Photo by Hays Collins
By Robert Wilson
Kenzy West wears No. 1 for Hartfield Academy. And Saturday night, West was the best player on the field.
The 6-foot, 180-pound senior wide receiver-defensive back was incredible, catching passes, running from the quarterback position, breaking up passes, making tackles and causing fumbles.
The University of Houston commitment put his team on his back, produced 165 yards and three touchdowns, scored the winning TD with one minute, five seconds to play and caused a fumble to clinch the win and led Hartfield to a heart-stopping, 19-14 victory over Jackson Prep for its second straight MAIS Class 6A state championship before an estimated 4,000 at Mississippi College’s Robinson-Hale Stadium in Clinton.
No. 3 seed Hartfield won three straight playoff games and finished 12-2 and avenged a 51-45 loss to Prep Oct. 18 at Hartfield. Prep’s win ended Hartfield’s 21-game winning streak, at that time the longest active winning streak in Mississippi. No. 1 seed Prep, trying to win its 27th state championship in school history and its first undefeated season since 2017, finished 12-1.
This was a rematch of last year’s state championship game when Hartfield defeated Prep 21-0 and held Prep scoreless for the first time since 2004.
Hartfield has now beaten Prep three of the last four meetings.
The game was tied at 7-7 going into the fourth quarter, but West finished a 56-yard, 13-play scoring drive with a 4-yard TD run from the quarterback position. He carried the ball nine times on the drive to give Hartfield a 13-7 lead with 10:44 to play.
After an interception by Prep senior defensive back Blount Blackledge, Prep drove 54 yards in eight plays, highlighted by a clutch throw by senior quarterback Billy Puckett and sure-handed catch by senior wide receiver and Air Force Academy commitment Major Quin on third and 11 for a first down at the Hartfield 4. Two plays later, Puckett ran around the right side for a 3-yard TD for a 14-13 Prep lead with 4:37 to play.
Photo by Hays Collins
But West’s heroics weren’t over. He made an outstanding catch on a pass from senior quarterback Cayman Tapper on the Hartfield sidelines for a 18-yard gain to the Prep 44 on third and 10, then made a dazzling catch and run for 29 yards to the Prep 15. After a face guarding penalty against Prep, West fought his way into the end zone for a 7-yard TD, dragging would be Prep tacklers with him, for an 19-14 lead with 1:05 to play to complete an 80-yard, eight play drive.
West’s heroics still weren’t over.
Prep got the ball back to try to have a game winning drive, but on second down, Puckett completed an 11-yard pass to Quin, and as he was fighting for yardage, West stripped him of the ball and Hartfield junior linebacker Coleman Williams picked up the loose ball at the Prep 35 and ran to the Prep 2 with 35 seconds to play. Hartfield ran out the clock.
West – rated No. 15 in Mississippi in the Class of 2025 by 247 Sports – had eight catches for 100 yards and ran 16 times for 65 yards and three TDs. In the regular season game against Prep, West accounted for 189 yards (186 receiving and 3 rushing) and five TDs. West caught 12 passes for 186 yards and two TDs and ran for three TDs.
West – who scored Hartfield’s first TD on a 5-yard run to complete a 90-yard, 16-play drive for a 7-0 lead in the first quarter – understandably showed signs of fatigue in the second half but kept making big plays. On one timeout late in the game, he laid down on the field near the huddle, trying to get some relief, but came back with a lot of energy and kept breaking tackles and gaining yards.
Hartfield coach Craig Bowman now has a 52-12 record in his fifth season at Hartfield, including a 25-2 record over the last two seasons and a 44-8 record since moving up to 6A four years ago. Bowman was named the PriorityOne Bank/Mississippi Scoreboard Metro Coach of the Year after leading the Hawks to a 14-0 record and their first state football title in school history last season.
“Kenzy has been unstoppable the past six weeks,” Bowman said. “He does it all. Kenzy scores from his receiver position and the quarterback position. We ask him to guard the other team’s best receiver. Kenzy is a kick returner and a punt returner. In my opinion, he is the best and most versatile player in our state. Kenzy loves his teammates and is willing to lay it on the line each game.”
Most would agree with Bowman on West’s versatility. He had 1,557 all-purpose yards and 25 total TDs this season. West had 828 receiving yards, 18 yards per catch, and 10 TDs, 280 rushing yards, 7 yards per carry, and 11 TDs, 143 kickoff return yards, 71.8 yards per kickoff return, and one TD, 256 punt return yards, 36.6 yards per punt return, and two TDs and completed his only pass for 40 yards. On defense, West had 13 tackles, all solos, one tackle for loss, three interceptions, six pass breakups, one fumble recovery for a TD.
