When heavy rain was in the forecast for Friday night, Nanih Waiya coach James Courtney wasn’t worried.
Courtney even took to Twitter reminding his fans that rain was a part of football and “if you play great defense and run the football you have a chance to win!”
Courtney’s words were almost prophetic.
The Warriors used a punishing rushing attack behind Donovan Turner and Shia Moore and pounded visiting East Marion 28-8 in the Class 1A South State championship game on Friday night.
The Warriors improved to 14-1 on the season and advance to the MHSAA Class 1A State Championship game on Friday at 3 p.m. at M.M. Roberts Stadium on the campus of the University of Southern Mississippi. The Warriors will face three-time defending champion Hollandale Simmons, who currently owns the nation’s longest winning streak at 54 games. Simmons advanced to the title game with a 20-6 win over Smithville, a team the Warriors beat 55-12 earlier this year.
“We knew going in that the weather was going to play a factor,” Courtney said. “But we feel like we are made for that kind of weather. We didn’t attempt a pass and just took what we could get. We had over 400 yards rushing and our offensive line did a good job of blocking and opening holes. We ran the quarterback a lot and he did a good job of protecting the ball and keeping us in front of the chains.”
The Warriors dominated for the majority of the contest. But perhaps the play of the game for the Warriors came late in the first quarter. After both teams had punted twice, the Eagles got a long punt return and started with the ball at the Nanih Waiya 47. The Eagles moved inside the Nanih Waiya red zone but a crunching hit on the East Marion quarterback caused a fumble that Tyree McClendon recovered.
The Warriors used that momentum and some strong running from quarterback Donovan Turner to find the end zone. Turner got the offense going with a long 75-yard run and finished off the 90-yard drive with an 11-yard run on the third play of the second quarter. Jake Kight’s PAT was good the Warriors led 7-0.
The Nanih Waiya defense forced another East Marion three-and-out and gave the Warriors a short field at their own 41. The Warriors responded with a five-play, 41-yard drive as Turner scored on a 13-yard keeper with 5:42 left in the first half. The PAT attempt failed and the Warriors led 13-0 at the half.
“I was proud of our defense and the way they played,” Courtney said. “We knew the weather would hurt East Marion and force them to run the quarterback. I thought our kids did a good job of getting him to the ground. We had the turnover early that helped change the game. And our kicker (Jake Kight) did a good job of kicking away from their guys and not giving them anything in the return game.”
The Warriors got the ball to open the second half, recovering an onside kick attempt by East Marion, giving them the ball near midfield.
The Warriors needed only four plays to cover the 53 yards as Shia Moore got in on the scoring action with a 42-yard touchdown run with 9:48 left in the third. Moore also ran in the two-point conversion and the Warriors led 21-0.
After another East Marion three and out on offense, the Warriors put together a punishing eight-play, 77-yard drive. Turner again found the end zone as he ran straight up the middle for a 31-yard touchdown. Kight’s PAT gave the Warriors a 28-0 lead late in the third quarters.
East Marion added a late score for the final of 28-8.
The Warriors dominated the offensive statistics with 412 yards of offense, all on the ground. Turner led the rushing attack with 215 yards on 20 carries while Shia Moore had 176 yards on 23 carries.
The Warriors will get the opportunity to avenge last year’s crushing 22-20 loss to Simmons in the 1A title game on Friday. The Warriors led 14-0 at the half of that game but lost as Simmons scored 16 points in the fourth quarter to take the win.
Courtney said he is glad to see Simmons again after the Blue Devils scored with 1:50 last year to win.
“No doubt, we wanted to face Simmons and have a chance at redemption,” Courtney said. “We have a chance to strap it on and play them again. They are really good. They have been through three different coaches and have won it three straight years. That’s a credit to their kids. We will have our work cut out for us, that’s for sure.”
The Blue Devils are 14-0 on the season and have outscored opponents 623-63 this season. Quarterback Tyderious Gipson leads the offense with 2,455 yards passing on 89-of-148 passing. He has also rushed for 683 yards. Senior Demarrious Turner has 1,549 yards rushing on 99 carries for 17 TDs. Senior Antavious Rounds has 32 catches for 1,041 yards and 10 TDs. Junior Stemarion Edwards leads the defense with 141 tackles.
“Their quarterback can throw it and they have one of the better backs in the state,” Courtney said. “We have to be really sound on defense. We have to eliminate space. We have to get off blocks and get to the point of attack quickly before they get going.”
