Kosciusko had its most one-sided victory in 14 seasons with a 56-6 win over Northeast Lauderdale, but Coach Casey Orr was not entirely pleased.
“Sometimes looks can be deceiving. I like the final score. But there are definitely ways you can get better,” he said. “I thought at times the effort wasn't where it needed to be in the first half. We played better and cleaned things up in the second half.”
The Whippets had five offensive touchdowns, two on special teams and one from the defense. Ethan Wood, Davion Roby and Keonte Williams led the way.
Wood completed 11 of 17 passes for 253 yards and three TDs. Orr said the senior quarterback has been very consistent.
QB Ethan Wood completes a pass for first down yardage.
Kevin Brunt / The Star-Herald
“As a head coach, you like guys who are consistent. You never have to worry about what you are going to get out of them,” said the coach.
Roby had three receptions for 121 yards and two touchdowns and scored on a punt return. Williams caught two passes for 74 yards and one touchdown and returned an interception for a TD.
Orr said Roby has been a strong performer for several years, but Williams is playing the sport for the first time as a senior at wide receiver and defensive back.
“We got him off the basketball gym. He has really come along and played a big part for us,” Orr said.
The other touchdowns came on runs by Caevon Toliver and Javen Mallet and a punt that was blocked by Eli Kemp and recovered in the end zone by Reggie Carter.
Will Carter made all eight PATs to remain perfect on the season, 33 of 33.
The defense almost had a shutout. Northeast Lauderdale scored against Kosciusko reserves on the final play of the game on a run by Ja Michael Jackson, who supplied most of the Trojans' offense with 20 carries for 148 yards.
The 50-point margin was the Whippets' biggest since a 55-0 victory over Houston and a 53-0 win over Neshoba Central in 2007.
Jatavious Noel gets outside for a long gain for the Whippets.
Kevin Brunt / The Star-Herald
Kosciusko improved to 6-1 and 3-1 in Region 4-4A, tied for second with Louisville. The Whippets will host the Wildcats Thursday in a game that will determine second place and a home game in the opening round of the playoffs.
West Lauderdale is 4-0 in region play and assured of being the top seed as a result of victories over Kosciusko and Louisville. Louisville is 7-2 overall with losses to 6A Starkville and West Lauderdale in overtime.
“They're a really good football team. They always are,” Orr said. “When you want to build a program and get to a certain level, you want to play teams like Louisville to see where you are. It's going to be a great opportunity for us. We're excited about it.”
Louisville has a balanced offense, averaging 199 yards on the ground and 171 through the air. Senior quarterback Jace Hudspeth has completed 112 of 156 passes (71.8 percent) for 1,534 yards and 17 touchdowns, with five interceptions, and has carried 37 times for 288 yards and eight TDs.
“He is a really good one. He is going to present some problems,” Orr said.
But Hudspeth is far from a one-man team on offense. The Wildcats have three talented running backs. Emory James has carried 112 times for 733 yards and 10 TDs, Jykevious Goss 57 for 337 and two TDs and Jacoery Coleman 43 for 253 and four scores.
Another Wildcat of concern to Orr is receiver Jarvis Rush, with 30 receptions for 523 yards and five TDs.
MHSAA moved the final regular season games for 4A, 3A and 2A teams from Friday to Thursday due to a lack of officials. Games for 1A, 5A and 6A remain on Friday this week, but will move to Thursday for the final games next week.
Orr said having one less day to prepare for Louisville will not change the team's routine. “Thursday is normally a run though day without pads to clean things up. Basically, we will lose that day.”
The playoffs begin a week from Friday with 4-4A playing teams from 1-4A. Kosciusko's opponent will be Itawamba AHS, Caledonia or Shannon.
Former coaches Jeff Terrell and Rickey Joe Black served as co captains for the game.
Kevin Brunt / The Star-Herald
Orr would like to beat Louisville in order to open the playoffs at home but said a road game is not the worst possibility.
“We're undefeated on the road this year so I guess we can hang our hat on that,” he said. “We feel comfortable wherever we play.”
