NATCHEZ &045; Dudley Guice Jr. enrolled at Trinity Episcopal a tall, lanky freshman with a bit of confidence but quite shy.

He came in to the school after going to Natchez Middle in the eighth grade and Jefferson County Elementary upon completing the seventh grade. Once he arrived at Trinity, it took some coaxing to get him out of his shell, and coaches immediately saw the potential the kid could have with a couple years of hard work and perseverance.

Now at 6-3, 215 pounds and playing the biggest game of his life so far in today’s MPSA Class A championship, it’s Guice that looms large for the Saints and a Heidelberg defense.

Guice is the x-factor of sorts in an offense that can beat you in a number of ways. It’s just a matter of trying to contain everything, and not many teams in Class A can match up with Guice’s size.

&uot;If I play my A game, I expect to be double-teamed and expect to get the football,&uot; Guice said. &uot;But you live with it. I guess you’re doing a good job if you see a cover-2. But it opens up the run. We’ve got great running backs and a great quarterback, and we’re big up front.&uot;

Just Guice’s presence on the outside is enough to make opposing teams switch up. Not many teams have someone capable of matching up well, although Glenbrook’s Chris Willis was similar in size and was partly to blame in Guice having just four catches, three of which were for less than 10 yards.

Tallulah came with a double-team last week, but Guice had eight catches for 64 yards.

But the biggest result was what happened away from the Guice as the Saints moved the ball effectively on the ground.

&uot;I think the other night Tallulah ended up putting three having three guys on him,&uot; Trinity head coach David King said. &uot;Even when he doesn’t have the ball in his hands &045; any time you have a receiver getting double- or triple-coveraged, he’s doing his part by being out there. I think Dudley will draw some double-teams (today). That’s a credit to him, and we’ll still try to get him the football.&uot;

Guice so far has 50 catches on the year for 824 yards and 15 touchdowns in 13 games, and many of those games were so lopsided there was no need to throw to him. He fits into the offense well, and it’s a system that can move the ball in a number of ways or with running backs Gregory and Walt Ketchings and fullback Joey Wilson.

&uot;We’re looking forward to the opportunity to play a great Trinity team,&uot; Heidelberg head coach Tom Lewis said. &uot;They’ve got size, speed and are athletic. Rarely do you see in Class A a team with that much talent. It’s a super team, and they’re one of two undefeated teams left in the state. They’ve played two solid opponents in the postseason and rallied to win the last couple of playoff games.&uot;

It all starts with the offensive line, and the Saints are no exceptions. And if there’s more players covering Guice on the outside, there will be fewer men in the box to block.

&uot;The line has blocked great the last few weeks,&uot; Walt Ketchings said. &uot;If we block like that, I don’t think anybody can beat us. You can’t say enough about the line.&uot;

The Saints’ offense, however, won’t bear much resemblance to Heidelberg’s system when the two meet up today. The Rebels don’t do anything fancy, but they do things efficiently.

They’ve put points on the board at times this year, including five of their 11 wins with 40 or more points.

&uot;They’re a very, very basic offensive team,&uot; King said. &uot;They want to win with field position and defense. Judging by the scores of their last three games, they do a good job of that. They won’t do anything we haven’t seen. They’ve got two good running backs, and they’re very similar to Tallulah up front. They’re very big and physical up front.&uot;

The offense operates with Lewis’ son, Brooks, at quarterback and can be multiple when it can based on what the defense gives it. The Rebels logged 298 yards rushing last week in a 34-20 win over Briarfield in the North State championship.

It’s that formula that’s helped the Rebels win two state titles in the last three years, including last year’s 27-0 win over Prentiss Christian in the title game.

&uot;We’re probably about 50-50,&uot; Tom Lewis said. &uot;We run a little more than we pass and try to take advantage of what the defense gives us. When you play in a championship game, you wish for a lot of things. You wish players will play their best. We’ve had a great year, and we’ll try to do what we do best and try to stop what they do best.&uot;

Said quarterback Brooks Lewis: &uot;We do what the defense gives us. If they’ve got eight or nine guys in the box, we’ll throw it. Last year was a real good team, and it’s hard to compare two teams like that. We’ve had two good years, and I really couldn’t tell you which would be better.&uot;

Defense has been a key for the Rebels, and it presents an interesting matchup. The two teams may match up well size-wise in the trenches, but it’s a defense that has Trinity coaches definitely concerned.

&uot;They’re pretty big and remind me a lot of Tallulah,&uot; Walt Ketchings said. &uot;We just have to step up and play our game. They’re real disciplined and well-coached. If we

play our game, we’ll be all right.&uot;

Guice, meanwhile, will be taking note of what the defense will give the Saints. He’s one of 13 seniors on the squad and certainly doesn’t want to walk off the field a loser in his last game, nor do the other seniors.

&uot;It’s just something we have to accomplish,&uot; said Guice, who committed to Mississippi State earlier this season. &uot;People will be saying different things &045; SEC this. You just have to block that out. You just have to persevere.&uot;