Coy Jennings of East Webster High School has been selected to play in the Mississippi Association of Coaches Slow-Pitch All-Star Game.
Jennings is on 12 players to be chosen for the North team which will be coached by Eric Thornton of Columbus and Bryan League of Hamilton. The game is set for Saturday, Oct. 26 at Mack Fanning Field at Newton County High School in Decatur.
— Austin Bishop
EUPORA RECOGNIZED IN 2A ALL-SPORTS STANDINGS
Eupora High School finished ninth in MHSAA Class 2A in the Clarion-Ledgers All-Sports Award list that was released last week. EHS finished with 114.5 points. Taking the top spot in MHSAA Class 2A was Madison St. Joseph with 240.5 points.
For the past 30 years the Jackson Clarion-Ledger newspaper has handed out All-Sports Awards for each classification in the Mississippi High School Activities Association.
Madison Central was first in 6A, while Germantown claimed the 5A title, Pontotoc was tops in 4A, St. Andrew’s posted the best numbers in 3A, and Tupelo Christian Preparatory School in 1A.
— Austin Bishop
PREP FOOTBALL TO USE 40-SECOND PLAY CLOCK
One of the biggest rules changes in Mississippi high school football this season is with the play clock.
Instead of a 25-second play clock initiated by the head referee, a 40-second play clock will be used and started when the previous play is blown dead.
The National Federation of State High School Associations states on their rationale on the 40-second play clock is “to have a more consistent time period between downs. The new rule defines when 40 seconds will be placed on the clock and when 25 seconds will be placed on the clock.”
The NFHS also changed the rule on jerseys in an effort to make numbers more visible. Starting in 2023, numbers must be a certain size and by 2024, jersey numbers must be a single, solid color that clearly contrasts with the body color of the jersey.
— Robbie Robertson
EUPORA CLASSIC RESET FOR SATURDAY
After a sudden downpour washed out lat Saturday’s Eupora Lady Eagle Slow-Pitch Classic, EHS coach Amir Hunt decided to give it another shot this week.
Four softball games are set for EHS this Saturday, beginning with a 10 a.m. match-up between Grenada and New Hope. That is followed by an 11:30 contest between Eupora and Grenada. The 1 p.m. contest has French Camp squaring off with New Hope while the 2:30 p.m. contest features host Eupora and FCA.
— Austin Bishop
FULL SLATE OF REGION 2-2A ACTiON SET
All five football teams in MHSAA Region 2-2A are set to kick off their 2019 seasons on Friday night.
One of the biggest showdowns has Eupora visiting Winona, while East Webster seeks to start the season off on a positive note at South Pontotoc. Traditional 2A power Calhoun City visits Ashland, while Bruce plays host to Nettleton.
One of the most overlooked games of the night is the one between J.Z. George — which just moved down to Region 2-2A from 3A — is set to host McAdams. The Jags of JZG are seeking to put last year’s 0-11 mark in the rear view mirror as they play host to the Class 1A Bulldogs.
— Austin Bishop
Prep Notebook: High School Football To Use 40-SecondsPlay Clock
One of the biggest rules changes in Mississippi high school football this season is with the play clock.
Instead of a 25-second play clock initiated by the head referee, a 40-second play clock will be used and started when the previous play is blown dead.
The National Federation of State High School Associations states on their rationale on the 40-second play clock is “to have a more consistent time period between downs. The new rule defines when 40 seconds will be placed on the clock and when 25 seconds will be placed on the clock.”
The NFHS also changed the rule on jerseys in an effort to make numbers more visible. Starting in 2023, numbers must be a certain size and by 2024, jersey numbers must be a single, solid color that clearly contrasts with the body color of the jersey.
— Robbie Robertson
FCA TO HOST SEPT. 14 CROSS-COUNTRY MEET
The French Camp boys and girls cross-country teams will open the season hosting a 5K meet September 14. That will be followed by meets at Saltillo and Blue Mountain,
Both FCA teams finished fifth at last year's state meet. Top returning runners are senior Colby Walters for the boys and Averie Jane Gundy, an eighth grader, for the girls. Walters finished 10th at last year's meet and Gundy was 15th.
