Vikings advance to the North State Championship after defeating South Panola

Vicksburg, Miss.-Warren Central High School football team advances to the North State Championship after the Vikings defeated South Panola 21-3 on Friday.

“This feels good because we needed this,” senior Ronnie Blossom said. “We’re going to stand on business the whole way and get ready for next week.”

The Tigers got on the board first after a mixture of passing and running the football on their opening drive. They couldn’t find their way into the end zone so they settled on a 32-yard field goal to go up 3-0 with 6:22 left in the first quarter.

WC was forced to punt on their next drive but SP fumbled and the Vikings recovered the ball on the 50-yard line. Nash Morgan, Eric Collins Jr., and Aden Greer both picked up a first down as the first quarter came to an end. Collins got the Vikings inside the 5-yard line but a penalty pushed them to the six. Morgan then hit Maddox Lynch on a 6-yard touchdown that put WC up 7-3 after Jonah Artman’s extra points.

Shortly before halftime, the Viking defense made multiple stops as TK Qualls got two big hits in the backfield while Gavin Davenport and Larry Reynolds Jr. both batted down passes. The Tigers attempted a field goal before halftime but came up short as WC went into the locker room ahead 7-3.

Neither WC nor SP could get their offense going coming out of halftime. Blossom and Qualls both punished the Tigers’ running game with big hits. After a bad punt, South Panola had great field position but Roosevelt Harris Jr. intercepted a pass as the score remained 7-3 going into the final quarter.

Blossom continued to make successful plays as he earned a sack which forced a fumble that Landon Green recovered on the 29-yard line. Morgan hit Jadarius Miller for a 15-yard pass which set up a short touchdown run from Greer that gave WC a 14-3 lead with 6:11 left to play. 

The Tigers made their way down the field on their next drive but De’Kasei Crump knocked down a pass on fourth down to force a turnover. Collins sealed the victory with a 55-yard touchdown run that gave the Vikings the win.

WC will host Grenada next Friday in the North State Championship.