Hartfield Academy has a chance to make history in Friday night when the Hawks host Jackson Academy. At 11-0, Head Coach Craig Bowman and his crew are looking to complete the first undefeated regular season in school history. It’s been a magical run so far this year for the Hawks with impressive wins over public school power Lafayette County in Oxford 35-7, an instant classic shootout win over Madison-Ridgeland Academy 63-56, and a hard fought victory at Jackson Prep 30-17. The Hawks are coming off a dominating 43-15 win over Madison St. Joseph Catholic School.
“We were able to set the single season school record with 10 wins after beating Prep two weeks ago. Now we sit at 11-0 with a chance at perfection this week,” said Head Coach Craig Bowman, now in his fourth season at the helm at Hartfield. “My first three years we were 8-4, 9-3 and 9-3. Our team understands that a 12-0 regular season can be matched in the future but never surpassed, as they’ll never play more than 12 regulars season games. It’s a special opportunity. They are excited, they want it. We’ve checked all of our preseason goals to this point. The closest I’ve come to a perfect season was 13-1 at Canton Academy in 2016 when we won a state title. I know how hard it is to accomplish and we have that chance.”
The undefeated mark is really the only thing on the line for the Hawks this week. They have already clinched the number one seed in the MAIS 6A playoffs and earned a bye which will send them straight to a home semi-final match-up, potentially against Jackson Academy. Bowman says he will not look to rest any of his stars this week.
“My philosophy is we only get 12 football games and we are gonna go after them with everything we’ve got. I believe high school kids need to play. They don’t have the maturity like college or pro players to do well sitting. We rested a bit in practice before we played St. Joe and I didn’t like what I saw in the first half of the game, so no it’s all hands on deck this week.”
Jackson Academy is coming in fresh off its most impressive game of the season, a 62-22 thrashing of Presbyterian Christian at home in the Brickyard. The Raiders are 7-3 overall and 2-2 in the district and have locked up the fourth seed for the playoffs and will meet Presbyterian Christian in the first round next week. It’s been another unbelievable struggle with injuries for second-year head coach Aubrey Blackwell, but his team has endured.
“As a Clint Black song says, ‘We’re on a good run of bad luck’ that is just surreal,” said Blackwell. “We are without six starters this week but we are going to do our best with the players we have. I tell our kids that it is how you deal with adversity that defines you. They have faith and one of the greatest attributes to this team is we had 29 of them give their life to Christ this season. That is what I am most proud of. We are teaching kids how to win on the football field, but winning for eternity is what it is all about.”
The Raiders face a tough test as they try to slow down the Hawks offense led by senior running back Reed Jesiolowski. The 6’4 215-pound Southern Miss commit continues to pile on his school rushing record with each game he plays. Jesiolowski has rolled up 1,414 yards on 172 carries and scored 19 touchdowns. He also has 12 catches for 245 yards and five more scores. If Reed doesn’t run through you, junior quarterback Cayman Tapper will throw over you. Tapper has thrown for 1,640 yards and 27 touchdowns to just four interceptions. His favorite target is junior receiver Kenzy West who has 39 catches for 733 yards and 11 touchdowns. Sophomore Bralan Womack will be back this week after a knee injury, Womack has added 23 catches for 371 yards and six touchdowns.
Jackson Academy’s strength is its defense and a big defensive line. Big Dereon Albert and Nicholas Harris have combined for 89 tackles, 32 for loss and 15 sacks. Those two will need to come up huge along with Fagan Daniel who leads the team in tackles with 70, Colby Archie who has 68 tackles, 12 for loss and eight sacks and AJ Parker with 50 tackles. They will have to find a way to slow down Jesiolowski and Tapper if the Raiders want to stay in striking distance.
The Raiders offense is riddled with injuries. Coach Blackwell will be starting ninth grader Caden Moss and eighth grader PJ Evans on the offensive line as his tackles. Moss is a 6’5 270-pounder that is already getting scholarship offers from D1 colleges. Evans is 6’3 290-pounds and one of the most talented young men Coach Blackwell has seen as a young player. Those two will be critical in this run first-pass second system. The Raiders have rushed for 1,691 yards as a team. Omarean Ellis leads the way with 93 carries for 766 yards and 12 touchdowns. JA will again be without DJ Watkins who is struggling to return from ankle surgery. Watkins loss takes away a big weapon as he had 67 carries for 454 yards and seven scores before getting hurt.
