The final score – Kosciusko 45, Olive Branch 27 – is not indicative of how tough the game was for the Whippets. Olive Branch led 14-7 in the first half and trailed 31-27 in the fourth quarter before Kosciusko pulled away with two touchdowns.
“We didn’t get off to a fast start. Kind of sleepwalked through the first quarter,”” said coach Casey Orr. “Then the offense found its stride.”
Kosciusko remained unbeaten (4-0) because Caiden Wade to Jontavious Roundtree is the state’s best pass-and-catch duo. They hooked up on seven passes for 237 yards and three TDs.
“It was a back-and-forth affair for a while,” Orr said.
The Whippets led 21-14 at the half on a TD run by Wade and his scoring passes to La’Darrion McBride and Roundtree.
Kosciusko added 10 third-quarter points on a 26-yard field goal by Braden Ray and a TD pass to Roundtree. After Olive Branch made it 31-27 early in the final period, Wade threw a TD pass to Roundtree and closed out the scoring with a touchdown run.
The teams combined for 899 yards of offense, 466 for Kosciusko and 433 for Olive Branch. Wade completed 16 of 23 passes for 342 yards and the Whippets added 124 on the ground, led by C.J. Sandifer with 20 carries for 57 yards and Roundtree with 37 yards on only two carries.
For Olive Branch, Kylen Reed was 12 of 24 passing for 256 yards and two TDs and Javarris Hickman carried 28 times for 186 yards and two scores.
“Way too many missed tackles,” Orr said of his young defense.
Lakendrick Williams played sparingly in the first half after suffering a charley horse but had a strong second half on defense for the Whippets, finishing with seven solo tackles and three assists, with two tackles for a loss, including a sack.
In addition to his field goal, Ray was six-for-six on PATs.
The Whippets travel to Ackerman Friday for a game with Choctaw County which is 1-3 with losses to East Webster 20-14, New Hope 29-14 and Kemper County 40-35. “They have been tough luck losses. They have been very close to winning those games,” Orr said. “They have some talent. It scares you what they can do on offense.”
That offense is led by sophomore quarterback Marcari Holman who has thrown for 539 yards and four TDs
Kosciusko won last year’s game 41-25, but it was 27-25 entering the fourth quarter.
Choctaw County is a 3A team. It will be the first time Kosciusko has played a team from a smaller classification. The victories have been against 7A Hernando, 6A Olive Branch and Neshoba Central and 5A Florence.
