High School Bulldogs have already clinched the MHSAA Division 7-3A championship thanks to their 40-7 dismantling of the Wesson High School Cobras last Friday night.

In the span of two weeks, the Jefferson County High School Tigers went from possible division title contenders to not having clinched a playoff berth yet.

Which makes Friday night’s game between Jefferson County and Franklin County at Louie H. Mullins Memorial Stadium on the Franklin County campus important. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m.

A win by Franklin County (6-3, 4-0) will allow the Bulldogs to run the table in the division. Even with a loss, they will still be the division’s No. 1 seed because they have already beaten Hazlehurst High School.

Franklin County head coach Anthony Hart said winning the division championship was “a big thing for us our first year.”

When asked if he thought the Bulldogs would be in this position in the first year of his second stint as their head coach, Hart said, “You never know how the year will turn out.”

However, if Jefferson County (5-4, 2-2) somehow pulls off the upset, the Tigers will clinch fourth place in the division and will be on the road when the playoffs start next week. But a loss throws another possible scenario up in the air.

“If Wilkinson County beats Wesson and we lose, Wilkinson County goes (as the No. 4 seed),” Jefferson County head coach James Herrington said.

The Wildcats would clinch a playoff berth even though the Tigers defeated the Wildcats three weeks ago.

“All three would finish with the same (division) record (at 2-3). We beat Wilkinson County and Wilkinson County beat Wesson. We deserve to go because we beat Wilkinson County. And Wilkinson County would say it deserves to go because it beat Wesson. Then it would go to a point swing,” Herrington said. “Bottom line, if we take care of business, it doesn’t matter whether Wilkinson County wins or loses. We control the fate in our hands.”.

Block at Montgomery

JONESVILLE — After impressive back-to-back home wins over Logansport and Northwood-Lena, the Block High School Bears will hit the road Friday night to take on the Montgomery High School Tigers in a key LHSAA District 3-1A game for both teams.

Kickoff at Montgomery, La., is set for 7 p.m. Block (3-5 overall) is currently tied for second place with LaSalle High School at 2-1 in the district standings while Montgomery (also 3-5 overall) is tied for fourth with Logansport at 1-2.

“We just can’t lose any more games. Every game from this point on is important,” Block head coach Benny Vault Jr. said. “We need to have another performance where we’re making progress.”

The Bears are coming off a 46-0 win over Northwood-Lena in which Raymond Plummer and Taylor Perron-Krause each had two rushing touchdowns, both Kendrick Curry and Dorian Bowman had a rushing touchdown, and the defense held the Gators to less than 30 yards of total offense.

The Tigers, on the other hand, will be looking to bounce back after losing at LaSalle 42-26. They are led by senior Chris Sykes, who plays quarterback, running back, and outside linebacker.

Wilkinson County at Wesson

WOODVILLE — The Wilkinson County High School Wildcats will look to finish with a flurry in MHSAA Division 7-3A, but the task will not be easy Friday night as they will hit the road to take on the Wesson High School Cobras.

Kickoff at Wesson will be at 7 p.m. Wilkinson County defeated Crystal Springs High School 20-14. The Wildcats were led in that game by senior running back Lamar Jackson, who finished with 203 yards rushing.

While Wilkinson County (3-7, 1-3) needs a win and possibly some help to earn a playoff berth, a win by Wesson (4-6, 2-2) will give the Cobras the division’s No. 3 seed and a first-round road playoff game next week.