By Robert Wilson
There may not be another football team in Mississippi that deserves a week off more than Madison-Ridgeland Academy.
After playing possibly the most difficult seven game stretch in MAIS football history, the Patriots are off this week before playing another tough team next week when they host Parklane Academy, which won the MAIS Class 5A state championship last season and has won 14 games in a row, including six straight this season.
Not only did MRA play a very difficult schedule, the Patriots won six of the seven games, including Friday night’s 27-26 victory at Baton Rouge Catholic.
MRA’s schedule so far is tougher than 18 of the 25 schools in MHSAA Class 7A, according to MaxPreps.
MRA is ranked No. 2 behind defending MHSAA Class 5A state champion West Point before Friday’s games according to MaxPreps and could possibly move to the No. 1 spot after the Catholic win. Catholic came in ranked No. 4 in Louisiana. The Patriots are also ranked No. 108 in the country by MaxPreps.
Five of the seven schools that MRA played have a bigger enrollment grades nine through 12, including Collierville, which is the largest public school in Tennessee with 3,000 students. Only opponents Hartfield Academy and Jackson Academy are smaller than MRA. MRA has about 400 students 9-12.
“For us to be 6-1 is unbelievable,” said MRA coach Herbert Davis, who has won 252 games and six state championships (three at MRA, two at Brookhaven Academy and one at Pillow Academy) in 29 seasons as a head coach, including 118 wins 12 seasons at MRA. “I don’t think MRA or any other MAIS team has ever played a schedule like we have so far this year. for us to be 6-1. Hats off to our guys. They have played their hearts out. We are playing well together. We have found ways to win.”
MRA started the season playing host to one of the top teams in Tennessee, Class 6A public school Ravenwood High out of Brentwood, a suburb of Nashville, currently 6-0, ranked No. 6 in Tennessee and No. 123 in the country. Davis’ son Hayden is the offensive coordinator at Ravenwood.
After MRA led 14-0, Ravenwood rallied for a 28-24 victory.
MRA hasn’t lost since.
Consider this:
A 47-6 victory over MHSAA Class 3A Jefferson Davis County (the worst loss in school history, Prentiss and Bassfield consolidated and the new school started in 2017)
A 49-21 victory over two-time defending MAIS state champion Hartfield (Hartfield’s worst loss since a 42-7 decision to MRA in the 2021 state championship game)
A 63-37 victory over Tennessee 6A public school Collierville, Tenn., 63-37 (the most points scored on Colliersville since 2011)
A 49-21 victory over 2024 MAIS state runner-up Jackson Prep (Prep’s worst loss since a 50-20 decision to MRA in 2021)
A 35-24 victory over Jackson Academy (which has at least four players with Division I offers, including two Tennessee commitments and one North Carolina commitment and the No. 1 rated offensive tackle in the country in the Class of 2027).
And then Friday’s 27-26 victory over Catholic (state champions in Division I select three times in the past five years).
Catholic, an all boys school with more than 1,100 students grades 8-12, had won 55 games and lost only seven games entering this season.
Catholic’s defense was led by 6-foot-1, 205-pound senior safety and defending national champion Ohio State commitment Blaine Bradford, the No. 2 player in Louisiana, the No. 7 safety in the country and the No. 59 player in the country in the Class of 2026 by 247 Sports.
Catholic was led on offense were 6-2, 203-pound junior running back Jayden Miles, rated No. 11 player in Louisiana and No. 10 running back in the country in the Class of 2027 by 247 Sports with offers from Auburn, Florida, LSU, Oklahoma, Ole Miss, Texas A&M, Florida State, Houston, Miami, Oregon and Baylor.
“We’ve played against three running backs who made the NFL and Miles is the best one we’ve played against,” Davis said. “They had a big time safety and their defensive front was huge. They had some elite players.”
MRA hung with Catholic and led most of the game. Catholic led twice, 7-3 and 13-12. MRA led 12-7 at halftime and 20-13 entering the fourth quarter.
Catholic had an interception return for a touchdown to tie the game at 20-20 with 8 minutes, 47 seconds to play in the fourth quarter.
MRA responded with a 64-yard, 12 play drive and sophomore running back Colson O’Cain scored on a 13-yard run for a 27-20 MRA lead with 2:37 to play.
Catholic’s Miles burst up the middle on a fourth and 3 for a 53-yard TD run to pull Catholic to 27-26 with 1:43 to play.
After an offsides penalty, Catholic decided to go for two. MRA stopped Miles short of the end zone.
“We thought they would try to same play that the scored the touchdown on and (MRA defensive coordinator) Danny White called a great play and our guys stopped them.”
MRA then ran out the clock to secure the win.
The game was played in Catholic’s Memorial Stadium, which seats 21,500. There were an estimated 7,500 at the game, one the largest crowds MRA has ever played in front of.
MRA senior quarterback Samuel Stockett completed 21 of 38 passes for 202 yards and one TD, a 48-yarder to senior running back Michael McCrory to give MRA a 20-13 lead in the third quarter. O’Cain had two TDs, a 3-yarder in the second quarter and a 13-yarder in the fourth quarter. Senior wide receiver Case Thomas had nine catches for 85 yards. Senior Wade Hansford made two field goals in the first half, a 50-yarder (three yards short of the MRA record set by Hunter Kramer in 1997) and a 25-yarder.
Senior defensive back Evan Carr and junior linebacker Ty Childress led MRA with eight tackles each.
Miles finished with 187 yards on 14 carries and two TDs.
“I think our mindset as a team going Ito any game is to win,” said Stockett, who leads Mississippi with 1,941 passing yards, according to MaxPreps. “We came prepared to play and our defense really bowed up against a very talented offset and overall as as team we made the plays we needed to when it mattered most. This schedule has definitely been a good thing for us, continuing to learn how to win week in and week out.”
“My mindset going into the Catholic game was like every other game we have played – I was going to trust my work I put in and control what I can control,” said Thomas, who leads Mississippi with 841 receiving yards, according to MaxPreps. “It was fun playing against those guys because they definitely thought we were just some team from Mississippi that they would beat. But we all came knowing we could beat them. And they were not expecting what we had. This schedule definitely has helped us prepare for a state championship because we have faced battles along the way that we know now we can overcome them. Allowing us to have an advantage against some of the others.”
Now, MRA’s football players get a break, sort of.
“We are going to take off Monday and Friday, have Tuesday and Thursday morning and Wednesday afternoon practices,” Davis said. “It is definitely nice to get a break this week. We are going to get ready for the second half of the season, starting with Parklane.”
