It’s time to crown a champion. This will be a fitting MAIS Class 4A-Division I Championship at Mississippi College at 7 p.m. on Saturday night as Hartfield Academy (6-5) tries to defend its title and pull off a three-peat, while star-studded Jackson Academy (10-1) looks to win its first state title since 2011, a 14-year drought.
JA dominated MRA from the opening kick in the semifinals with an amazing 35-0 shutout. Raiders forced six MRA turnovers, four interceptions of quarterback Samuel Stockett and two fumbles. The defense recorded seven tackles for loss. Senior linebacker and Tennessee Volunteer commit TJ White was terrific along the line and had nine total tackles, three for loss. Junior Jaden Walker two sacks and three tackles for loss. Seniors Baird Kennedy, Carter Mathison, Jack Seward and junior Ashton Blackmon all recorded an interception.
“It wasn’t just the defense. The whole team took over, both sides of the ball, offensive line, defensive line was very physical, and it led to a very dominating game,” said senior defensive lineman Dereon Albert.
Senior Josef Walker was 15 of 23 for 266 yards and no interceptions. Walker has not turned the ball over once this season. He connected with eight different receivers. He also ran the ball 11 times for 60 yards and a touchdown. Aaric Beasley had 17 carries for 90 yards and a touchdown.
“I’ve never seen our team so focused. There wasn’t anybody joking around. They were ready to play and when you’re playing a really good opponent, our guys seem to rise to the occasion,” said JA Head Coach David Duggan.
Hartfield also ran over Jackson Prep, literally, in its semifinal 48-21. The Hawks rolled up 417 yards rushing for five touchdowns. Senior wide receiver Bralan Womack carried the ball six times for 156 yards and two scores. Junior quarterback Ethan Elliott ran nine times for 142 yards and two touchdowns. Junior running back Collin McIntyre had 15 rushes for 97 yards and a touchdown. Hartfield is now riding a five-game winning streak after starting the season 1-5.
“Our offensive line did a tremendous job, we have a young line, but they have grown with confidence and I love the swagger they are playing with right now to hype them up. They went through a tough obstacle the first part of the season, but it just made them stronger,” said Hartfield receiver Bralan Womack.
“When you start a season the way we did, you don’t know how a team is going to respond. We have a senior group that have been in this position (championship games) for the last two years, so we are excited. The way we are playing right now, we are worthy of being here,” said Hartfield Head Coach Craig Bowman.
The Hawks and Raiders met in the regular season back on September 19 at Hartfield. Jackson Academy won 41-22 but the offensive statistics were nearly dead even with 312 total yards for JA, 197 passing and 115 rushing, and Hartfield had 298 yards, 190 passing and 108 rushing.
There were three stats that decided the game, The Hawks turned the ball over four times on seven fumbles while JA had no turnovers. The Raiders returned a punt for an 83-yard touchdown, and the stingy defense recorded six big sacks.
“It will be hard to replicate but we’ve got good players that can get after the passer and if not sack him, at least put pressure on him to throw off his timing. You collapse the pocket and force the quarterback into a throw or a sack,” said Coach Duggan.
Coach Bowman says ball security is their top priority as they prepare for this week.
“Hats off to Coach Duggan and what they do defensively because turnovers don’t just happen, defenses create those and they’ve been very good at that. They created six turnovers last week against MRA so that’s something we have to be aware of. We have to play a very clean game,” said Bowman.
The Hawks will also need to find a way to stop the big play and force turnovers themselves. Raiders quarterback Josef Walker has not turned the ball over once this season. No interceptions and no fumbles, something you rarely see for a high school quarterback. Walker is a dangerous threat with both his arm and his feet. In the first meeting he completed just six of 11 passes for 197 yards, a 33-yard per completion average, and two touchdowns. He also ran the ball seven times for 49 yards and a score.
The Raiders were able to hit huge plays the first time around as senior and North Carolina commit Omari Johnson had one catch for an 80-yard touchdown along with senior Jaydann Hollins who had one catch for a 60-yard touchdown and the 83-yard punt return for a touchdown.
“We have a lot of weapons now offensively. We can put Omari Johnson in there, coupled with Jaydann Hollins and Josef Walker can make plays with his feet but he’s also an accurate thrower. He makes really good decisions and to have zero turnovers, that’s off the charts,” said Coach Duggan.
