Jackets Fall At Tupelo In Opening Round Of Playoffs

TUPELO – Starkville's season came to an end in the opening round of the Class 7A MHSAA state playoff with a 28-10 loss to Tupelo at Renasant Stadium.

The Golden Wave, the top seed from Region 1, erases a 10-7 halftime deficit with a 21-point second half effort to move on in the playoffs. The Jackets wrap up the first year under head coach John Carr at 6-5. SHS has made the state playoffs eight consecutive seasons dating back to the 2017 season.

SHS put the first points on the scoreboard with a 30-yard field goal from senior place kicker Jacori Gallegis with 3:32 in the first quarter. THS took its first lead of the night with a 30-yard rushing touchdown from Braylen Williams as the opening quarter came to a close.

The Jackets opened the second half with a lengthy 14-play, 81-yard drive that was capped off by a four-yard rushing touchdown by senior Torian Know with 7:12 left in the opening half. The touchdown was Knox's 10^th of the season to lead SHS in rushing TD's for the 2025 season.

An SHS drive in the third quarter was halted by a fourth down stop by the Golden Wave, which gave the home team momentum. THS answered after the stop with Williams' second touchdown run of the contest with a 12-yard run at the 3:36 mark of the third quarter.

The Golden Wave limited the Jacket offense the rest of the way and added a pair of fourth quarter touchdowns to pull away from the Black and Gold. Williams added a passing touchdown with an 11-yard pass to Jaeden Hill with 10:37 left in the game. THS's Kylan Bobo capped off the scoring with a 36-yard touchdown run with just under two minutes on the game clock.

The Jackets out-gained the Golden Wave, 347-341, including 233 passing yards. THS tallied 328 of its team total on the ground.

Junior quarterback Kingston Kohnson finished 19-37 passing on the night and added 40 yards on the ground. He finished his first season at SHS with nearly 500 yards rushing on the season and just over 2,500 yards passing. Johnson accounted for 25 touchdowns on the season and averaged 228 yards per game through the air.

Knox, playing his last game on the gridiron fore the Black and Gold, led SHS with 62 yards on 17 carries and hauled in four passes for 45 yards. Senior Tight End Philip Swann collected six passes for 70 yards in his final game at SHS.

Defensively, SHS was credited with 12 tackles for a loss, highlighted by junior Graham Kancock's three stops behind the line. Hancock finished with double digit tackles with 10. Joshua Wilson led the Jackets with 11 tackles.