It’s easy to see for those who follow the Carroll Academy football program that the culture has changed drastically since the end of last season.
The Rebels made the playoffs in 2017 based on their power points, but still lost their final four games (three in the regular season and one in the playoffs). Things started differently in the home stretch of the schedule as they beat Marshall 37-6 last week.
Friday night in Carrollton, the Rebels can stay on track to achieve one of their goals as they entertain Winona Christian School at 7 in a District 1-AA showdown.
“If we can get this one, we can at least guarantee there will be a three-way tie with us, them and Central Holmes. Winona is playing for the district title Friday night, and we don’t want them celebrating on our field,” said CA head coach Bo Milton.
Winona Christian comes into the game with a 5-3 overall mark and a 3-0 record in district play. The Stars dropped a 35-6 decision to Indianola last week.
Carroll is 6-2 and 2-0 and still has to play host to Central Holmes next Friday. Central Holmes is 2-1 in the district.
“I looked back at some old records and Carroll has not beat Winona since 2005. Of course, they haven’t played every season, but it’s been a while since we’ve beat them,” said Milton. “If we are going to win the district championship, we have to win this game. It would also put us a step closer to hosting a playoff game.
“Right now in the power point system, Winona and Central Holmes are both above us, but the winner of the district is one of the top five teams.”
The Rebels and the Stars both will look to establish a running game against each other. Carroll is led by the trio of Morgan Mims, Jeb Beck and Hunter Brackin, while Winona counters with Choyce Diffey and Corley Goss.
“Two very similar teams. Winona looks to throw a little more than we do, but we both will look to control the clock and run the football. Our defense is up for the challenge. We know what’s at stake, and our kids are focused on the job we have to do,” Milton added.
n Amanda Elzy hosts Yazoo County —The homestanding Panthers of Elzy can close in on a playoff berth as they take on the Panthers of Yazoo County Friday night at R.R. Pickett Field.
Kickoff is set for 7 p.m.
The last time Elzy was in the playoffs was in 2010 as it was bounced from the first round with a 32-8 loss to Louisville. The football program has suffered through seven straight losing seasons, but with two home games remaining and a road trip to J.Z. George still to go, the Panthers have a shot at ending that skid.
Elzy is 4-4 overall after it knocked off Region 3-3A foe Humphreys County 38-6 last week to move to 1-1 in league play. Yazoo County is tied for second place in the region with Elzy at 1-1 as it lost 46-12 last week to Ruleville Central, which is 2-0 as it owns a 29-14 win over J.Z. George as well. Charleston, also 2-0, plays host to Ruleville Friday night. Yazoo County opened region play with a 38-14 win over Humphreys two weeks ago.
“We know what we have to do. Our focus is on Yazoo County and doing the things we need to do to win this game Friday night,” said Elzy coach Sheldon Hodge. “We’re not discussing the playoffs with the kids right now. Every team left on our schedule can beat us if we don’t show up to play.
“We aren’t good enough to get overconfident. We continue to do the same things we’ve done from the beginning of the season. We have meetings with our linemen, with our offense and defense, and we work on repetition. We can have a mental slip, but we can’t afford to have a mental breakdown. Staying focused on the job at hand is a must.”
Last week against Humphreys, the Panthers only led 8-6 after the first period but exploded for 30 points over the next two quarters. Junior running back Dephabian Fant led the offensive attack with 187 yards and three touchdowns on 15 carries. He also had one reception for 16 yards and a 2-point conversion run.
n J.Z. George hosts Humphreys County — The Jaguars begin a stretch of three straight Region 3-3A games that will determine their playoff fate as they entertain the Cowboys of Humphreys County High School Friday night.
Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. in North Carrollton.
The Jaguars, despite their 0-8 overall record and 0-2 mark in the district, can still make the playoffs with a pair of wins in the final three games.
“We still have hope, and if we can get the kids to look past our record and realize we still have a shot, I like our chances. The effort has been good, but we’ve just got to quit shooting ourselves in the foot,” said J.Z. George head coach Ben Burton.
The Jaguars dropped a 50-0 decision to district power Charleston last week. The Tigers only led 7-0 after the first period, but within the first five minutes of the second quarter, the Tigers were in front 22-0.
“We muffed a punt and gave them the ball at the 10 and in three plays it was 14-0. Just minutes later after a turnover, they went up 22-0. The mistakes and our inability to move the football just wore us down. We had some breakdowns on special teams,” added Burton. “We couldn’t move the ball at all. We’ve had some personnel changes and injuries on offense, and it just showed against a team like Charleston.”
Humphreys County comes into Friday’s contest with a 2-6 overall record and an 0-2 mark in the region. The Cowboys lost 38-6 to Amanda Elzy last week and have dropped their last three games. On the season, Humphreys has been outscored 318-96. Their last win was a 50-42 victory over Gentry on Sept. 14.
n Delta Streets Academy at Sharkey-Issaquena — The Lions play their final Division 2E game of the regular season as they head to Rolling Fork to take on the Confederates of Sharkey-Issaquena Academy at 7 p.m. Friday.
Delta Streets (4-3, 1-2) lost to top-ranked Manchester Academy 52-8 a week ago. Senior quarterback DJ Alston ran for 120 yards, and freshman tailback Jaylen Lewis had 110 yards rushing and the lone touchdown.
The Confederates are 5-3 overall and 1-2 in league play. They beat district foe Kemper 36-26 last week. SIA has lost 44-12 to Manchester and 52-14 to Humphreys.
DSA still has games remaining with Desoto and Delta Academy.
nContact Calvin Stevens at cstevens@gwcommonwealth.com.