“We have to get some pressure on the quarterback, get to him quick. We need to force him to make quick decisions so he won’t beat us over the top,” said senior linebacker Kaden Catchings.
Hartfield’s offense did have some success in the game, as Ethan Elliot was 16-22 for 190 yards, one touchdown. Bralan Womack had eight catches for 106 yards and Coleman Yoder had three catches for 47 yards and a score. On the ground, Collin McIntyre ran the ball 20 times for 83 yards and two touchdowns.
The Hawks are confident that if they can clean up their mistakes from the first game, they’ve got a real shot at winning on Saturday.
“We know that we have to protect the ball. We have to create takeaways and that’s where the game is going to be won whoever gets those extra possessions,” said Womack.
“We were a team that was determined to get back to this game. Despite all the early season things that happened we are back in the game and we are coming to win it all again,” said Catchings.
The assumption among most folks is that Jackson Academy will lift its first championship trophy since 2011 on the field at Mississippi College, but make no mistake, Hartfield will not go quietly as the Hawks look to hoist their third gold ball in a row. Let the best team win.
MHSAA Second Round
Germantown at Tupelo
Germantown (8-3) is on a mission with the most talented football team in school history. The question is, do they have enough to take down Tupelo (11-1) on its blue field in the second round of the playoffs on Friday night at 7 p.m.
The Mavericks destroyed Desoto Central in the first round 70-42. The horses rumbled for 478 rushing yards and eight touchdowns. Senior running back Nyrikius Johnson led the stampede with 232 yards on 21 carries and scored five times. Fellow senior Lawson Branson had six carries for 111 yards and a touchdown, while quarterback King White nearly hit the century mark with 98 rushing yards with two touchdowns.
Tupelo took care of Starkville in its first-round game 28-10. Sensational senior running back Jaeden “JJ” Hill ran for 173 yards on 22 carries. Hill comes into this game with 1,375 yards on 149 carries and 12 touchdowns on the season. Junior Kylan Bobo leads this dynamic backfield as he’s run for 1,451 yards with 24 touchdowns this year.
The game plan for both teams this week will be to run the football. Germantown will have to find a way to slow down Hill and Bobo. The Mavericks had trouble stopping the run against Desoto Central, as they gave up 375 yards and four touchdowns on the ground. If both defenses flood the line of scrimmage, it will come down to whoever can throw the ball successfully. Germantown definitely has the advantage there with quarterback King White. The senior signal caller has thrown for 2,306 yards, 24 touchdowns and just one interception in his 11 games.
If the Mavericks can advance, they will play in their first ever North State Championship next week.
JACKSON ACADEMY'S KEYS TO VICTORY
On Offense: Score early and score often. If quarterback Josef Walker can build a big lead early, it’ll be lights out.
On Defense: Stack the line of scrimmage and shut down the run. TJ White, Dereon Albert, Jaden Walker, Carter Mathison, Baird Kennedy and the rest of the tenacious defense will feast if the Hawks are forced to throw on every down.
HARTFIELD'S KEYS TO VICTORY
On Offense: Get the ball out quick. Short passes may slow the defensive rush down a bit. It’ll be important for Bralan Womack and the rest of the receivers to get big yards after catch and hopefully break big plays. Long sustained drives have allowed the Raiders to force mistakes.
On Defense: Truly bend but don’t break. Don’t allow one play scores by keeping the ball in front of you. The challenge will also be to have lane disciple by the defensive line to try and contain Walker to the pocket.
JA AT A GLANCE
Class/Division: Class 4A, District 4 (MAIS)
Record: 10-1
Last Championship Title: 2011
Head Coach: David Duggan
Assistant Coaches: Michael Brinson (Strength and Conditioning), Case Cook, Shay Hodge, Thomas Martin, Rob Triplett, Malcolm Rollins, Michael Turner
HARTFIELD AT A GLANCE
Class/Division: Class 4A, District 2 (MAIS)
Record: 6-5
Last Championship Title: 2024
Head Coach: Craig Bowman
Assistant Coaches: Cody Saxton, Shane Schurb, Stuardt Saxton, Pack Toler, William Davis, Bryan Pittman, Ryan Lindsey, Will Davis.
The Series: The all-time series is tied 4-4
Last Meeting: JA won 41-22 in the 2025 regular season
