LEAKE DEFEATS PILLOW 49-14 IN MAIS CLASS 5A PLAYOFFS , WINS NINTH STRAIGHT GAME
Nov 6, 2021
By Robert Wilson Photos by Jared Thomas
If Leake Academy plays like it did Friday night against Pillow Academy, the Rebels have a good shot of repeating as MAIS Class 5A state football champions.
Senior running back Canon Parks gained 210 yards and scored three touchdowns and passed for another TD scored 42 points in the first half and defeated Pillow 49-14 in the MAIS Class 5A quarterfinals at Leake.
Leake, which produced 379 rushing yards, improved to 10-1 and won its ninth straight game since a 27-13 loss to Class 6A Jackson Academy. The Rebels went 13-0 last season and haven’t lost a 5A game since a 25-0 decision to Heritage in the 2019 5A playoffs. Leake plays Copiah Academy next week in the semifinals at Leake. Pillow finished 6-6.
Parks scored on runs of 37, 10 and 3 yards and completed a 19-yard TD pass to Rhett Atkinson in the first half. Also, Riley Myers had a 41-yard interception return for a TD and Whitt Welch scored on a 25-yard TD as Leake jumped out to a 42-0 halftime lead.
Dylan Jones scored on a 14-yard run for a 49-0 lead before Pillow scored on Dayne Sanford’s 5-yard run and Nelson Hodges’ 3-yard run
Robert Wilson is a national award winning sportswriter, author, publisher and editor from Jackson, Miss. He won dozens of awards on the national, regional and state levels in his 23 years as a sportswriter for The Clarion-Ledger/Jackson Daily News, covering high school and college sports and writing a tennis column. Wilson also produced Victories in Metro Jackson, a Christian sports publication. He co-authored a book with Dr. Joe Haynes about the life of Dr. Haynes, who was the first black football official in the SEC and was an NFL official and a Mississippi educator for several decades. Wilson is well known among Mississippians for his ability to paint a picture of the subject he is writing about and not only about their ability, but about their personality as well. Wilson is a Jackson Wingfield High, Hinds Community College and Ole Miss graduate.
