Mississippi High School Football “Elite” Top Ten – Final Poll
It’s hard to believe the 2014 Mississippi high school football season is over, but now it’s in the books. It seems just like yesterday we were in August, sweating up a storm.
Championship weekend on the campus of Mississippi State was nothing short of amazing (even the power outage was amazing).
We saw six great games with 12-fantastic teams and crowned six champions along the way, making 2014 another great year in Mississippi high school football.
We saw great teams, great players, great moments and bright spots for the future.
While you hate to see the season go, you can rest easy knowing spring practice is just around the corner and the 2015 season is only eight months away.
Let’s take a look at our final top-10 of 2014.
This week’s Elite – 10 poll:
1 – South Panola: Claimed another state championship and continues to show why they are the face of Mississippi high school football. Someone get them a bigger trophy case.
2 – Starkville: The Yellowjackets finished 13-1 and north state runner ups in 6A. Jaime Mitchell’s club had a fantastic year as they were number one in our poll every week, but the final week.
3 – Oak Grove: The Warriors came into the 2014 season off everyone’s radar and dang near pulled off a repeat as 6A champions. The Warriors took South Panola to overtime before eventually falling to the Tigers. Hats off to Nevill Barr and his program.
4 – Brandon: The Bulldogs finished 12-2 in 2014 and what a career senior quarterback Gardner Minshew had. The Bulldogs were a play or two from playing in their second state championship in three years. This senior class finishes their career’s 36-7 – one of the best runs in Brandon football history.
5 – Laurel: Many people, including me were high on Todd Breland’s Tornado’s before the season and this Saturday night they showed why as Keon Howard and his team defeated Oxford for the 5A Championship. Many of these players return next year so watch out for Laurel heading into 2015.
6 – Oxford: The Chargers had a fantastic year, again making it to the state championship. Johnny Hill’s club is still arguably the most talented in the state and will be a major player in 2015.
7 – Clinton: Judd Boswell’s club was a year ahead of schedule as they gave State Champion South Panola all they wanted in round two of the playoffs. Clinton could be preseason number one for 2015.
8- Noxubee County: Tyrone Shorter’s team is back in the top ten after a great showing this past Saturday to claim the 4A-Championship. The Tigers are loaded and return a ton of players for 2015, led by senior to be quarterback Timorrius Connor.
9 – Wayne County: The War Eagles again made a strong push in 5A, falling to Laurel in the South State Championship. Todd Mangum’s club has been the definition of consistency in terms of team success.
10 – Warren Central: Josh Morgan has re-established Warren Central as a premiere competitor in 6A and the future looks bright in Warren County. This team was undefeated until late in the year, where they hit a speed bump – losing three of their last four. Big things are expected of this program moving forward.
Final Yearly Predictions: 76-20