Clinton High School football drops defensive battle to Petal

By Charlie Rook

Clinton High School football lost to Petal by a score of 20-3 on Friday, September 27, in the first-ever matchup between the two schools, dropping Clinton’s record to 3-2. The week before, the Arrows defeated Pearl in an offensive shootout 27-20, on homecoming night, keeping their undefeated record at home.

Going back to the Pearl game on September 20, CHS Head Football Coach Hamer Morgan says he was thrilled with the team’s fight, as well as the game plan they had going in.

“Our kids really had a good week of preparation, and the coaches did a great job of game planning,” said Morgan. “I think that performance showed the resiliency of our kids; they stayed together and fought for the full game, and I’m really proud of them!”

The Pearl contest wasn’t an ordinary game for the Arrows, either, as this was their annual homecoming game, making Morgan even happier with the performance and securing the win.
“Homecoming wins are hard, because there are a lot of things going on; but, again I thought our kids did a great job of staying focused throughout the week.”

The Arrows however had to quickly turn their attention to the following week, an away showdown against Petal.

Offensively, the team struggled throughout the game, and, despite a strong showing from the defense, the Arrows couldn’t get the job done. Morgan attributed the loss to a great performance from Petal, as well as some mental mistakes on Clinton’s side of the field.

“Hats off to Petal, they’re a very talented and well-coached team. We just never got into any rhythm offensively, and Petal had something to do with that,” said Morgan. “We missed some assignments and had a few pre-snap penalties that got us off schedule and behind the chains.”

As many struggles as there were offensively for the Arrows, the defense played a very strong game. Clinton entered the locker room in a 3-3 tie with Petal, but it was two third quarter touchdowns from Petal that put the game out of reach for the Arrows.

Morgan, however, had nothing but positives to speak for the defense.

“Our defense played great, made big play after big play, and they made several huge stops when their backs were against the wall most of the night,” said Morgan. “They really gave us a chance until the end, and I’m really proud of their effort and execution.”

Despite the loss, the team grabbed some key takeaways as they enter the most important part of their schedule, with large playoff implications.

“We’ve played a really tough non-region schedule to help us get prepared for region play,” said Morgan. “Brandon and Petal are two great defenses that I think helped us learn some things about ourselves that will make us better going forward.”

Clinton did not play on Friday, October 3, as they entered their bye week, giving the team a chance to recover and make adjustments for the next half of their season.

“I think the bye week hit at a great time. It gives us some time to get some guys healthy that have been playing banged up, and mentally we will work on ourselves a little, while also getting ready for the region stretch.”

After the bye week, Clinton will enter the regional part of their schedule, with games against the likes of Starkville, Oxford, Germantown and Madison Central. The Arrows will need to secure a couple of victories for a chance at the playoffs. Still searching for their first away win, the team will spend back-to-back weeks on the road with games against Murrah High School, located in Jackson, on October 10, and then head over to Starkville on October 17 to play in a place they haven’t won in twenty-five years.