6A First Round Results & Second Round Predictions

[David]

I’d say that the first round of games went pretty much as I predicted except for Southaven not showing up. This leads to a lot of great matchups next week. Let’s talk. 
 

Starkville @ Clinton 

regular season result: Clinton 35-28 Starkville 

 

Madison Central @ Tupelo

regular season: Tupelo 34-0 Madison Central 

 

Warren Central @ Brandon 

regular season: Brandon 21-3 Warren Central 

 

 

Oak Grove @ Ocean Springs 

2021 second round playoffs: Oak Grove 28-21 Ocean Springs 

 

Edited November 12, 2022 by David

[pancho]

clinton

tupelo

brandon

OS

[ScaryTerry]

Starkville

Tupelo

Warren Central

Oak Grove

[coastguy]

Starkville 35-31

 

Tupelo 28-14

 

Brandon 31-17

 

Ocean Springs 35-28

[David]

I thought we’d get more comments on the top classification in the state. Maybe more as we move closer to the four compelling games with lots of back stories. Three of the games are repeats, and that means that these guys know each other well. The other is the monster rematch from last year’s playoffs between Oak Grove at 9-2 and undefeated Ocean Springs. Predictions are useless, but I’ll try. 
 

Starkville might be the hottest team in the state, winning their last five to squeak into the playoffs. Clinton won early in the season by 10. I’ll go with the Arrows again 35-31. 
 

Best team in the state in most eyes, Tupelo hasn’t had a close game except Starkville including beating Madison Central in a shutout blowout. This time, it’s the Golden Wave 38-14. 
 

Brandon started the season picked to win it all. They’re still on track for that, but haven’t looked great late. Warren Central couldn’t cross the goal line in their only loss, to Brandon earlier. Brandon has been here more often, so their experience wins it, 27-24. 
 

Ocean Springs has played on offense probably 75% of the time, and haven’t been behind more than a handful of times. Player of the year, Bray Hubbard could not have played better. They learned a lot in their loss in the playoffs last year.  Perennial state championship contender Oak Grove was young to start the year, and it showed. They’ve come on since, and have matured into another great team. This game might come down to who gets the ball last. I think it’s going to be… 42-42 at the end of regulation. You pick it. 

Edited November 13, 2022 by David

[Archer]

OS has to earn being picked in this spot which they haven’t.

 

Oak Grove has more team speed and pedigree so … OG 30 OS 28

[David]

1 hour ago, Archer said:

OS has to earn being picked in this spot which they haven’t.

 

Oak Grove has more team speed and pedigree so … OG 30 OS 28

That’s fair, and my point about O.S. having learned from losing last year to O.G. doesn’t mean just the players. Their coaches didn’t make adjustments after getting the lead, but maybe will have some surprises ready this time. 
Your statement about team speed might be true, but if you haven’t seen Hubbard’s speed and quickness, I’m not sure I’ve seen a player with what I would call “football speed” Gotta be seen to appreciate. He’s playing better this year with less weapons around him. I bet that Warrior QB is a good runner too. 

[Montana6]

On 11/12/2022 at 7:42 AM, David said:

I’d say that the first round of games went pretty much as I predicted except for Southaven not showing up. This leads to a lot of great matchups next week. Let’s talk. 
 

Starkville @ Clinton 

regular season result: Clinton 35-28 Starkville 

 

Madison Central @ Tupelo

regular season: Tupelo 34-0 Madison Central 

 

Warren Central @ Brandon 

regular season: Brandon 21-3 Warren Central 

 

 

Oak Grove @ Ocean Springs 

2021 second round playoffs: Oak Grove 28-21 Ocean Springs 

 

Man Starkville got me so nervous lol. I think we can pull it out though that game gone be crazy.

[David]

8 hours ago, Montana6 said:

Man Starkville got me so nervous lol. I think we can pull it out though that game gone be crazy.

Your team seems to be playing better since my Ocean Springs guys came up there that first game, but Starkville is too. Y’all won by a touchdown the first time you played them. I’m sure you want to run the ball and keep their offense off the field. I’m picking Clinton, so I’m also rooting for you. C’mon Arrows!

