You didn’t have to witness Friday night’s WCCA-Trinity Episcopal showdown to realize what’s going to happen now.

Playoffs start Friday in MPSA Class A, and don’t hold your breath if you’re a big basketball fan of the two schools.

The Saints and Rams may end up making a bigger splash in the postseason than in last year’s disappointing endings. The Rams got into the playoffs for the first time 12 years and lost at Glenbrook in the first round, and the Saints ran into a plenty more physical team in Prentiss Christian in the South State championship.

Both squads have most of their team back from a year ago, and this time they’re hoping for better results. The Saints, ranked No. 1 in Class A, host Deer Creek on Friday, while the Rams travel to Tallulah.

&uot;We’ve got to play hard because everybody is out to beat us,&uot; Trinity senior linebacker Ivan Nastally said after Trinity’s 33-14 win Friday. &uot;This could have been our last game ever, and everybody stepped up. We’ve been working for three years, and now it’s something to prove to ourselves. This is the year to do it.&uot;

&uot;Being No. 1 in the state, you’ve got to come out and play every play,&uot; senior Walt Ketchings said. &uot;You’ve got a bulls-eye on your back.&uot;

The Saints made their best pitch for going deep in the playoffs Friday night against a good WCCA team. With a team that lost just one starter from last season and filled it when Joey Wilson transferred back from Vidalia, the Saints are a favorite to get to the title game along with Heidelberg and Wayne Academy.

The Rams came in ranked No. 4 in the state, but the Saints were able to control the game and put it away at the start of the second half.

&uot;Coach (Matt) Mason told them before the game, ‘If we lose this one, it could be your last game to play on this field,’&uot; Trinity head coach David King said after his team’s 33-14 win Friday. &uot;They did what seniors do in clutch time. It’s what we preach all the time &045; big players make big plays in big games.&uot;

The Rams get into the playoffs for the second straight year and face a tough Tallulah squad that emerged atop the standings in District 5-A with a 45-28 win over Briarfield Friday night.

The loss knocked Briarfield in a three-way tie for second with Deer Creek and Sharkey-Issaquena, and Deer Creek got it on point spread with Briarfield getting a wild card and S-I staying home.

The Rams, like Trinity, are a better team this time around after losing in the first round last year.

&uot;We feel better about our opportunity because we’re experienced,&uot; WCCA head coach Paul Hayles said. &uot;Last year everything was brand new to us.&uot;

PLAYOFF UPDATES &045; Cathedral took a big step toward making the playoffs with its win Friday over Salem, but leave it to Bogue Chitto to shake things up. The Bobcats upended Mount Olive, 32-21, to move into sole possession of second place in Region 4-1A.

That sets up a showdown Friday at Bogue Chitto when the Green Wave pay a visit. A Cathedral win would create a three-way tie for second place, and the Green Wave would need a win by nine or more points to come out of the tie-breaker in second place if that’s how the season ends.

Week 11 action includes St. Aloysius at Cathedral, Bogue Chitto at Enterprise and Mount Olive at Dexter.

In 7-3A, it’s a mad scramble for the last two playoff spots with Jefferson County, Wilkinson County, Amite County and North Pike all sitting at 2-3. Something will give Friday when Amite County plays at North Pike, and should Jefferson win over Port Gibson and Wilkinson over region champ Franklin County win you’ll have to resort to the tie-breaker system.

By the tie-breaker system, Wilkinson County would be No. 3, Amite No. 4 and Jefferson County gets the squeeze. However, a North Pike win would knock out Wilkinson since the Wildcats lost to both North Pike and Jefferson and put the Tigers in as the No. 3 seed.

MIA &045; Teams are different animals without their leaders, both emotionally and physically.

It was obvious in Adams County Christian School’s 28-0 loss to Parklane Friday. The Rebels were without their feature running back in senior Luke Ogden, who missed Friday’s game with a pulled right hamstring.

In his void, ACCS managed nine yards on 22 rushing attempts, as the Pioneers force AC to be one-dimensional in its passing attack with a big lead.

&uot;(Ogden has) played with injuries throughout the year, but this was his first game not to dress out,&uot; Rebels head coach Keith Walters said. &uot;We need to play well (next Friday against Silliman) to have a good chance in the playoffs. We’re struggling offensively. We need a good showing.&uot;

You can’t fault AC for being stubborn. Despite, Ogden in street clothes on the sideline, the Rebels tried to run the ball early on, however without too much production.

Parklane was able to wear down AC in the second half with its tremendous size &045; the Pioneer defensive front went 6-4, 6-5, 6-3 and 6-2 &045; and capitalize on a short field in its scoring drives.

BIG PLAYS &045; Last year Trinity used the big play to set up a deciding score in its 14-7 win over WCCA, but on Friday the Saints came with the big play twice to either score or set up one.

With the Rams holding a 7-6 lead courtesy of a Travis Allen pick returned for a score, Ryan Rachal hit Dudley Guice Jr. on a 41-yard pass to get down to the WCCA 10. Two plays later Stevan Ridley barreled in for a score for a 14-7 lead.

The biggest, however, came when Rachal hit Gregory Ketchings on a little screen pass two drives later. The pass went to the left, and Ketchings ran to the sideline before breaking away from three defenders for an 87-yard touchdown for a 21-7 lead with 3:53 left in the second quarter.