Here we are. State week is officially upon us and only two teams in 5A remain standing. It’s the 14-0 Hattiesburg Tigers and the 14-0 West Point Green Wave. They will face off Saturday night at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium for the 5A crown.
Two undefeated teams, two offenses averaging nearly 48 points per game, two great head coaches. Lot of similarities, sure. Even so, very few, other than the Hattiesburg faithful, are giving the Tigers a chance in this game.
I won’t say his name, but I talked to a guy, a well-known figure in Mississippi high school sports media, about a month ago. I said, “If Hattiesburg and West Point played tomorrow, what would your prediction be?”. He responded in probably less than a second. “West Point by a couple of touchdowns”.
I get it. West Point won the state title last year. They’ve won 27 games in a row. They’ve got a ton of talent. And everyone pretty much pencilled them in as 5A champs before the 2017 season even kicked off. So at this point, it kind of feels like all the pressure is on West Point, while Hattiesburg is playing with house money. Nobody expected Hattiesburg to be here before the season started. Brookhaven? Probably. Picayune? Makes sense. But Hattiesburg? No way, not with the talent they lost from a year ago.
I’m proud to say I’ve been on the bandwagon all season long. How about a throwback to my first pick of the season: “I do not see a whole lot of question marks with this Hattiesburg team. Tony Vance has got himself a squad”. Well guess what? My feeling has not changed, even on the grandest of stages against a heavy favorite.
This is Hattiesburg’s year, the Year of the Tiger. They will paint Oxford purple and gold, and show the state what Hattiesburg football is all about. Yes, it will take their best, most complete performance of the season. Having witnessed this special season firsthand, I expect nothing less.
Hattiesburg 37, West Point 34
