The urgency of it is evident and it’s exciting. It’s an exciting time of year for everybody in Mississippi.”
Through the first seven games, Sumrall played lights out on both offense and defense. Led by senior Dannis Jackson, the Bobcats scored 31 points per game while opponents only scored 11 points. In the four games since, Sumrall has scored 18 points a game while opponents have put up 26.
Playing teams like Lawrence County, Poplarville and Greene County, the competition was tougher, but the offensive production was there and the points weren’t. White doesn’t believe his offense has struggled to move the ball in the three games prior to last Friday’s loss to Greene County, but his team couldn’t find pay dirt enough times.
“I actually think we’ve blocked pretty well, but we didn’t execute some other parts of our offense,” White said of the last four games. “We haven’t had the big plays we have to have, we haven’t had crucial third-down conversions and we’ve had some silly penalties. It’s just been sloppy. …
“Last week was our worse offensive outing of the year. Greene County had a really good defense, but we’ve seen other defenses that were as good as them and able to move the sticks. This time of year, you don’t expect that.”
Friday, though, was the worst outing for both sides of the ball. Greene County held the Bobcats to 103 passing yards, which was actually the most passing yards since Week 4, but Jackson’s 10 completions were tied for the second most he’s had all season. Sumrall was also held to a season-low 93 rushing yards against the Wildcats, and it was the first time they were held to less than 213 yards on the ground all season.
Sumrall’s offense will have another tough test this week, too. South Pike has allowed teams to score 17 points per game while pitching three shutouts this season. Three teams scored at least 30 points on the Eagles, and two more have scored at least 20 points, but three of those games were still blowout wins for South Pike, while two were losses.
“This is a team that’s built on speed,” White said. “They have size, too, but they’re fast. The defensive linemen and the linebackers move well. South Pike has always been fast. Although it’s not a team we’ve played in the past, as a coach we certainly know the teams in 4A that are athletic and skilled, so we weren’t surprised when we turned the film on.”
Offensively, South Pike is dangerous running the ball. It averages 114 passing yards a game, with 20 touchdowns and five interceptions, but it puts together 339 rushing yards a night. Led by junior quarterback Dontavious Turner’s 1,003 yards and 15 touchdowns, the Eagles have three players with at least 700 yards. Senior Deldrionn Amos adds 994 yards and 12 scores and junior Kadarius Jackson has 772 yards and eight touchdowns.
The most impressive part of South Pike’s rushing attack isn’t just the three-headed monster toting the ball. It’s how they do it, White said.
“They are unbelievable on offense,” White said. “I think their quarterback is about like Dannis. He’s that good. He’s fast, he breaks tackles and he’s tough, then the two running backs are similar. They just have a lot of speed and they block well.
“They’re breaking tackles, so it’s not like they’re running scot-free every play. Their running backs and quarterback break tackles or they make you miss, so it’s not like everybody is blocked up and they’re running free down the field. They’re not. They just do a good job and that’s what a good offense is supposed to look like.”
When it passes the ball, South Pike averages 23 yards per reception. Junior Alex Adams has 586 yards and 11 touchdowns on only 22 receptions, and Amos has 422 receiving yards and six touchdowns on 15 grabs.
“They’re not much on the short passing game, but they’ll step back and throw it deep several times a game,” White said. “It’s not a whole lot, but they’ll cash in when they do it.”
