Everything is going right in Sumrall this season. Behind a strong defense and a dangerous offense, the Bobcats are off to a 3-0 start for the first time since 2006.
Sumrall coach Shannon White said he feels the hype around the town and school, but there’s not much hype around the team.
“Around town, it’s pretty good. With our kids, not so much,” White said. “We haven’t talked about that. Obviously, we’re glad we’re 3-0. This bunch here, they just kind of show up Monday and it’s all business. We hear it around town and around school, and it’s been really awesome. But for our team, it’s not a conversation, it’s not something we’ve harped on or something we’ve put on a board. We don’t talk about that.”
Sumrall’s latest victim was Sacred Heart last Friday. It traveled down to Hattiesburg and came away with a 33-6 win behind a perfect passing performance from senior Dannis Jackson and a stellar night from senior running Tyrek Preston.
Jackson was 6-for-6 for 113 yards while scoring off a 41-yard rushing touchdown, and Preston added 91 yards on nine carries. Preston is well on his way to surpassing his rushing totals from last year, needing just 260 more yards. He had three straight games of at least 100 yards last season before only recording 68 in the last six games of the season.
White sees a lot of improvement to Preston’s game in 2018, which should quell the same ending to the season from happening again.
“Well, the schedule gets a lot tougher at the end of the year, so that’s the biggest thing, but he’s bigger and stronger,” White said. “He’s probably 10 pounds heavier and a lot stronger than he was. He’s a senior and he’s running with a lot of force and power right now. He runs the way a running back should run – very hard, very tough and he tries to move the pile. That’s what you want.”
Sumrall’s defense had three sacks and a fumble recovery, too, and as all good things must come to an end, it allowed its first touchdown of the season.
“They put a nice drive together in the second half and scored,” White said. “They actually came out in the first half. They drove it down our throat but they managed to get a couple of penalties and we got them behind the chains. Then we played well after that.”
The Sumrall defense might be licking its chops this week, as it gears up for a home game against Enterprise. A traditionally tough opponent, the Bulldogs have had a rough start to the season. They’ve allowed Scott Central, Northeast Lauderdale and Stringer to score a combined 117 points while the Bulldogs’ offense has only scored 45 points.
The run-heavy, wing-T offense has turned the ball over more than average so far in 2018. Combine that with Enterprise playing tough opponents, that’s led to a 0-3 start.
“Most years if you’re playing Enterprise, you’re going to get one fumble if you’re lucky,” White said.
