Mississippi
Vote for the Mississippi top offensive football player entering the 2024 MHSAA, MAIS season
Watch as Madison-Ridgeland Academy football wins season opener over Parklane Academy
Watch highlights from Madison-Ridgeland Academy’s first football game of the 2024 season, a 42-20 win over Parklane Academy Thursday night.
Week 1 of the 2024 MHSAA high school football season is approaching, and MAIS is entering its second week of games. In anticipation of this year, fans have voted on their best returning high school player at each position in Mississippi this season.
This week, you can choose your top offensive player in the state.
Vote for your choice of Mississippi’s top offensive player among 20 players. Vote now before the poll closes at 10 a.m. on Monday. Fans may vote in the poll below one time per hour per device. You can do the same for the top defensive player poll here.
Here are the 20 players in consideration:
Kendetryon Backstrom, Kemper County: Backstrom threw for 2,071 passing yards with 15 touchdowns on 11 completions. He also had 1,248 rushing yards with 14 touchdowns.
Jermarj Bell, Northside: The Central Arkansas commit had 1,775 all-purpose yards with 981 receiving yards on 56 receptions, 14 total touchdowns and two punt returns for scores.
Jeremiah Cole, Magee: Cole had 46 receptions with 1,012 receiving yards and 14 touchdowns last season, including 210 kick return yards.
Moses Cummings, Purvis: Cummings had 1,755 rushing yards with 20 touchdowns on 244 carries last season. He produced 100 yards or more rushing yards in none out 10 games played.
Caleb Cunningham, Choctaw County: The Alabama commit is the No. 1 prospect in Mississippi and the No. 2 wide receiver in the country. Last season, he set Choctaw’s season records for receptions with 48 and yards receiving with 1,138 and scored 14 touchdowns.
Akylin Dear, Quitman: Dear, the Alabama commit is the No. 3 prospect in the state and the No. 2 running back in the country.
Micah Jones, Madison Central: Jones, a Florida commit, is the No. 15 prospect in Mississippi and the No. 28 tight end nationally for the Class of 2025. Last season, Jones recorded 168 receiving yards with a touchdown and helped Madison Central go 8-5.
Tray Kinkle, Holly Springs: Kinkle, a three-star recruit, had 1,247 rushing yards with 12 touchdowns and 26 receptions for 452 yards with four touchdowns. Kinkle holds offers from Ole Miss, Florida State, Auburn and Florida.
TOP RETURNERS BY POSITION: QBs | RBs | WRs | OLs | ATH | DBs | LBs | DLs | K/P
Deuce Knight, George County: Knight, a Notre Dame commit, is the highest-rated quarterback in Mississippi’s 2025 class and No. 6 overall in the country. He passed for 1,420 yards with 15 touchdowns in seven games last season.
Anson Lewis, Oak Grove: Lewis is a four-star wideout and his offers include Ole Miss, Mississippi State and Missouri. Lewis has transferred to Oak Grove after spending the past two seasons at Columbia.
Xavier McDonald, Morton: McDonald, a four-star recruit and the No. 2 overall prospect in the state, had 56 receptions for 1,166 yards with 16 touchdowns. McDonald has offers from Ole Miss, Mississippi State, Florida State, Auburn and UCF.
Quincy Phillips Jr., Brandon: Phillips had 87 receptions for 1,027 yards with six touchdowns in 2023. His receptions broke the school’s season record held by NFL player Jonathan Mingo.
Royale Shelvy, Jefferson County: In 2023, Shelvy produced 1,098 receiving yards with 66 completions, 404 rushing yards with 47 carries, 17 total tackles, one interception and 20 total touchdowns.
Darrell Smith, Picayune: Smith had 1,087 rushing yards with 124 carries and 15 touchdowns, 194 receiving yards with three touchdowns and 14 tackles last season.
