Clinton upsets #3 ranked Starkville, 31-22
By Danny C. Davis
What a difference a year makes.
Last year, Starkville beat Clinton 60-20 on a shortened game with a running clock the whole second half. It was the third-most points the Arrows had given up in modern history.
But things are much different this year, with a healthy Arrow lineup. Clinton jumped to a 22 -0 first-half lead and never trailed, upsetting the highly favored Yellow Jackets, 31-22. It was only the Arrows’ fifth win over Starkville since the first meeting of the two teams in 1997 in the Class 5A playoffs.
With the win, CHS improved to 4-3, but – more importantly – to 1-0 in Region 2-7A. CHS will meet #1-ranked Tupelo at Tupelo on Friday night, October 25.
It was a big win for first-year head coach John Carr and his staff.
“Our guys really played hard, and I thought we gained a lot of momentum in our last game at Terry,” said Carr. “We really ran the football well, and our offensive line is beginning to gel. Our backs ran hard, and it was good to get (QB) Josef Walker back. We threw the football just enough to keep them honest and got some big first downs. We got in the flow of the game and were able to get ahead early. We got up two scores, and our defense was flying around making big plays and getting turnovers and tackled well.”
“This is the time of the year you want to be playing your best football. [I’m] so proud of these guys and how hard they have practiced and played the last two weeks. To start out the region 1-0 against a very good team like Starkville is really big.”
Clinton scored on their opening drive on an 11-play 67-yard drive, with senior running back Jakobe Williams scoring on a five-yard run with 7:33 left in the first quarter. Sophomore running back Aaric Beasley ran for a two-point conversion, and the Arrows had an early 8-0 lead.
Williams’ 4-yard run with 9:25 left in the half to score capped a 13-play 76-yard drive, and Brylon Spann’s kick made it 15-0.
But the Arrows were not finished in the first half. Senior quarterback Josef Walker ran 3 yards to end a 10-play 59-yard drive with 4:26 left in the half to put Clinton up 22-0 at the half.
Clinton outgained Starkville with 234 yards to 113 yards in the first half.
Much credit should be given to the Arrow defense that made many big-time stops in the first half.
Starkville’s high-powered offense scored 22 points in the second half, but Clinton stayed ahead in the second half. Brylon Spann’s 21-yard field goal late in the third made it 25-8.
But the dagger was Beasley’s 20-yard TD run with 4:12 left.
Starkville scored twice in the final period to pull within 31-22, but the Arrow offense sealed the win with only 1:30 remaining when Williams’ 11-yard run gave CHS a first down at the Yellow Jacket 37. CHS then ran the clock out for the big upset win.
Williams led Clinton rushing with 30 carries for 155 yards and two touchdowns. Bealey had 23 carries for 100 yards and a TD. Walker had 7 carries for 24 yards and a TD and completed 13 of 20 passes for 108 yards. Jaden Jordan was the leading receiver with six receptions for 40 yards.
Walker was back, after missing the end of the Grenada game and the entire game at Terry. He missed nine games in 2023 with an injury as a sophomore as the starting quarterback.
“First and foremost, I want to thank God for putting me back in a position to play,” said Walker. “We really did not throw the ball much tonight, but we didn’t have to. We have a great offensive line that pushed Jakobe and Eric, and they ran hard tonight. We have a great coaching staff, and we are playing with a lot of heart this year every game.”
Williams agreed.
“Our coaches get us ready, and we just follow what they tell us, and the game plan works – and then we get results like this against a good Starkville team. Give credit to the offensive line tonight. Without them, I would not have had all those yards tonight. We had a lot of success running to the outside tonight.”
A bright spot for the Arrow defense was freshman linebacker Adam Alexander, who had five solo tackles.
“Starkville is very hard to stop, but we got some stops tonight when we needed them,” said Arrow defensive coordinator Hammer Morgan. “Adam Alexander really made a lot of tackles for us tonight.”
Much credit should also be given to the improving offensive line play for the Arrows. Starters include tackles Tyboris Loftin and Graham Williams, guards Amaree Good and Terrell Elizenberry, center Jacob Jones, and tight end Phillip Burchfield.
“Our offensive line played well last game against Terry, and again tonight against Starkville,” said Arrow offensive line coach Tyler Peterson. “We have a couple guys back that have been out with injuries, and our sophomore tackles are young but playing well. I think we are finally beginning to gel up front, and we have two running backs that are really running hard.”
Maybe the biggest stat of the night was time of possession, where the Arrows doubled the Yellow Jackets. Clinton had the football 32 minutes 29 seconds, compared to Starkville’s possession time of the football of 15 minutes 21 seconds.
