Mississippi

Mississippi High School Football Rankings: Top 25 Teams — Oct. 13

Published

1 year ago

October 15, 2024

Mississippi High School Football Rankings: Top 25 Teams — Oct. 13

The Mississippi high school football rankings have updated after an exciting weekend of games in the Magnolia State.

Tupelo holds at No. 1 in the state after a 28-23 win over No. 3 Madison Central last week. Brandon, Starkville and Madison-Ridgeland also each picked up ranked wins.

The On3 Massey Ratings — which were officially used during the BCS era and have generated college high school sports team rankings since 1995 — rank sports teams by analyzing game outcomes, strength of schedule and margin of victory.

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Below are the updated top 25 teams in the Mississippi On3 Massey Ratings, as of Oct. 13.

Tupelo remained undefeated with in a win in one of the state’s biggest games of the weekend. The Golden Wave took down No. 3 Madison Central 28-23 in a Friday night thriller. The win over the Jaguars joins a resume that includes victories over Houston (Tenn.), No. 20 West Point and No. 23 Oxford. Up next for Tupelo is another ranked clash — this time on the road at No. 19 Germantown.

Brandon improved to 6-1 with a 45-10 win over No. 24 Petal. The Bulldogs have won three straight since falling to No. 18 Clinton in a 65-62 shootout in September. This Friday, Brandon will host No. 8 Oak Grove in one of the Mississippi games of the week.

Madison Central fell to 4-2 on the year after losing a 28-23 heartbreaker at top-ranked Tupelo. The Jaguars’ two losses have come to the No. 1 and No. 2 teams in the state, having lost to Brandon 21-7 in early September. They do have key wins against No. 21 Ocean Springs, No. 15 Gulfport, No. 16 Northwest Rankin and No. 14 Warren Central. This week, the Jags are huge favorites at home against Murrah.

Starkville hammered No. 19 Germantown 42-0 to move to 6-1 on the year. The Yellowjackets’ lone loss came on Sept. 20 in an electric 42-41 game against No. 9 Louisville. Starkville will close with a brutal stretch of teams — starting this week with No. 18 Clinton before games gainst No. 3 Madison Central and No. 1 Tupelo.

Grenada went into Lake Cormorant as 28-point favorites but just snuck out with the 27-21 win to improve to 7-1. The Chargers’ only loss came in week one to No. 8 Oak Grove. Since then, they have beaten the likes of No. 23 Oxford, No. 18 Clinton, Bartlett and DeSoto Central. Grenada will host Olive Branch this week.

No. 6 Jackson Prep is 8-0 after running away from Presbyterian Christian in a 56-10 win. The Patriots had been waiting to be tested all season until they went up against West Jones two weeks ago. Jackson passed the test, beating West Jones 42-7. It will get another test this week on the road at No. 11 Hartfield Academy before closing out the year against Madison-Ridgeland Academy.

A 44-35 upset victory over Hartfield at home moved Madison-Ridgeland to 6-1 and up to No. 7 in the state rankings. The Patriots lost to Pulaski (Ark.) in early September but have won every game this season against Mississippi opponents. They will play top-50 Jackson Academy this week before a huge showdown with No. 6 Jackson Prep on Oct. 25.

After dropping games in consecutive weeks to No. 10 Hattiesburg and No. 7 Madison-Ridgeland last month, Oak Grove has bounced back with wins against Laurel and No. 25 Meridian — beating the latter 45-30 over the weekend. The Warriors will look to keep the momentum going this Friday as they try for the road upset at No. 2 Brandon.

Louisville beat Kosciusko 38-7 last Friday, marking the Wildcats’ second win since losing to No. 22 Noxubee County on Sept. 27. Louisville does not play a ranked team for the remainder of the regular season and is at least a 35-point favorite in each matchup.

Hattiesburg was idle last weekend. The Tigers are 6-0 this season with wins against No. 24 Petal, Laurel, No. 8 Oak Grove, Biloxi, Sumrall and a Deuce Knight-led George County. Hattiesburg will be back in action this Friday against Forest Hill.

11. Hartfield Academy (-4)
12. South Panola
13. Picayune Memorial
14. Warren Central (+1)
15. Gulfport (+1)

16. Northwest Rankin (+3)
17. West Jones (+1)
18. Clinton (-1)
19. Germantown (-5)
20. West Point

21. Ocean Springs (+2)
22. Noxubee County (-1)
23. Oxford (+2)
24. Petal (-2)
25. Meridian (-1)

Dropped from rankings: N/A

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Mississippi

How Mississippi State’s Tomas Valincius dominated third straight SEC team vs Ole Miss

Published

18 hours ago

March 28, 2026

Press Room

How Mississippi State’s Tomas Valincius dominated third straight SEC team vs Ole Miss

OXFORD — Tomas Valincius struck out top Ole Miss baseball batter Tristan Bissetta looking on his last pitch of the game.

There was no emotion from the Mississippi State starting pitcher as he walked back to the dugout after Bissetta was the fourth straight Ole Miss batter to strike out.

It was another instance of Valincius, the left-handed Virginia transfer, showing a trait that’s made him such a dominant pitcher for the No. 4 Bulldogs. The longer Valincius pitches, the better he gets.

The sophomore pitched another five shutout innings as MSU (23-4, 5-2 SEC) took down No. 18 Ole Miss, 6-1, at Swayze Field on March 28 to win the series.

“It’s all mental,” Valincius said. “Just going out there and just kind of trusting yourself and all the work you put in throughout the week. And even when you don’t have your stuff, it’s still a war between every battle in every inning. It’s kind of like finding a way to do what you can do with what you got.”