Photo by Evan Farrell
“I am a little exhausted but my excitement about the victory makes it all worth it,” West said. “I am extremely happy for me, my teammates, and coaches. So many times, we were counted out, but we continued to work hard week after week and it paid off. We are back-to-back champions. My coaches and teammates trusted me to make some big plays, and I couldn’t let them down. I had to push my way through. Since this was my last high school game, I kept telling myself, ‘Kenzy, you got this,’ and at the end of the night we became back-to-back champions. Some did not believe that we would be back here but our coaches prepared us for this moment. This has been a great journey and I am grateful for it. I would like to thank my coaches, teammates, and fans.”
Hartfield’s defense gave up 51 points to Prep, 20 straight to end the game, in the first meeting, but played much better Saturday night. Senior defensive lineman and Alabama commitment London Simmons was one of those who kept Prep in check. Prep had 245 yards, 80 rushing.
“After back-to-back losses (to Prep and Madison-Ridgeland Academy) in the regular season, we made a commitment as a team that we have a five-week season of just linking up and executing,” said the 6-3, 290-pound Simmons, who had a monster game with six sacks, in last year’s state championship win over Prep and limited the Patriots to nine rushing yards. “We have been preaching execution on defense and knowing the last time we played them they put 51 points on us. It felt great to win this championship because it’s my last high school game.”
Puckett led Prep to a dramatic comeback against Hartfield in the regular season with 20 points in the fourth quarter. It was Hartfield which made the final charge Saturday night.
Prep coach Doug Goodwin was trying to win his second state championship in his third season at Prep.
He has won 268 games in his 30-year head coaching career, including a 34-6 record in his third season at Prep. He led Prep to a 12-1 record and the MAIS Class 6A state title in his first season at Prep two years ago. Goodwin brought the Patriots back from the most losses since the first year of the school in 1970 (an 8-5 record in 2022). He won 234 games in 27 seasons in Alabama, is a member of the Alabama Sports Hall of Fame and was the first football coach in Alabama to take three different schools to state championship games. Goodwin led Demopolis to an undefeated season and a state title and set a state record with 761 points in 2008. He also had four state runner-up finishes.
For the second straight year, Goodwin was denied another state title by Hartfield.
“It’s tough to beat a team twice,” Goodwin said. “We made too many mistakes on crucial downs. We committed many penalties on offense, some legit and some were not. We dropped some passes that we normally catch. Both occurred on crucial downs that prevented us from sustaining drives and putting more boards on the board. We missed too many tackles and just didn’t make the plays we needed to make on that last drive to win the game. On special teams, we were not as good as we’ve been for most of the year. Our guys played with great effort, and we had a chance to win the game. I’m proud of them for that.”
Prep had one of the largest senior classes in school history (36) and won every game except the last one.
Photo by Hays Collins
“I appreciate our players and coaches for their commitment to our program,” Goodwin said. “They put in a tremendous amount of time and effort. We had a great group of seniors. They accepted every challenge and lead our team in the right way. They had a great season. It was a tough way to it to end. It’s tough when you do things the right way but didn’t win the last one.”
Puckett completed 14 of 28 passes for 165 yards and one TD (a 56-yard pass to senior wide receiver and Pearl River Community College baseball commitment Gardner Young with 11 seconds to play in the second quarter for a 7-7 tie) and ran for 25 yards on 11 carries and one TD. He finished the season with 2,368 passing yards and 27 TDs and 621 rushing yards and 13 TDs.
“We played hard all night and maintained our focus for the most part,” Puckett said. “We struggled to convert third downs and also, we had too many penalties. They are a very talented team, and we knew that it wasn’t going to be easy to beat them. They just made a few more big plays than we did, ultimately giving them the win. I am proud of the way we played and carried ourselves throughout the game. It was a tremendous season, and we know that we have a lot to be proud of. I am also very thankful for every single moment of my seven years of football as a Jackson Prep Patriot. It has been a blessing to have the teammates and coaches I have had and bonded with during those years. I am proud to be a Jackson Prep Patriot.”
Prep’s leading tackler this season, senior linebacker and Arizona State baseball signee Tre Bryant, wasn’t at 100 percent, playing with a shoulder injury. He is scheduled to surgery this week. Bryant didn’t start but played the majority of the game.
“Despite losing, you are always blessed to play in a game like that with your whole community behind you cheering you on.” Bryant said. “Hartfield is an all-star team, but I had no doubt in my mind that we were going to take away the win and stay undefeated. Our team played with great effort and I’m grateful to be surrounded by such great people who care about the sport and want to win as much as me. I love this team and what they have done for me despite the outcome.”
