Football Recap: Jaden Allen's Big Game Can't Quite Lead Brookhaven over Northwest Rankin

It was a proper cat-fight when Brookhaven challenged Northwest Rankin on Friday. The Panthers took a 28-20 hit to the loss column at the hands of the Cougars. The Panthers haven't had much luck with the Cougars recently, as the team has come up short the last five times they've met.

Timmothy Smith

Receiving Yards

09/26/25 vs Northwest Rankin	131
09/05/25 @ Franklin County	70
09/19/25 @ McComb	38
08/29/25 vs Lawrence County	18
09/12/25 vs Madison Central	16

Brookhaven's defeat came despite a true team effort from the offense with many players turning in solid performances. Perhaps the best among them was Jaden Allen, who rushed for 33 yards and one score, and also threw for 197 yards on only 13 passes. 131 of Allen's passing yards were hauled in by Timmothy Smith.

A big part of Northwest Rankin's victory came down to the chemistry between Gavin Phillipson and his top target De'Shawn Dillon. Phillipson threw for 249 yards and four touchdowns while completing 76.2% of his passes while Dillon picked up 196 receiving yards and a pair of TDs. Dillon's longest reception was for an incredible 79 yards.

Brookhaven suffered their first home loss, dropping their record down to 3-2. As for Northwest Rankin, they now have a winning record of 3-2.

Brookhaven will have a little extra prep time after the defeat as they won't be playing again for a while. They'll take on Laurel at 7:00 p.m. on the 10th. The Panthers will be up against the Golden Tornadoes' rather soft defense (which has allowed 32.6 points per game), so fans could be in store for a big offensive performance. As for Northwest Rankin, they will face off against Brandon at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. This will be the Cougars' first chance to prove their worth in the conference.