There would be no football game upset for the Ruleville Central High Tigers this time around.
Suffering a 35-0 loss to visiting Choctaw County of Ackerman in last Friday’s second round 3A playoff game, the upstart Tigers saw their season end with a 5-7 record.
The now 10-2 Chargers will move on to round three of the playoffs against undefeated and top-ranked North Panola High of Sardis.
Despite the loss, first year Head Coach Mario Lane was upbeat about the future.
“We grew this season, we got better as the year wore on, and tasted some success as a result of it,” he said. “We also found out what we need to focus on to get better next year. We have some real bright spots coming back next season.”
In last Friday’s loss to the Chargers, the Tigers dug an early hole they could not climb out of as a fumbled opening kickoff led to a quick Choctaw County touchdown.
Scoring chances were then squandered with a pair of pass interceptions within the red zone.
Despite only being down by a 14-0 score at halftime, the Tigers were ultimately unable to get untracked and maintain the offensive momentum needed to score points.
There were 16 senior players wearing their Ruleville Central uniforms for the final time last Friday night.
This large group includes Byron Amison, Travion Ayers, Nathan Bells, Jamal Carr, Samuel Clark, Jamal Collins, Christopher Jenkins, Randarious Maxon, Darrin McKenzie, Antonio McKnight, Jaquerious Patt, Quinn Perkins, Jabari Reed, Casey Washington, Tyler Wilson, and Jason Womack.
