Jackson Prep beats MRA to win district title
Many people from around the state had their eyes on the Jackson Prep-MRA matchup on Friday night, expecting one of the closest and most exciting games of the season so far.
Jackson Prep had other plans, cruising to a 42-17 statement win over MRA and securing the MAIS 1-6A district title and the one seed in the MAIS 6A playoffs.
“It feels really good to win the district title,” Jackson Prep Head Coach Doug Goodwin said. “Getting a bye and not having to play the first week of the playoffs is huge for us.”
Jackson Prep jumped on MRA early and often, scoring two quick touchdowns on passes from Parker Puckett to Gardner Young before MRA could even blink.
Both teams would trade touchdowns in the first half, giving Jackson Prep a 21-7 lead going into the halftime break.
From that point on, Jackson Prep continued to put their foot on the gas and never looked back, outscoring MRA 21-10 in the second half and securing the victory.
“I just told them to go finish the game and to not let up,” Goodwin said. “We responded really well in the second half.”
Jackson Prep Quarterback Parker Puckett was the star of the night for the Patriots, totalling five touchdowns on the game. He made an impact both in the running game and the passing game, scoring three touchdowns through the air and two on the ground.
“We planned to have him run a little bit more tonight, he can really run it,” Goodwin said. “We don’t like to run him a lot during the regular season, but he really made some plays tonight.”
The defense for Jackson Prep was also dominant in this one, holding a MRA offense that had been dynamic to this point in the season to 17 points on the night.
“Our defense played really well tonight, we put a lot of pressure on them,” Goodwin said. “They do a good job in the passing game and we put a lot of pressure on their quarterback.”
The importance of this win for Jackson Prep cannot be understated, as they secured the one-seed in the MAIS 6A playoffs, which give the Patriots a bye to the semifinals and will likely set up a matchup with rival Jackson Academy in that matchup.
As for MRA, they are still sitting in a good spot, clinching the two-seed in the MAIS 6A playoffs and will also get a first-round bye. The Patriots, however, will most likely play defending state champion Hartfield Academy in the semifinals, who took both Jackson Prep and MRA to the wire earlier in the regular season.
Jackson Prep will travel to take on St. Joe next week, while MRA will hosts PCS to round out the regular season for both teams.