2008-09 MAXPREPS TOP 10 STORIES OF THE YEAR
Ranking: No. 6
What: The South Panola (Batesville, Miss.) Tigers had its nation-leading 89-game win streak snapped in perhaps the most painful way possible, the 5A state championship game, 26-20 in overtime to the Meridian Wildcats.
When: Dec. 5, 2008
Where: Jackson, Miss.
How: State Player of the Year Tyler Russell threw for 243 yards and Jacoby Eason made three key defensive plays down the stretch, including back-to-back sacks to end the game.
Why significant?: The streak was the third longest in history, trailing only De La Salle (Concord, Calif.) at 151 games and Independence (Charlotte, N.C.) at 109.
MaxPreps Stories of the Year: A panel of six MaxPreps national writers established the top 10 stories of the year, and voted them in order in terms of national interest, importance and possible future significance.
Friday: No. 5 – A Florida baseball pitcher strung together the four most dominating games back-to-back in prep history.
SOMETIMES, IT’S JUST someone else’s turn for a little glory.
And after five calendar years, a span that lasted 89 games, someone in the state of Mississippi other than the Tigers from South Panola (Batesville) had themselves a monumental day.
The players were Tyler Russell and Jacoby Eason and the team was the Meridian Wildcats, who won their first state title in 18 years with a 26-20 5A championship overtime win over South Panola, which had its national leading 89-game win streak snapped before 13,000 fans in Jackson, Miss.
Russell, a 6-foot-4, 200-pound senior quarterback headed to Mississippi State, completed 21 of 36 passes for 243 yards and a touchdown to help stop the Tigers’ five-year state-title run, avenging a pair of losses in the finals to boot.
S. Panola QB Renfroe was beside himself after streak ended.
File photo by Chris Evans
It was a sweet conclusion to a career for Russell, who celebrated his 18th birthday the day after the historic victory. The state’s Gatorade Player of the Year finished the season with 40 touchdown passes while completing 206 of 314 passes for 3,284 yards and just five interceptions.
The last time Meridian won a state title was 1990, the year Russell was born.
“You got to be a good to win 89 (straight) games,” Russell told reporters afterward. “But we knew we had a team that could beat them.
“It’s just unbelievable.”
Though Russell was unquestionably the offensive star, Meridian’s defensive standout and hero was Eason, who stopped star running back Nicholas Parker on fourth-and-one with 1:13 left in the fourth quarter.
Then, after Meridian junior James Barnett scored on a 2-yard touchdown run in overtime, Eason sacked David Renfroe on third and fourth down to end the game, setting off a wild celebration.
The last time South Panola lost was the 2002 state final game to Wayne County.
Coincidently, Meridian entered the game on a 12-game win streak, with its last loss coming to Wayne County.
After the game, South Panola coach Lance Pogue was disappointed but upbeat. Losing the win streak meant peanuts compared to losing in the state finals.
“We don't even talk about the streak," Pogue told reporters. “We just play to win, play for the championship, and that's what everybody plays for. Tonight, we just didn't make it happen. You play to win. I never think about the winning streak, I thought about winning this state championship. I hadn't even thought about any kind of pressure or anything.”
S. Panola RB Parker (4) should return for another big season.
File photo by Chris Evans
The Tigers were also at a disadvantage without star junior running back Parker being 100 percent. A gimpy ankle helped slow the fleet back to 10 carries for 25 yards in the first half. He finished with 103 yards on 24 carries.
The 6-2, 205-pound Parker is considered the 65th top recruit in the country from the class of 2010 by CBS recruiting expert Tom Lemming.
None of the Tigers made excuses after the game, instead showing class and giving credit to their opponent.
After all, it was their night.
“State's over now, our hats are off to them,” Renfroe said. “It’s sad to go out like this in my last game. It was tough. Overtime game, state championship game, can't get much tougher than that.”
E-mail Mitch Stephens at mstephens@maxpreps.com.