It’ll be no secret that the Hawks top priority is to shut down the run, which puts the pressure on the arm of quarterback Carter Mathison. He’s been a very good game manager for Coach Blackwell completing 100 of 185 pass attempts for 1,333 yards with nine touchdowns to just three interceptions. Mathison will be without his star receiver in Kiandre Terry who will sit another week from an injury. Terry led the team with 39 catches for 512 yards and four touchdowns. Fellow receivers Ford Childress, Brister Robinson and John Thomas will all have to step up and find space to make plays.
Defensively for Hartfield, another Southern Miss commit, Chris Jones leads the Hawks defense. The 6’1, 220-pound senior linebacker has recorded 90 tackles this season with 19 for loss and intercepted three passes. Junior Reginald Vaughn is equally as stout with 19 tackles for loss as well to go along with his 69 total tackles. Junior London Simmons has 61 total tackles with 18 of those coming for a loss. The Hawks secondary has been flying high with 26 interceptions. Sophomore Bralan Womack has five, Kenzy West has four and senior Bralen Steele has four as well. This defense as a whole has also sacked opposing quarterbacks 27 times.
Hartfield is not steeped in football tradition like JA, Prep or MRA, but Coach Bowman is impressed with how his team, and the entire Academy, has embraced his growing culture of “All-In”.
“When I got named coach in 2020 and I started with the theme “All-In” and when kids make fun of you about it you know it’s sticking with them. Cheerleaders began making signs and buttons with it. We’ve got parents with kids in the elementary school putting it on their social media profiles. It is really humbling. You expect the support of the parents from the kids you coach, but the first and second graders is amazing,” said Bowman.
The last meeting between these two schools was last October in the regular season which Hartfield won easily 38-6. It was the Hawks first ever win over Jackson Academy. A second Hawks win in this series will be one that is etched in the school records forever.
JACKSON ACADEMY AT A GLANCE
Class/Division: Class: 6A. District 1 (MAIS)
Record: 7-3 overall, 2-2 in district
Head Coach: Aubrey Blackwell
Assistant Coaches: Jackie Smith, Tommy Ferrill, Shay Hodge, Jonathan Bolton, Andrew Crenshaw
The Series: Greenville Christian leads 1-0
Last Match-Up: Greenville Christian won 64-32 in 2021.
HARTFIELD AT A GLANCE
Class/Division: Class: 6A. District 1 (MAIS)
Record: 11-0 overall, 4-0 in district
Head Coach: Craig Bowman
Assistant Coaches: Cody Saxton, Jeff McFerran, Pack Toler, Rip Lindsey, Shane Schurb, Stuardt Saxton
The Series: Jackson Academy leads 3-1.
Last Meeting: Hartfield Academy won 38-6 in 2022 regular season.
JACKSON ACADEMY'S KEYS TO VICTORY
On Offense: Don’t be one dimensional. Find ways to sustain long drives to own the time of possession, which will in turn limit the time Hartfield’s offense is on the field.
On Defense: Find a way to contain Reed Jesiolowski. A true bend but don’t break philosophy is key. The Hawks will move the ball, but keep them out of the end zone.
Limit mistakes/penalties: If history repeats itself, this will be a one-possession game. Too many penalties or turnovers could be the deciding factor.
HARTFIELD'S KEYS TO VICTORY
On Offense: Take what the defense gives you. While the Raiders focus on Reed, look for Cayman to have big plays open in the secondary.
On Defense: Pressure, pressure and more pressure. The Raiders are not overly explosive with downfield plays. The more pressure they put on Mathison to make him uncomfortable will be crucial. The secondary is all about clawing the football for interceptions.
Limit mistakes/penalties: If history repeats itself, this will be a one-possession game. Too many penalties or turnovers could be the deciding factor.
