Starkville has gone 8-2 against Oxford recently and they'll look to pad the win column further on Thursday. The Yellowjackets will venture away from home to challenge the Chargers at 7:00 p.m. Starkville has given up an average of 26.9 points per game this season, but Thursday's game will give them a chance to turn things around.
Starkville is coming in fresh off a high-stakes matchup with another one of Mississippi's top teams: Madison Central, who was ranked 16th at the time (Starkville was ranked eighth). The Yellowjackets fell just short of the Jaguars by a score of 38-35 on Friday. It was the first time this season that the Yellowjackets let down their fans at home.
A'Braylen Jenkins
| 08/29/25 vs Oak Grove | 134 |
| 10/31/25 vs Madison Central | 86 |
| 10/17/25 vs Clinton | 76 |
| 10/10/25 @ Germantown | 61 |
| 10/24/25 vs Murrah | 40 |
Kingston Johnson put forth a good effort for the losing side as he rushed for 33 yards and three scores, and also threw for 220 yards on 12 of 37 attempts. 86 of Johnson's passing yards were hauled in by A'Braylen Jenkins.
While Starkville came up short, they sure didn't make it easy for Madison Central: they limited their QB to completion percentage of just 43.3%. That dominant aerial defense primarily came from four players: Kylin Boyd, Kennith Morgan, Joshua Wilson, and Graham Hancock, who each logged one passes deflected. Starkville wasn't nearly as limited: they posted one of 31.6%.
Special teams also deserves some recognition, posting 11 points in total. The biggest highlight from special teams (and perhaps the team as a whole) came courtesy of Wilson, who ran a punt back for a touchdown.
Meanwhile, Oxford came tearing into Thursday's matchup with four straight wins (a stretch where they outscored their opponents by an average of 7.8 points), and they left with even more momentum. They breezed past the Mustangs to the tune of 42-0.
Oxford's win came from a few key players Starkville will need to keep an eye on. One of the most notable was Demar Jamerson, who rushed for 16 yards and three touchdowns. The team also got some help courtesy of Jamarion Pegues, who rushed for 58 yards and one TD on only six carries.
The loss was their first at home , dropping their record down to 6-3. As for Oxford, their win bumped their record up to 8-1.
Starkville didn't have too much breathing room in their game against Oxford when the teams last played back in September of 2024, but they still walked away with a 14-9 victory. Will the Yellowjackets repeat their success, or do the Chargers have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.