— Laurence Hilliard
FULL SLATE FOR OPENING WEEK OF REGION 2-1A PLAY
All nine football teams in Region 2-1A — French Camp Academy, Noxapater, Nanih Waiya, Hamilton, Okolona, Smithville, Tupelo Christian, Vardaman, and West Lowndes — are scheduled to begin the 2019 season this week.
Tupelo Christian is the first league team to play a regular season game this year, playing host toTishomingo County on Thursday.
Friday night games are as follows: French Camp hosting Winona Christian, Nanih Waiya entertaining Class 4A West Lowndes, Noxapater going out of state to play Choctaw County (Ala.), Hamilton visiting Hatley, West Lowndes hosting Newton, Vardaman entertaining Myrtle, Okolona traveling to Aberdeen; and Smithville paying a visit to Belmont.
— Austin Bishop
MAXPREPS FAVORS CCHS IN FRIDAY’S OPENER
The preseason football rankings by MaxPreps, the website for high school sports, makes Choctaw County the favorite in Friday's opening game with Independence.
Choctaw County is ranked 16th and Independence 25th out of Mississippi's 44 3A schools. Winona is the top ranked 3A school, followed by defending state champion Water Valley.
For all schools, Choctaw County is ranked 106. Starkville is the state's top ranked team, followed by Madison Central, Brandon and defending 6A champion Horn Lake.
— Laurence Hilliard
MISSISSIPPI HIGH SCHOOL FOOTBALL FACTS
A pair of the state’s traditional football powers will be reaching a historic milestone this week.
Vicksburg High School will play its 1,000th game in its season opener against Madison Central on Friday, while Hattiesburg High School will will be doing the same when the Tigers take on Petal in their opener.
According to ahsfhs.org website that chronicles the history of our state’s high school football, Clarksdale is presently the only member of the 1,000th club with 1,052 played games. Meridian and Laurel will also join the club as they enter the season with each having played 991 games.
Meridian High School has the most football wins in state history with 693. Clarksdale is second with 653, followed by Laurel with 602. If you are passionate about high school football, ahsfhs.org is your site, as it contains a wealth of information and even has information on long past teams. Keep in mind that the site is a work in progress and is not complete.
— Dale McKee
NOXUBEE-LOUISVILLE MATCH-UP HIGHLIGHTS 4-3A PLAY
Two of the most dominant high school programs in East Mississippi will square off to open the 2019 football season on Friday night when Noxubee County plays host to Louisville. Noxubee County is a part of Region 4-3A this season, along with Choctaw County, Aberdeen, Houston, and Hatley.
Other Region 4-3A games on the schedule have Choctaw County hosting Independence, Aberdeen entertaining Okolona, Houston hosting Pontotoc, and Hatley playing host to Hatley.
Tyrone Shorter, the longtime coach at Noxubee County, is now the first year coach at Louisville. Oddly enough he replaced M.C. Miller, who was Shorter’s predecessor at Noxubee. In Shorter’s eight years he led the Tigers to four MHSAA Class 4A State titles and won seven of the 10 games his Tigers played against Miler’s Wildcats.
— Austin Bishop
ALL-SPORTS AWARDS HANDED OUT FOR 2018-19
For the past 30 years the Jackson Clarion-Ledger newspaper has handed out All-Sports Awards for each classification in the Mississippi High School Activities Association.
For the 2018-19 schools year, each school’s rankings in 11 boys sports, 11 girls sports, and one combined sport (archery) went toward the totals. A top 10 was posted in each classification.
St. Andrew’s won the 3A title, wile Kossuth was second and South Pontotoc third. Tupelo Christian ran away with the 1A title, while Sacred Heart was second. Madison Central won 6A, Germantown, 5A, Pontotoc 4A, and Madison St. Joseph 2A.
Choctaw County competes in 3A, while French Camp Academy is a 1A school.
— Austin Bishop
