Jackson Prep falls short in state title game
Jackson Prep’s bid for an undefeated season and the program’s 23rd state title came up just short on Saturday night at Mississippi College, falling 19-14 to Hartfield Academy in the MAIS 6A title game for the second year in a row.
“It was a great effort from our team all throughout the game,” Jackson Prep Head Coach Doug Goodwin said. “We were consistent throughout the game on offense and I thought our defense played really well outside of a drive or two, but they just made a couple more plays.”
It was a defensive slugfest from start to finish in this one that was tied 7-7 at half, thanks to a 56-yard touchdown pass from Jackson Prep star quarterback Parker Puckett to receiver Gardner Young in the final seconds of the first half.
Both teams were shutout in the third quarter, but Hartfield Academy found the endzone to open the fourth quarter to take the lead. A missed extra point followed that touchdown, which opened the door for Jackson Prep to go down and score to take a 14-13 lead on a short rushing touchdown by Puckett.
From that point, Hartfield Academy put together a drive that drained a majority of the remaining time in the game, before punching it in to take a 19-14 lead with just over a minute remaining.
With no timeouts left and needing to go 75 yards, it would be too tall of a task for the Jackson Prep offense to answer, as Hartfield Academy forced a fumble to close out the game and end the Patriots’ hopes for a title.
Even with the loss, it was another strong season for the Jackson Prep football program. The Patriots went undefeated and were the MAIS 6A regular season champions, beating Hartfield Academy, MRA, rival Jackson Academy twice, and last year’s MHSAA 6A state champions in West Jones during their 2024 campaign.
“We’ve had a great season and our players have met every challenge that was put in front of them,” Goodwin said. “We had a real hard-working group that did a really good job for us and represented our school very well.”
The Patriots were led by 35 seniors this year that led this Jackson Prep program to an extremely successful stretch and won a state title in 2022.
“Our seniors were great examples and really set the tone for our team,” Goodwin said. “They did what it took everyday and showed up every day, they did all the things you need to do to have a great program, so I’m really proud of those guys.”