By Robert Wilson
The long losing streak is over for Parklane Academy.
Defending MAIS Class 5A state champion Parklane had lost to Jackson Prep 31 consecutive times and hadn’t won in the series since 1995, but the Pioneers ended the streak Friday night at McComb.
Senior running back Tanner Kyzer had 217 yards on 29 carries and scored two touchdowns and the Parklane defense kept Prep scoreless until the final minute for a 18-7 victory in Parklane’s season opener.
Parklane – ranked No. 33 in Mississippi by MaxPreps – hadn’t beaten Prep since 1995 when the Pioneers won 6-0, one of their seven shutouts that season. Parklane – which won its 18th straight game under coach Charlie Newlon – held Prep to minus 13 rushing yards and intercepted two passes. Prep was without starting quarterback Wes Harris. Art Cleveland scored the only touchdown of the game. Parklane won its first 10 games that year before losing to Jackson Academy 7-0 in the first round of the playoffs.
Only one time in the past 20 years had Parklane gotten within three touchdowns of Prep (a 31-28 loss in double overtime at Parklane in 2019).
Prep – which lost 36 seniors to graduation and has only three returning starters and is ranked No.13 in Mississippi by MaxPreps – lost its second straight game on the road. The Patriots lost to Tennessee powerhouse Battle Ground Academy 48-13 in Memphis in their season opener. Prep lost its third consecutive game since it lost to Hartfield 17-14 in last year’s MAIS Class 6A state title game. It is the first three-game losing streak since the last game of the 1975 season and the first two games of the 1976 season. Prep has never lost four games in a row, dating back to the school first opened in 1970.
Parklane – led by offensive lineman and Army commitment Roc Baskin, offensive lineman Alston Davidson, and tight end and South Florida commitment Kyle Rushing on the front line – had first-half touchdowns Kyzar (a 9-yard run with 7 minutes, 30 seconds to play in the first quarter) and Davis Carruth – nephew of former Parklane, Alabama and NFL running back Paul Ott Carruth (a 3-yard run with four minutes to play in the second quarter) for a 12-0 halftime lead. Kyzar scored his second TD on a 14-yard run with 3:15 to play in the fourth quarter for an 18-0 lead.
Prep scored its only TD in the final minute when senior running back Thomas Hewitt Oswalt – one of the three returning starters along with wide receiver Aiden Rowe and kicker-punter Eli Adams – had a 6-yard run.
“The defense played well, bent but didn’t break,” said Parklane coach Ron Rushing, who is in his fifth seasons in McComb and won a state championship in 2014 at Natchez Cathedral. “We didn’t give up the big play. Dooda Jackson at corner played well. Telvin Jefferson and Paw Jackson had multiple pressures and sacks from the defensive line. Nic Young had an interception. Our offensive line blocked really well. We picked up their pressure all night. Tanner had a big night. He played behind Jax Toler last year and had limited carries. He is the ultimate teammate. He kept working hard until it was his time. Tanner has worked his tail off. Kids were confident and been looking forward to this game all off season. I was proud of their effort.”
“We didn’t talk about (the losing streak to Prep),” Kyzar said. “It was just another game. We thought it was going to run so we worked on our run game. We were successful because we have been working ever since we won the state championship last year. It’s all about working out in the offseason. Our defense played lights out. After the game our locker room was electric.”
Prep coach Doug Goodwin and his Patriots must look toward its first home game of the season next week against Lamar School from Meridian, which won its first two games by lopsided margins, 35-14 over South Choctaw, Ala., Academy and 32-0 over Wayne Academy.
“We played better (than last week),” said Goodwin, who has a 34-8 record (an 81 percent winning percentage), one state title and two state runner-up finishes in his fourth season at Prep, and won 234 games in 27 seasons in Alabama and is a member of the Alabama High School Athletic Association Hall of Fame. “We committed too many penalties and had too many turnovers to win.”
