By Robert Wilson
The last time Jackson Prep went undefeated, Billy Puckett was playing quarterback on one of the fifth-grade teams at Jackson Academy.
Puckett, now a senior quarterback at Prep, has led his team to a 10-0 record and is three wins away from another undefeated season.
And he keeps playing like he did last week, the Patriots will not only be undefeated they will be the MAIS Class 6A state champions.
The 6-foot-1, 185-pound Puckett completed 10 of 14 passes for 201 yards and three touchdowns and ran 11 times for 172 yards and two TDs and led Prep to a 42-17 conference victory over Madison-Ridgeland Academy Friday night on Senior Night at Prep’s Patriot Field in Flowood.
For his outstanding performance, Puckett has been named the Junction Deli/Mississippi Scoreboard Metro Jackson Football Player of the Week.
Puckett, one of 36 seniors recognized before the game, completed TD passes of 30 yards and 14 yards to senior wide receiver Gardner Young in the first seven minutes of the game for a 14-0 Prep lead. Puckett scrambled for a 48-yard TD with a minute to go before halftime for a 21-7 Prep lead.
He completed a 25-yard TD pass to junior tight end Aiden Rowe for a 35-17 lead with 37 seconds to play in the third quarter and ran for an 18-yard TD for a 42-17 lead with 4:57 to play in the game.
Prep improved to 5-0 in conference play and clinched the No. 1 seed and a first-round bye in the 6A state playoffs. The last time Prep won its first 10 games was in 2017 when Mississippi Hall of Fame member and former National Coach of the Year, Coach Ricky Black, led Prep to a 13-0 season and a state championship.
Puckett started playing quarterback in the third grade in the Madison tackle football league, played on one of JA’s fifth grade intramural teams and then moved to Prep in the sixth grade and started on the seventh-grade team. He started again in the seventh grade, was a backup on the ninth-grade team as an eighth grader, started as a ninth grade, and was a backup as a sophomore on the high school team. He is his second year of starting on the high school team.
Puckett – who has had several Division I schools show interest but none have offered a scholarship yet – has completed 69 percent of his passes for 1,981 yards, 24 TDs and only three interceptions and 530 rushing yards and 11 TDs this season.
He ranks third in touchdown passes to interceptions ratio, fourth in completion percentage, seventh in passing yards and TD passes in Mississippi, according to MaxPreps.
“Billy did a great job Friday with his reads, both running and passing,” third-year Prep coach Doug Goodwin said. “We didn’t throw it much, but he was accurate and productive, over 70 percent with three touchdowns. Billy has been a great leader for us all year. He’s run our offense very well and has been a tremendous asset to our team.”
Prep had to refocus after last week’s emotional, 51-45 victory over defending MAIS 6A state champion Hartfield in a rematch of last year’s state championship game when Hartfield shutout Prep 21-0, the first time Prep had been held scoreless since 2004.
But it didn’t take long to tell Prep was dailed in. On the first possession, Puckett hit Rowe for a 30-yard pass play down the middle of the field, and four plays later, he connected with Young for the first score.
This is the second time Puckett has earned the Metro Jackson Player of the Week this season.
He completed 22 of 30 passes for 231 yards and one TD and ran nine times for 34 yards and two TDs to lead Prep to a 30-14 victory over Copiah Academy in the season opener for both teams at Copiah in Gallman.
Puckett has offers from Division II Mississippi College, Division III Millsaps, Copiah-Lincoln Community College, East Central CC, Itawamba CC, Mississippi Gulf Coast CC, Northwest Mississippi CC, and a preferred walk-on offer from Division I Mississippi State.
Puckett completed 61.6 percent of his passes for 2,484 yards and 22 TDs with 5 interceptions and had 451 rushing yards and 10 TDs last season as a junior.
Puckett is the son of Amanda and Hastings Puckett. Amanda and Hastings both graduated from JA in 1995. Amanda ran track and cross country and was on the dance team. Hastings played basketball and helped the Raiders to two Overall Tournament championships as a junior and senior. He still has the single season scoring record. Hastings played one season at Division I UNC Wilmington then transferred to MSU and didn’t play basketball. Puckett has one brother, Peyton, who played football and baseball at Prep and made the PriorityOne Bank/Mississippi Scoreboard Metro Jackson football and baseball teams last season as a senior and is now a freshman at MSU. Puckett’s uncle, Rob Puckett, played basketball at JA and graduated in 2006.
Prep plays at Madison St. Joseph Friday night in a conference game and the last regular season game of the year.
Mississippi Scoreboard selects a football player from Hinds, Madison, or Rankin counties each week. Coaches can nominate a player by text or call to Robert Wilson at 601.506.2276.
PLAYERS OF THE WEEK
WEEK ONE: Samuel Stockett, MRA
WEEK TWO: Billy Puckett, Jackson Prep
WEEK THREE: James Farr, Clinton
WEEK FOUR: Tyshun Willis, Velma Jackson
WEEK FIVE: Josef Walker, Clinton
WEEK SIX: Caleb Unger, MRA
WEEK SEVEN: Pierce Ingram, St. Andrew’s
WEEK EIGHT: Justyce Williams, Murrah
WEEK NINE: Daniel Watkins, Northwest Rankin
WEEK TEN: John William Walker, St. Andrew’s
