After the injuries Adams Christian endured during the jamboree, you could have heard a moan back in Natchez when Eric Perry went down with a knee injury Thursday night in Centreville.

But Perry refused to stay out.

There were too many players having to sit out already. Some of the starting halfbacks had to come out to take a breather.

And besides, you think Perry would tell the trainer, &uot;Yeah, I think I should sit out the Trinity game next week and let this heal.&uot;

Fat chance. He didn’t stay out long in the 10-2 win over the Tigers.

&uot;I’m all right,&uot; he said. &uot;I hyperextended it. I’ll be back for the Trinity game. That’s all I was worried about. Next week is the biggest game, and everybody is going to be pumped. We’re going to work hard all week.&uot;

Perry gave the Rebels some needed depth Thursday when he came back into the game later. He went out on a kickoff just before the end of the third quarter when he took a helmet to the right knee, the same one that was operated on earlier this year that caused him to miss baseball in the spring.

But Perry returned and got three carries in with under five minutes left in the game as the Rebels milked the clock to preserve the win.

&uot;It did look bad, didn’t it?&uot; Adams head coach Bobby Marks said. &uot;But he went back in the game. We got out of this without any serious injuries, other than cramps. Our backs ran out of juice. We’ve got to get the juice back in them.&uot;

It motivated Perry to get back in the game after he got checked out and realized the knee was only hyperextended. The Rebels go with three backs in that T formation, and more players started coming off just from leg cramps or exhaustion.

Perry finished with six carries for the game.

&uot;I figured I had to get back in there to help my team,&uot; Perry said. &uot;We were lacking in running backs. It was a big game, and we hadn’t beaten Centreville in several years. I had to get back in there and do what I could do.&uot;

The power game helped the Rebels pull off their first win over Centreville in several years. Assistant coach Ron Rushing said it’s been since 1994 that Adams Christian last beat Centreville, and other coaches recalled that before then even the best AC teams could always count on having a tough time with the Tigers.

&uot;It’s hard to come down here and beat them,&uot; linebacker David Alton New said. &uot;It’s like we’ve pulled together as a team. It’s not just one person. We got some people hurt, but the young people are starting to step up.&uot;

REBUILDING &045; There’s not a starter back on the offensive side of the ball this fall for the Tigers, who were senior-dominated last fall in their run to the state championship game. Among them was Jennings Field, who first started at quarterback as a freshman.

The offense struggled against an improved Adams Christian defense with three fumbles and an interception, but the defense played well at times.

It was a rough first game out for longtime head coach Bill Hurst. But don’t count the team out for the rest of the season.

&uot;The defense played fair,&uot; Hurst said. &uot;They didn’t play good. They’re not very good. We tried a little bit on defense. The offense, I don’t think we even got an effort. We had three dropped passes. Every one of them was catchable.&uot;

The defensive front, though, had troubles at times with

Adams Christian’s line as the Rebels ran the ball 65 times for the game and gained 230 yards. Although mistakes cost the Rebels twice in what could have been touchdowns, the Rebels controlled the ball for a good portion of the game.

The scoring drive in the first quarter went 66 yards. Other drives took up both time and yards.

&uot;Our offensive line did a great job,&uot; Marks said. &uot;They were pushing them off the ball and did great.&uot;

Said Perry: &uot;Our line definitely helped. They’ve been working hard and pushing sleds every day. They sit over there and do nothing but push sleds for 20 minutes. If it’s not for them, we wouldn’t have gotten anything.&uot;

HAPPY NIGHT &045; No one is starting to light fireworks just yet, but there were positive things to build on with Natchez High Friday night at its jamboree.

The Bulldogs’ six touchdowns against Callaway sent players on the sideline into a frenzy in the 36-12 win. They followed that up with an 18-18 tie against Wilkinson County in the final workout.

The offense got solid support from the line, solid efforts from Latarus Frazier and Brandon Lewis in the backfield and passing connections from Jason Bruce to 6-5 receivers Dekeedrian Jackson and Calvin Hall.

&uot;We were pleased with some things we saw,&uot; NHS head coach Lance Reed said. &uot;There were some things we were trying to execute. That’s what jamborees are for &045; see what you’re working on in practice and see if it’s any good. We saw some things good and saw some things not so good. I think (the line) did some things pretty well at times. We still feel like we have tons of ways to go.&uot;

The offense was definitely the bright spot, but Reed and his staff have much more emphasis on defense and the unit’s ability to stop the run. In the win over Callaway, the Chargers seldom went to the ground and virtually passed every down.

In the second game, the Wildcats went with more of a balanced attack and had success at times running the ball. The Bulldogs may face more of that this week when they visit Port Gibson.

&uot;Up front, we felt like we found some kids who can help us,&uot; Reed said. &uot;We felt like we did better &045; I can’t say (we did) well. That’s kind of our emphasis right now on defense &045; being able to stop the run. We’re still improving at that. We’ve got a big week ahead. Right now Port Gibson is on our minds, and we’ll have our hands full.&uot;

A NIGHTMARE &045; Aside from the 49-0 defeat handed to the WCCA Rams Friday night, things were much worse. Three offensive linemen were shaken up, cornerback Matt Boykin had a scare and linebacker Chris Gann had to be carted off to the hospital due to dehyrdration.

Now is not a good time to remind everyone that WCCA has only 20 players.

&uot;It was a nightmare,&uot; Rams head coach Paul Hayles said. &uot;I talked to (Gann’s) doctor last night and him (Saturday) morning. Everything is good. At halftime he went to get up and said, ‘I’m tingling.’ Then he got this far-away look. He went to fall, and we caught him. It was a scary moment. But the doctor said once he got there he was ready to come back.&uot;

Hayles said Boykin was dazed on one play, and the Eagles exploited that for a touchdown. He came off but didn’t have any distortion of the pupils that would have indicated a concussion.

Other reports included Eli Ashley had to get stitches in his chin and Kyle Carter injured his hand but went back in. Hunter Holder and Wayne Covey also had to come out.

OLD FACES &045; Callaway’s coaching staff had two assistants familiar with the Miss-Lou and Southwest Mississippi.

Bennie Tillman spent two years as an assistant at Natchez High under former NHS head coach James Denson. George Jones &045; a Callaway graduate &045; was a productive wide receiver at Alcorn and finished his last season in 2002 as the team’s most productive receiver with 16.4 yards per catch.