Jefferson County High School head coach James Herrington said his team has not played its best football yet this season.
The Tigers perhaps will need to be at their best Friday night to earn a win.

JCHS is set to the Hazlehurst High School Indians, the No. 1 team in all of MHSAA Class 3A, at 7 p.m. Friday for a pivotal Region 7-3A game for both teams.

Herrington said there a lot of things he liked about how his offense performed in a 48-34 win at Wesson last Friday night, but not so much when it comes to defense and special teams.

“Offensively, we had no turnovers and very few penalties. We played a clean football game,” coach Herrington said.
Coach Herrington, however, said his defense gave up too many big plays, and the special teams gave up a kick return for a touchdown.

“We have to do a better job of staying focused and being consistent,” Herrington said.

Herrington said the Indians are blessed with tremendous speed at the skill positions.

“They run the wing offense. … The guys they have at the wing position, you can’t miss them. The defense has to be in position to make the tackles,” Herrington said. “Defensively, they give up very few points. Every opportunity to score is going to be crucial.”

Herrington said it will take a lot of passion for his team to come out with a win Friday night.

“It’s going to be a ‘BYOG’ – Bring Your Own Guts kind of game. Playing an 8-0 ball club that went deep in the playoffs last year, they’re not going to give up that top spot,” he said. “It’s going to be senior night for our team. We’re playing the game that we’ve been looking for all year.”