Veteran sportswriter and high school football expert Robert Wilson is doing the Mississippi Scoreboard predictions column each week during the high school football season on teams from Hinds, Madison, and Rankin County. Wilson had a 6-2 record (75 percent) last week in the first week of the season. He was 82 percent last season.
By Robert Wilson
Columbia High (0-0) at Hartfield Academy (0-0)
Hartfield senior defensive back-wide receiver-kick returner Bralan Womack – the 2024 Mississippi Gatorade Player Of the Year who verbally committed to Auburn last week – makes his debut for the two-time defending MAIS Class 6A state champions this season Friday in a MAIS-MHSAA matchup at Hartfield’s Hawk Field in Flowood.
Womack is rated the No. 2 player in Mississippi, the No. 1 safety and No. 12 player in the country in the Class of 2026 by 247 Sports. He chose Auburn over Florida, Texas A&M and defending national champion Ohio State last week. Womack has 34 Division I offers, including 13 from the SEC.
The 6-foot-1, 196-pound Womack had 39 tackles, 8 interceptions, 2 pass break ups, and 4 touchdowns, caught 54 passes for 1,045 yards and 13 TDs, had 5 punt returns for a 22.5-yard average and 2 TDs and had 3 kickoff returns for a 42.7-yard average and 1 TD last season as a junior. He was the first team all-purpose back selection on the 2024 Performance Therapy/Mississippi Scoreboard All Metro Jackson team.
Hartfield has six offensive and five defensive starters returning from last year’s state title team.
The biggest losses to graduation were 2024 wide receiver-defensive back-return specialist Kenzy West (Houston signee), and defensive linemen Reggie Vaughn (Arkansas signee), and London Simmons (Alabama signee). West was the 2024 Performance Therapy/Mississippi Scoreboard Metro Jackson Player of the Year and produced 1,568 yards and 25 touchdowns last season.
Another top player returning for Hartfield is senior running back-linebacker KD Catchings, a 6-2, 220-pounder who gained 1,065 yards, 8.4 yards per carry, and 15 TDs and had 37 tackles and 6 pass breakups last season as a junior. He has committed to Liberty and has 15 Division I offers. Catchings is rated No. 42 player in Mississippi in the Class of 2026 by 247 Sports.
Senior linebacker Coleman Williams is the leading returning tackler with 57 tackles, fourth on the team behind two SEC signees in Simmons and Vaughn and Cooper Howard.
Another top returning player is senior defensive back-wide receiver and South Alabama commitment Teryn Green, who had 43 tackles, 3 interceptions and 7 pass breakups and had 4 catches for 41 yards last season as a junior. Green received an invitation this week to the U.S. Army Bowl in December in Frisco, Texas.
Head coach Craig Bowman is starting his sixth season at Hartfield and has a 53-11 record, an 82.8 winning percentage, at Hartfield.
Columbia plays in the MHSAA Class 4A and is expected to be one of the contenders for the state championship in its class.
Columbia finished 8-4 last season and lost to eventual state champion Poplarville 21-20 in the second round of the state playoffs.
Former national championship and six time state champion coach Lance Pogue, now at Brandon, was Columbia’s last season for one year. Chip Bilderback replaced Pogue and was the previous head coach for six seasons at Columbia before leaving for Monroe, La., to join his wife, Missy, who was then head women’s basketball coach at University of Louisiana-Monroe. Missy took the job as Southern Miss’ head coach earlier this year and Chip returned to Columbia.
Bilderback won the Class 4A championship in 2021 and had a state runner-up finish in 2023. He had a 69-12 record at Columbia and an 85-20 overall record. He was at Perry Central before coming to Columbia.
Tra Lewis and Ashton Daniels – a pair of talented seniors who play running back and linebacker – lead Columbia, which has 12 returning starters. Lewis (5-10, 200 pounds) and Daniels (5-10, 210 pounds) were 1,000-yard rushers last season. Hartfield will need to slow them down in order to win this game.
Hartfield 28, Columbia 14
Madison Central (0-0) at Pearl (0-0)
Toby Collums – the 2022 Mississippi Scoreboard Metro Jackson Coach of the Year when he was at Northwest Rankin – begins his third season at Madison Central.
Madison Central came one game short of reaching the state championship game, losing to eventual champion Tupelo 21-3 in the semifinals. All three of the Jaguars’ losses came to teams in the state championship game (two to Tupelo and one to Brandon).
Madison Central is led by senior offensive lineman Marcus Johnson and junior linebacker Ronderius King.
Pearl senior quarterback Jack Durr makes his return after missing last season with ACL surgery. Durr had an outstanding sophomore season two years ago when he passed for 2,361 yards and 16 TDs and ran for 691 yards and 15 TDs.
Other top players for Pearl are running back Payton Parks and Derrick Alexander, offensive lineman Reed Taylor, cornerback Jayden Thomas, linebackers Trey McGriff and Nick Moore and defensive lineman Marcus Deer.
Madison Central 28, Pearl 24.
Germantown (0-0) at Northwest Rankin (0-0)
Germantown head coach Russell Mitchell begins his fourth season at the Madison County Class 7A school with 17 players back who started at least one game and 29 seniors on the roster in hopes to making a run deep into the playoffs the season.
