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WOODVILLE — Wilkinson County Christian Academy will make a five-hour drive from Woodville to Marianna, Arkansas to take on Lee (Ark.) Academy in the semifinals of the 2024 MAIS 8-Man Class 1A State Playoffs.

Kickoff between District 3-1A champion and No. 3 seed WCCA (8-4) and District 1-1A champion and No. 2 seed Lee Academy (6-4) is scheduled for 7 p.m. The Rams defeated No. 6 seed Calhoun Academy 62-44 last Friday night while the Cougars took care of No. 7 seed Riverdale Academy 64-22 last Friday night in quarterfinal-round action.

Rams head coach Randy Holloway said late Wednesday morning that he was watching the rain fall at WCCA — which he hopes does not put a damper on things as the Rams prepare for the Cougars in practice this week.

As for practice itself, Holloway said that the Rams are working on their run, which was pivotal in their win over Calhoun Academy last week. They had over 400 total rushing yards and seven of their nine touchdowns were on the ground.

“We’ve got to establish our run game. Once we do that, the rest of the offense will feed off that, such as the play-action pass,” Holloway said.

As for what concerns Holloway the most about Lee Academy, he said, “On offense, they’re big across the front. More run than pass on offense. They don’t turn the ball over. They don’t make many mistakes.  On defense, they run to the ball well. Very athletic on defense.”

When the Cougars have the ball on offense, there are two players the Rams’ defense will have to contain.

“Their quarterback, No. 10. They’ve got a running back, No. 1, we have to slow down,” Holloway said.

When asked who will need to have a big game for the Rams to come out victorious on the road and advance to the state championship game, Holloway said, “Our defense is going to have to get stops. Win third down and go from there. We have to win with defense. Defense wins championships. Our quarterback, Jacob Sessions, has been tremendous all year. He’s a dual-threat quarterback. He can beat you with his legs and his arm. Our offensive line has just got to continue to dominate the line of scrimmage like they’ve done all year.”