VHS stomps Forest Hill 48-12

VICKSBURG, Miss. (VDN) — Vicksburg High School improved to 2-0 after defeating Forest Hill 48-12 on Friday night. Running back Jermaine Gaines Jr. made sure the crowd knew his name after picking up nearly 200 rushing yards in the victory.

“We came out and did what we were supposed to do and we capitalized on their mistakes, so now we just have to keep going,” Gaines said.

VHS head coach Christopher Lacey praised his team’s effort as the Gators remained unbeaten.

“The kids played hard and gave maximum effort, so I’m proud of that,” Lacey said. “Football is a week-to-week game, so we’re going to expect a lot next week and keep it moving.”

The first quarter featured big plays but no scoring. Quarterback Jamikal Maxey opened with a 19-yard pass to Marquis Knight, followed by a 23-yard run from Gaines. Linebacker Wallys Curry set the tone defensively with several tackles.

Nick Carson added a 50-yard run, but Forest Hill intercepted a pass to halt the drive. Curry and Jaylen Smith made key stops late in the quarter to force a punt, which VHS blocked for strong field position. On the first play of the second quarter, Maxey connected with Thomas McKnight on a 16-yard touchdown.

The Patriots drove inside the five, but Corbin Walker and Deveyon Beard made tackles to force a turnover. On the next play, Gaines broke free for 71 yards to set up a 26-yard touchdown by Jaquez Jones. Abel Gonzalez added the extra point for a 13-0 lead. Moments later, a fake punt by Forest Hill gave the Gators the ball at the 30. Maxey threw a 30-yard touchdown to Daquan Warfied, and Nick Carson added a 2-point conversion for a 21-0 lead.

Forest Hill opened the second half with a kickoff return touchdown to make it 21-6. Gaines answered with a 61-yard touchdown run and a 2-point conversion to stretch the lead to 29-6. The Patriots cut it to 29-12 with a 15-yard touchdown pass, but VHS responded again. Jones scored on a 35-yard run before Knight hauled in a 65-yard touchdown from Maxey. Casey Brown added the extra point.

The offensive line(Darius Stamps, Karter Thomas, Jaydon Lee, Corey Wilkerson, and Shaun Archer Jr) stepped up big in the second half for VHS.

Cannon Jackson recovered a fumble in the fourth quarter, and the Gators sealed the win when Deonta Selvy Jr. threw an 18-yard touchdown pass to Jayden Woods.

The Gators will host Ridgeland next Friday.