The win clinched the Bulldogs’ ninth series against the Rebels (19-9, 3-5) in the last 10 meetings. Another win March 29 (3 p.m., SEC Network) would make Brian O’Connor the third straight first-year MSU coach to sweep Ole Miss.

Valincius (6-0) hasn’t allowed an earned run in 19 SEC innings and his season ERA dropped to 0.91.

Against the Rebels, one game after striking out a career-high 14 batters against Vanderbilt, Valincius recorded nine strikeouts with three hits, two walks and one hit by pitch in 90 pitches.

“He buckled down when runners were in scoring position,” O’Connor said. “He’s always best in his middle innings. You see him just rise his game up.”

Why Tomas Valincius could’ve done even better against Ole Miss

While the Ole Miss game was Valincius’ third SEC start without allowing an earned run, it was his shortest outing of the three. The other two against Arkansas and Vanderbilt both lasted seven innings.

Valincius stranded six Ole Miss batters on base in his five innings.

“Early on, I didn’t really feel like I had anything going,” Valincius said. “I was kind of just finding a way to win. That was kind of my whole approach throughout the whole game. I couldn’t really figure out the slider and fastball command. It wasn’t working a lot. I just found a way to win.”

Sam Sklar is the Mississippi State beat reporter for The Clarion Ledger. Email him at ssklar@usatodayco.com and follow him on X @sklarsam_.

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Mississippi

Mother, her 2 daughters among 5 killed in collision between train and van

Published

1 day ago

March 28, 2026

Press Room

Mother, her 2 daughters among 5 killed in collision between train and van

STONE COUNTY, Miss. (WLOX/Gray News) — Multiple people were killed in a crash between a train and a van on Friday afternoon in Mississippi.

Stone County Sheriff Todd Stewart said the crash happened around 1 p.m. on Pump Branch Road. First responders had to cut through the woods to get to the wreckage.

There were six people in the van at the time of the crash, Stewart said. Stone County Coroner Wayne Flurry confirmed five of them died in the crash.

Multiple people are dead after a crash between a train and a van in Mississippi. (WLOX)

The sixth person was airlifted to New Orleans.

The five victims were identified as 26-year-old Ryan C. Peterson, who was a corrections officer with the Harrison County Sheriff’s Department, 23-year-old Demarcus Perkins, 45-year-old Kristina Carver, and Carver’s two daughters, 22-year-old Emley Chamblee and 20-year-old Sarabeth Chamblee.

Nearby resident Pam Olson has been sounding the alarm on the Pump Branch Road railroad crossing for some time. She was tending to her garden with her husband when the sound of screeching brakes made them jolt.

“We heard it,” explained Olson. “My husband and I were in the yard working on our flowerbeds. I told my husband a train hit another vehicle. My husband ran up there and said, ‘Pam, it’s bad.’”

A recent report from the Stone County Enterprise outlines another wreck in the same spot, which resulted in the driver of a pickup truck being airlifted. Stewart also pointed out a fatal train accident in Stone County happened at the location in 2023, claiming the life of a Wiggins woman.

“This’d be the second incident in the last four to five weeks involving fatalities and the third incident in the last year, all involving fatalities,” explained Stewart. “To date, we’ve lost seven folks within the last year.”

The crossing does not have crossing arms or lights. Stone County District 1 Supervisor Jimmy Springs said he previously reached out to Mississippi Department of Transportation railroad engineers and was told crossing arms are on the way for two crossings, including the one at Pump Branch Road. However, it could take a year for them to be installed.

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CLASH Endurance triathlon begins on Mississippi Gulf Coast

Published

2 days ago

March 27, 2026

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CLASH Endurance triathlon begins on Mississippi Gulf Coast

GULFPORT, Miss. (WLOX) — The CLASH Endurance triathlon officially started along the Mississippi Gulf Coast.

Maya Reilly placed first in the collegiate female draft-legal division.

“I placed first, so I’m pretty stoked about that,” Reilly said.

Winning a triathlon means beating competitors from across the country and around the world in swimming, biking and running.

“Definitely a lot of hours goes into the sport, but the actual race was tough. It was like full gas, swim, bike, and run, so over an hour. And I’m excited to be able to be done and take home the win,” Reilly said.

Maya Reilly placed first in the collegiate female draft-legal division.(WLOX)

Athletes praise Gulf Coast hospitality

It’s CLASH Endurance’s first year on the Mississippi Gulf Coast, and athletes say the experience is just as memorable as the competition.

“I have had such a great time down here in the south. It’s, like, the nicest people I’ve ever met. The culture is amazing. The music’s great. The food’s great. Honestly, nothing but positive for me. It’s awesome,” said Annette Zavala of the UC Davis Triathlon Team.

“I really like this course. It was really cool to see them swim in the marina. The course was very accessible to view, which I really appreciated,” said Sophia Najera of the UC Davis Triathlon Team.

It’s CLASH Endurance’s first year on the Mississippi Gulf Coast, and athletes say the... — It’s CLASH Endurance’s first year on the Mississippi Gulf Coast, and athletes say the experience is just as memorable as the competition.(WLOX)

More than 28 countries and all 50 states are represented, bringing a boost to the coastal economy.

“All of the athletes who are visiting coastal Mississippi, they’re staying in the hotels, they’re visiting the restaurants, they’re shopping, and they’re not just staying for a night or two. Some of them are staying and playing,” said Blair Lahaye, CLASH Endurance vice president of communications.

Athletes say it’s the support from the crowd and each other that pushes them across the finish line.

“You might have the worst mindset out there, but just hearing someone believe in you, like, that’s sometimes all you need to move forward,” Zavala said.

“I could not have gone through half the races I did, half the trainings I did, without the support of my teammates. We’re really excited to come race tomorrow, and we were super glad to get to be able to cheer on our teammates today,” Najera said.