Week five of high school football season is here. The following are my game predictions involving Hattiesburg-area teams. Note: Hattiesburg, Oak Grove and Petal are all off this week on a bye.
St. Patrick (2-1) at Sacred Heart (2-2)-Sacred Heart followed their 2-0 start with two straight losses and is looking to get back on track against a St. Patrick team that has won two in a row after back-to-back winless seasons in 2015 and 2016. St. Patrick’s wins came against Mount Olive and Pope John Paul II (La), two teams that are in a clear rebuild. Sacred Heart, on the other hand, has beaten Loyd Star and Richton, both of which have legit playoff aspirations. The Crusaders came up short against Sumrall and North Forrest, two really good ball clubs. Sacred Heart is tested, St. Patrick is not. Overall talent-wise, there is also a significant gap. Hard for me not to roll with the Crusaders here.
Sacred Heart 35, St. Patrick 21
PCS (4-0) at Lamar (2-3)-The Bobcats continue to impress. Their running game looks unstoppable, while the defense is stopping everybody. The latter has allowed fewer than 10 points in each of their last two games, which is really astounding considering one of them, ACCS, was coming off a 40-point performance and the other, Simpson Academy, scored 70 points in one game earlier this season. You know Lamar will be hungry to avenge last season’s loss to the Bobcats. That probably won’t matter. Much like last season, I’m not inclined to pick against PCS, especially with the roll they’re on.
PCS 41, Lamar 17
FCAHS (3-1) at West Marion (1-3)-The Aggies continue to grind out tough wins and surpass a lot of early season expectations. Do not mind West Marion’s record. Behind a really good Perry Central team, this should be the Aggies’ toughest challenge of the season to this point. The Trojans always have athletes, and I thought they looked pretty good week one against PCS. A lot like the Bobcats though, it’s hard for me to pick against FCAHS right now. You gotta think confidence levels are steadily rising for this team. Their defense should keep them in this one, and the offense, which is still a work in progress, will do just enough for another Aggie win, their third in a row.
FCAHS 24, West Marion 21
Purvis (1-2) at Mendenhall (2-1)-Purvis has been no stranger to slow starts the last few years. Last season, the Tornadoes started 0-2, only to rattle off six-straight wins in securing solid playoff positioning. In 2015, the Tornadoes started 1-4 and went on to win six-straight in earning a district title. So if we’re going off recent history, Purvis should turn things around any week now, right? Behind Oak Grove, Mendenhall should be the Tornado’s biggest challenge of the season to this point. So will the real Purvis Tornadoes show themselves? Will the team I predicted would contend for a 4A title this season show their true potential? Yes, they will. The turnaround starts this week.
Purvis 28, Mendenhall 27
North Forrest (2-2) at Enterprise (0-4)-North Forrest’s offense has really come alive the last two weeks. Following a scoreless first half against Columbia in week three, the Eagles have rattled off a combined 72 points in six quarters since. 48 of those came last week against Sacred Heart and a defense I was mighty high on coming into the contest. Quarterback Daylyn Croom is the engine of this offense. Croom, one of the more underrated players in all of the Pine Belt, can throw it and run it with great efficiency. He will be licking his chops this week against an Enterprise defense that is giving up about 50 points a game. Croom and company will win their third in a row. Easily.
North Forrest 42, Enterprise 21
Sumrall (3-1) at Richton (1-3)-Don’t look now, but Sumrall is rolling. After opening the season with a loss to South Jones, the Bobcats have rattled off three-straight wins. The offense is looking better and better by each passing week, which is bad news for Richton. The Rebels have struggled mightily on the defensive side, giving up at least 41 points in each of their three losses. Richton gave up 51 to the Bobcats in 2015 and 47 last season. I expect to see something similar come Friday night.
Sumrall 45, Richton 27
Morton (2-2) at Collins (2-2)-Having won two in a row following an 0-2 start, Collins appears to be on the come up. The Tigers have either blown opponents out or come up just short in the end to this point. That narrow loss to Jefferson Davis County? Looking mighty impressive with the way the Jaguars are playing right now. Morton, on the other hand, has been about as inconsistent as you can be. Pitch a shutout week one, get shutout yourself the next, lose in overtime the following and blowout Raymond, who is still winless, this past week. Not a whole lot of science to this pick. Using the eye test, Collins is clearly the better team.
Collins 35, Morton 24
Raleigh (1-3) at Seminary (2-2)-A few week ago, this looked like a must-see matchup. With both teams on a bit of a losing skid, well, not so much now. Neither offenses are clicking right now, so if you’re into defensive battles, this might be the game for you. For me, this one’s really a coin flip-type of game. With Seminary being at home and having won seven-straight regular season games there, I’ll roll with them in a tight ballgame.
Seminary 21, Raleigh 17
Pelahatchie (4-0) at Mount Olive (1-3)-Putting it plain and simple, this is a bad matchup for Mount Olive. The Chiefs have scored a combined 170 points the last three weeks. In that same span, Mount Olive has scored 22. This one will be over before the end of the first quarter.
Pelahatchie 49, Mount Olive 10