[Archer]

12 hours ago, David said:

That’s fair, and my point about O.S. having learned from losing last year to O.G. doesn’t mean just the players. Their coaches didn’t make adjustments after getting the lead, but maybe will have some surprises ready this time. 
Your statement about team speed might be true, but if you haven’t seen Hubbard’s speed and quickness, I’m not sure I’ve seen a player with what I would call “football speed” Gotta be seen to appreciate. He’s playing better this year with less weapons around him. I bet that Warrior QB is a good runner too. 

 

I've watched Hubbard play multiple times.  Having less weapons around him this year may be the undoing of OS.  If OG or another team takes away his rushing ability, then who steps up to fill the void.  Certainly no one last year after OG adjusted.

[coastfootballfanman]

Not having a great RB like David Humphries is going to be tough this week. Hubbard's passing is being done at a much lower clip than last year. I still like Ocean Springs in this one, but I would not be shocked in the least to see Oak Grove go into Ocean Springs and win it. I also think OS being so dominant in their region may hurt them as well. It is not directly their fault, but they have not really  had to play 4 quarters at all this year outside of MAYBE Clinton early in the season. This will definitely be their biggest dog fight of the season. 

[RUNNINGMAN67]

OG has maybe best defensive coordinator in the state. But, Hubbard is also good. I could see this one going either way. I think the team that wins the turnover battle comes out on top. 

[SoMissfootballfan]

Clinton

Tupelo

Warren Central with the upset ( I doubted them last week and hope to make up for it this week)

Oak Grove

[Montana6]

4 hours ago, David said:

Your team seems to be playing better since my Ocean Springs guys came up there that first game, but Starkville is too. Y’all won by a touchdown the first time you played them. I’m sure you want to run the ball and keep their offense off the field. I’m picking Clinton, so I’m also rooting for you. C’mon Arrows!

Difference now is they have their Qb who was out when we first played so its gonna be interesting to see how we adapt. And good luck with OG game is gonna be a classic, might come down to a coaching pedigree. I think OS might have it this year though, and I know that 2nd half from last year getting replayed a thousand times lol.

[Montana6]

2 hours ago, Montana6 said:

Difference now is they have their Qb who was out when we first played so its gonna be interesting to see how we adapt. And good luck with OG game is gonna be a classic, might come down to a coaching pedigree. I think OS might have it this year though, and I know that 2nd half from last year getting replayed a thousand times lol.

Actually no he did play against us, not sure if was he was 100% though but he did get hurt against us.

[David]

1 hour ago, Montana6 said:

Actually no he did play against us, not sure if was he was 100% though but he did get hurt against us.

Their offense has been playing better, but I don’t know if it’s because they got their regular QB back. Your coach will have the film on what they’re doing different than last time, and can make his adjustments. 
I’m really hoping that the O.S. Coach Pennock learned a lot about playoff strategies in that second half last year. I was on a plane to California watching the game streaming, and was not impressed that we didn’t react to their pressing the line to stop our running. A couple of RPO plays to get the WRs downfield seemed obvious, and I’ve noticed that our offense this year has really mixed up the play calls more. I don’t think we need to bring in any revenge factor to out kids, because losing to a good team last year won’t affect this game. I do know that they’ve been looking forward to this one for 12 months, though. Hopefully, getting to the playoffs and these big games becomes a regular thing for us. 

[David]

7 hours ago, coastfootballfanman said:

Not having a great RB like David Humphries is going to be tough this week. Hubbard's passing is being done at a much lower clip than last year. I still like Ocean Springs in this one, but I would not be shocked in the least to see Oak Grove go into Ocean Springs and win it. I also think OS being so dominant in their region may hurt them as well. It is not directly their fault, but they have not really  had to play 4 quarters at all this year outside of MAYBE Clinton early in the season. This will definitely be their biggest dog fight of the season. 

Losing Humphries hurt, but you wouldn’t know it by watching. Several guys have filled in, especially Grey and the freshman, Watson. I’d say it’s because of the improved line blocking late in the year. As far as not getting competitive games, I’ve said for years now that O.S. needs to upgrade their pre district schedule, and Clinton was a good addition. The fact that Hattiesburg and George Cty weren’t competitive was a surprise. I know I don’t have to tell anybody, but Hubbard’s passing has actually improved this year, even with slightly less talented WRs. If it comes down to coaching, I give Pennock a better grade this year after learning a lesson in last year’s game. Im hoping anyway. 