KaMario Taylor, Noxubee County: Taylor, a Mississippi State commit and the No. 11 recruit in the state, helped lead Noxubee County to the MHSAA 3A state title game. He threw for 3,282 yards with 45 touchdowns and rushed for 789 yards with 15 touchdowns.
Macaleb Taylor, Grenada: Taylor produced 1,825 rushing yards with 326 carries and 21 touchdowns while also having 204 receiving yards for five for five touchdowns.
Kenzy West, Hartfield Academy: West, a three-star recruit, helped lead Hartfield to a MAIS Class 6A state championship while recording 915 receiving yards with 12 touchdowns and 1,368 return yards. West also had 22 tackles with four interceptions.
George Wilcox, Leake Academy: The sophomore was second in MAIS in passing yards with 3,098 on 199 completions with 29 touchdowns, averaging 281 passing yards per game.
Gavin Wooley, Falkner: Wooley threw for 2,350 yards with 28 touchdowns on 131 completions. He also rushed for 457 yards with five touchdowns.
Case Thomas, Madison-Ridgeland Academy: Last season, Thomas produced 59 catches for 1,296 yards, which led MAIS, and recorded 17 touchdowns.
Michael Chavez covers high school sports, among others, for the Clarion Ledger. Email him at mchavez@gannett.com or reach out to him on X, formerly Twitter @MikeSChavez.
A Gulfport, Mississippi, police officer gave a hilarious response after someone accidentally texted him to get together to “smoke.”
The Gulfport Police Department shared the text exchange between a random person and one of the department’s officers who used his sense of humor when someone sent a message to the wrong person.
The text conversation began at about 10 p.m. on Friday with the initiator asking who he thought was a friend what they were up to.
“Chillin, hbu [how about you],” the officer wrote.
“Wanna smoke,” the random person asked.
The officer responded to the invitation, writing, “I don’t think I’m going to be able to smoke with you.”
The person responded back, “Bruh, we smoke all the time.”
The officer informed the person they likely had the wrong phone number, but the person persisted.
“Bruh, stop cappin [lying or joking],” the person wrote.
Rather than continue the exchange, the officer took a picture of himself holding his police badge and sent it to the person.
“No cap [lie or joke],” the officer wrote.
Along with sharing the screenshots of the text exchange, the department offered some advice to the public on Facebook.
“Pro tip: Before you send the text, double-check the number. Nothing like a wrong number text to really spice up someone’s day,” police wrote.
The post garnered some attention on social media, with one user writing, “Literally, I would’ve changed my number THAT MOMENT!!!”
Another user wrote, “The [way] I would have thrown my phone across the room when I got that picture! I would have been scared to pick it back up for the rest of the day! I’m second hand embarrassed for this person.”
Greg Wehner is a breaking news reporter for Fox News Digital.
Quitman four-star prospect Akylin Dear, the top running back in Mississippi, announced his commitment to Alabama football on Tuesday via social media.
Dear — the No. 1 running back in the Class of 2025 and No. 3 recruit in the state, according to the 247Sports Composite — posted on social media: “I mean who wouldn’t RTR.”
The 6-foot, 210-pound senior from Quitman announced his decommitment from Ole Miss on June 28 and kept his options to three schools: Alabama, Ole Miss and Mississippi State.
“You know Alabama is Running Back (University),” Dear told The Clarion Ledger. “They produce all the running backs .. . . The No. 1 thing is my family, and my family is all right; I know what’s going to be good for me. I know I’m gonna be there for the next three to four years.”
Dear joins recent Alabama commit Caleb Cunningham, who is the No. 1 recruit in Mississippi and No. 3 wide receiver in the 2025 class.
Dear was selected to The Clarion Ledger’s Dandy Dozen and is the first football player from Quitman to make the list.
MORE: Five-star wide receiver Caleb Cunningham commits to Alabama football, Kalen DeBoer
Michael Chavez covers high school sports, among others, for the Clarion Ledger. Email him at mchavez@gannett.com or reach out to him on X, formerly Twitter @MikeSChavez.
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