For the third straight season, the McAdams Bulldogs made the MHSAA Class 1A Playoffs.
And for the first half, it appeared as if the Bulldogs were going to bring home a playoff win at one-loss Biggersville.
The Bulldogs led 18-0, but a mishandled punt gave the Lions a late first half score and Biggersville used that momentum to score 46 unanswered points and take a 46-18 win.
The Bulldogs end the season with a 5-7 record while Biggersville improves to 11-1 on the season.
“It was a tough loss,” McAdams coach Jim Risen said. “We dominated the first half, scoring three touchdowns and were up 18-0. But then we fumbled a punt right before the half and allowed them to score and gave them confidence going into the locker room at 18-8. Our bad luck continued in the second half as we fumbled on completely deteriorated sod, cold rained-soaked conditions, in which Biggersville returned for another touchdown, and then we couldn't handle a low punt snap in the early third quarter and the proverbial floodgates opened.”
The Bulldogs had the Lions reeling in the first half as Jordan Fleming scored the first touchdown on a 6-yard run with 11:16 left in the first for a 6-0 lead.
Fleming then scored on a 38-yard run with 2:05 left in the first for a 12-0 lead. John Bayne scored on a 6-yard run with 8:12 left in the second quarter and the Bulldogs led 18-0.
“We're a team that definitely relies on our quick feet and team speed, and at Biggersville we simply couldn't use our strengths (our speed) because of the terrible and murky field conditions of taking away our cuts and footing capabilities,” Risen said.
Risen said in the second half a “deteriorated sod and cold, rain-soaked” field finally caught up with the Bulldogs as the Lions got a fumble return for a touchdown and another low snap on a punt. From there, Biggersville poured it on to take the 28-point win.
“Overall injuries and lack of depth, not pour-mouthing, from those injuries finally caught up with us,” Risen said. “But sometimes that's the price you pay in Mississippi class 1A football. But on a positive note, it helped us to develop a lot of key experience out of our younger players which will be key as we develop our program in the off-season training for next year.”
But that did not stop Risen from finding the positives about the season.
“I’m proud of this senior class for helping us to make it to back to back playoff appearances overall as they have been a great group to coach,” Risen said. “They will be successful in life. Overall five wins and seven losses and a third straight playoff appearance, and we had major wins over 2A teams including Puckett and West Tallahatchie. We've certainly got a strong foundation to build on for next year as we begin playing in a newly formatted region with new teams.”
Fleming had 92 yards rushing on 22 carries while Demarcus Gray had 36 yards on eight carries. Kristopher Brown had 16 yards on six carries and was limited with a pulled hamstring. Bubba Ward had 18 yards on four carries while John Bayne had 12 yards on three carries.
On defense, Kendrioun Boatman led the way with eight tackles while Percy Lewis had five solo tackles, two sacks and one pass deflection. Bayne had six tackles while Jaquan Winters had three solo tackles and an sack. Ward had three tackles while Jaylen Perteet had two tackles. Fleming also had two tackles and an interception.
