A year ago, Kirk Academy and Greenville St. Joseph played one of the best state championship games in the history of the Midsouth Association of Independent Schools.
The Fighting Irish used an 80-yard run in the final two minutes and held on for a 6-0 win. Kirk had a chance on its final possession, but came within 2 ½ yards of potentially snatching the title away as time expired.
This season, the two teams meet again, this time with a berth in the Class AAA State Title game at stake. Kirk is a perfect 10-0 heading into the contest, while Greenville St. Joseph is 7-4.
Both teams bring potent running attacks behind the blocking from two of the biggest offensive lines in the MAIS. The Irish average more than 300 pounds per man compared to 240 pounds per man for the Raiders.
“They are big and physical up front on both sides of the football,” KA head coach Colin Boone said. “At quarterback, they have an athlete that extends plays with his legs. He has athletes at his disposal to get the football to and they have two outstanding running backs that pose problems for opposing defenses. They run the football hard and we are going to have to wrap up and tackle well. We have a challenge ahead of us.”
St. Joseph is led defensively at linebacker by freshman Julius McCullum (5-foot-9, 149 pounds), sophomore Jayden Williams (6-foot, 180 pounds) and senior Jacoby Watson (6-foot, 290 pounds).
“On the defensive side, they have a solid group of linebackers and defensive linemen,” Boone said. “In the secondary, they are very long and athletic. We can’t give them any turnovers on offense and we need to get off the field on third down on defense to have a chance.”
The Irish also present problems in trying to get running backs outside the defense, according to Boone.
“From a scheme standpoint, they do a good job of taking away plays on the perimeter,” he said. “They are good upfront; it’s difficult to run it up in there. Hopefully, it is strength-on-strength and we can break a few runs to keep the chains moving, keeping the ball away from them.”
Seniors Jaquavious Nash (5-foot-8, 275 pounds) and Javeon Byars (5-foot-9, 190 pounds) give the Irish a double threat running the football. Byars has carried the football 100 times for 544 yards and five touchdowns, while Byars is second on the team with 50 carries for 331 yards.
Junior Victor Baker (5-foot-10, 150 pounds), the son of head Coach John Baker, has been the starting quarterback each of his two varsity seasons. Baker is 139-of-228 for 1,854 yards and 21 touchdowns and just three interceptions this season.
The leading receiver is senior Jaden Easley with 27 catches for 492 yards and five touchdowns. Sophomore Jaleel Moore has 32 catches for 436 yards and six touchdowns.
Defensively, McCullum is the leading tackler with 97 tackles. Senior James Chow has 80 tackles.
Kirk cruised through the regular season, winning nine straight games and opened the Class AAA playoffs with a 35-16 win over North Delta last week. In 10 games, the Raiders have outscored their opponents by a combined score of 362-73 with the lone game that didn’t result in a running clock being a 17-14 win at the buzzer at Marshall.
Individually, senior Noah Jackson leads the way with 76 carries for 667 yards and 11 touchdowns, while junior Gage Vance has 58 carries for 643 yards and 11 touchdowns. Senior Holt Gober has 62 rushes for 448 yards and seven touchdowns and has also completed 35-of-61 passes for 716 yards and seven touchdowns.
For the second time in as many seasons, the Raiders will host the semifinals. Last year, Kirk won a 27-0 decision over Riverfield (La.).
“We are excited to be hosting the semifinals,” Boone concluded. “Hopefully, we can have a big crowd and play well.”
Kickoff is at 7 p.m. The winner faces the winner of the Marshall Academy vs. Riverfield (La.) Academy game next Thursday night at 7 p.m. at Jackson Academy.