[Matt]

Starkville wins

Tupelo wins

Brandon wins

Ocean Springs wins

 

As it should, 2nd round of playoffs brings all of the good teams to the forefront and anything can happen! Everyone knew last year was going to be a close game, and it was 28-21. OG was returning an undefeated state champion QB and an experienced team with D1 db's. I feel like the script is flipped this year with OS having more experienced starters on both sides of the ball. However, anything can happen under the Friday Night lights. Go Hounds!

[David]

1 hour ago, Matt said:

Starkville wins

Tupelo wins

Brandon wins

Ocean Springs wins

 

As it should, 2nd round of playoffs brings all of the good teams to the forefront and anything can happen! Everyone knew last year was going to be a close game, and it was 28-21. OG was returning an undefeated state champion QB and an experienced team with D1 db's. I feel like the script is flipped this year with OS having more experienced starters on both sides of the ball. However, anything can happen under the Friday Night lights. Go Hounds!

I really had not thought about the fact that O.S. probably has more players who went through this playoff pressure last year and have returned. The defense front seven  seems to be playing with more leadership. Could be a factor this week, especially at QB with Hubbard in his third year of post season play. 

[ScaryTerry]

2 hours ago, Matt said:

Starkville wins

Tupelo wins

Brandon wins

Ocean Springs wins

 

As it should, 2nd round of playoffs brings all of the good teams to the forefront and anything can happen! Everyone knew last year was going to be a close game, and it was 28-21. OG was returning an undefeated state champion QB and an experienced team with D1 db's. I feel like the script is flipped this year with OS having more experienced starters on both sides of the ball. However, anything can happen under the Friday Night lights. Go Hounds!

OG’s defense is supposed to be loaded with D1 talent this year.

[David]

15 hours ago, ScaryTerry said:

OG’s defense is supposed to be loaded with D1 talent this year.

They look to be the strongest defense in the south. Ocean Springs won’t reach their 40+ points per game average, so the key will be how well the O.S. defense comes to play. They also have some talent, and common opponents have been pretty close in scoring against the two. Might come down to O.S. playing Alabama safety  commit Hubbard in the defensive backfield  in critical situations. That hasn’t happened much, though he had two interceptions in limited play there last week. 

Edited November 15, 2022 by David

[JagsFan77]

As much as I hate to say it, I think 6A is Tupelos to lose. Until you see them in person, you can't understand how big that team is. Monsters on that line and their wide receivers just tower over the defensive backs. 

[BrickCity]

9 minutes ago, JagsFan77 said:

As much as I hate to say it, I think 6A is Tupelos to lose. Until you see them in person, you can't understand how big that team is. Monsters on that line and their wide receivers just tower over the defensive backs. 

This is very true. Although I feel like we have improved over the season, Tupelo is a hard matchup however you draw it up

[Arashatora]

16 minutes ago, BrickCity said:

This is very true. Although I feel like we have improved over the season, Tupelo is a hard matchup however you draw it up

The hilarious thing is people on this very board where trashing Hardin last year because they weren't very good. Now that he's got not all sophomores starting and has his people and plan in place, everyone is slurping him again.

[JagsFan77]

28 minutes ago, Arashatora said:

The hilarious thing is people on this very board where trashing Hardin last year because they weren't very good. Now that he's got not all sophomores starting and has his people and plan in place, everyone is slurping him again.

To be fair, most of the trashing came from Tupelo fans last year. I remember seeing "this is the most talent we've had in years" on more than 1 occasion. It's just a tough region and the fans weren't ready for it. Most of the teams were senior heavy in the region last season. That mixed with the vast improvement of Tupelo was the perfect storm for them to dominate this year this far. Moving forward there's going to be a very solid team sitting at home during the playoffs every season. Outside of Murrah, I think every team in this region would be no lower than 2nd if they were to play in region 4. I'd take both Grenada and Germantown over both Biloxi and Gulfport. 

Edited November 15, 2022 by JagsFan77