Senior running back Lawson Branson is a member of the Performance Therapy/Mississippi Scoreboard Preseason Elite 11 Team.
Other top senior offensive players are quarterback King White, running back Ny Johnson, wide receiver Keyshawn Coleman, tight end Will Harris, and lineman Jeremy Matthews and junior tackle Everett Turnage.
Top senior defensive players are ends Jayden Gross and Dillion Travis, linebacker Parker McGehee, cornerback Aaron Ferrell and safety Mikey Johnson.
Keep an eye on sophomore cornerback Langston Brandon, Lawson’s younger brother, and sophomore kicker Nate Muzzi.
Northwest Rankin is led by junior wide receiver De’Shawn Dillion, senior running back Jermany Hayden, senior defensive back Brennan Williams, senior wide receiver Noah Williams, junior wide receiver Marco Stapleton, senior defensive back Mickell Smith, junior quarterback Gavin Phillipson, junior quarterback Jett White and offensive tackle-defensive end Rylon Williams.
Dillon is rated the No. 12 player in Mississippi and the No. 48 wide receiver in the country in the Class of 2027 by 247 Sports and has Division I offers from Ole Miss, Mississippi State, Alabama, Oklahoma, Tennessee, and Texas A&M.
The two Class 7A Metro Jackson teams have split the last two meetings, Northwest Rankin won 35-28 at home in 2023 and Germantown won 46-19 at home last season.
Germantown 28, Northwest Rankin 21.
Jackson Prep (0-1) at Parklane Academy (0-0)
Prep tries to bounce back from last week’s 48-13 loss to Tennessee power Battle Ground Academy with another tough road game against the defending MAIS Class 5A state champions.
Prep has not lost to Parklane since 1995 and has won 29 consecutive games in the series.
Parklane defeated Prep 6-0 in 1995, one of seven shutouts that season. Parklane won its first 10 games before losing to Jackson Academy 7-0 in the first round of the playoffs.
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 is led by offensive lineman and Army commitment Roc Baskin, tight end-wide receiver-long snapper and South Florida commit Kyle Rushing, offensive lineman Alston Davidson, defensive end Telvin Jefferson, wide receiver Davis Carruth – nephew of former Parklane, Alabama and NFL running back Paul Ott Carruth – and wide receiver Dooley Copeland.
Prep lost 36 seniors to graduation and has only three returning starters, running back Thomas Hewitt Oswalt, wide receiver Aiden Rowe and kicker-punter Eli Adams.
Parklane ends the long losing streak and hands Prep its second straight loss this season.
Parklane 21, Jackson Prep 7
Jefferson Davis County (0-0) at MRA (0-1)
Madison-Ridgeland Academy plays its second straight public school after losing to Tennessee Class 6A Ravenwood 28-24 last week in its opener.
Jefferson Davis County plays in the MHSAA Class 3A and has 14 returning starters which finished 7-5 and lost to eventual 3A state runner-up Noxubee County in the second round of the playoffs. Jefferson Davis won the 3A state title in 2017, 2019 and 2021 after consolidating Bassfield and Prentiss in 2017 and are considered a contender for the 3A state championship this year.
MAIS fans may remember when Jackson Prep played Bassfield when it had several Division I players in 2013 and 2014. Prep handed Bassfield its only loss in 2013 and Bassfield returned the favor in 2014.
MRA jumped out to a 17-0 lead on Ravenwood, but couldn’t hang on.
MRA senior quarterback Samuel Stockett completed 21 of 29 passes for 219 yards and senior wide receiver Case Thomas – a member of the Performance Therapy/Mississippi Scoreboard Preseason Metro Jackson Elite 11 Team – had eight catches for 109 yards.
MRA junior Jack Ridgway was named the team’s Defensive Player of the Week with seven tackles, a blocked punt and one interception return for 84 yards.
MRA is ranked No. 12 and Jefferson Davis County No. 47 in Mississippi by MaxPreps.
MRA bounces back with a win.
MRA 35, Jefferson Davis County 13
The Tupelo at Brandon preview and prediction was earlier this week.
In other games (winners in bold):
Brookhaven Academy (0-0) at Clinton Christian (0-0)
Callaway (0-0) at Forest Hill (0-0)
Canton (0-0) at Velma Jackson (0-0)
Cathedral (1-0) at St. Andrew’s (0-0)
Central Hinds (0-0) at Shaw (0-0)
Crystal Springs (0-0) at Jim Hill (0-0)
East Rankin (1-0) at Canton Academy (1-0)
Harrison Central (0-0) at Lanier (0-0), Hughes Field
Jackson Academy (0-0) at Oak Forest, La., (0-0)
Madison St. Joseph (0-1) at Copiah Academy (0-0)
Murrah (0-0) at Terry (0-0)
Pelahatchie (0-0) at Pisgah (0-0)
Port Gibson (0-0) at Raymond (0-0)
Provine (0-0) at Amite County (0-0)
Puckett (0-0) at Sebastopol (0-0)
Richland (0-0) at Florence (0-0)
Ridgeland (0-0) at Mendenhall (0-0)
Salem (0-0) at McLaurin (0-0)
St. Aloysius (0-0) at Tri-County Academy (0-0)
Sylva-Bay Academy (0-0) at Christ Covenant (1-0)
Warren Central (0-0) at Clinton (0-0)
