After playing what is hoping to be a breakout football season, the Thomas Edwards High Tigers 2025 campaign came to an end last Friday night.
Hosting a playoff game for the first time since 2017, the Tigers fell by a 52-16 score to defending 3A state champion Choctaw County High School of Ackerman.
Ironically, in 2017 it was also Choctaw County High which came to Ruleville for a playoff game.
Last Friday’s loss moved the Tigers’ final record to a 5-5 mark while the visiting Chargers moved on to the second round of the 3A playoffs, owning a 6-4 record.
The Chargers’ opponent in that game will be Kossuth High School.
“I am so proud of what the kids accomplished this season,” said first-year Head Coach Quintarus McCray.
In fact, the 2025 Edwards High football team posted additional noteworthy facts to be proud of. Their recent season was not only the first since 2021 to represent its school in playoff competition, but also the first since 2018 to post a non-losing record.
Thus, Coach McCray noted, “This group of players have never been to the playoffs before, and they are having to learn what it takes to win in the postseason. But the seniors really stepped up this year and did a great job of buying into our program and being great leaders,” he continued.
As for the future, Coach McCray is optimistic. “We have a great group of juniors as well as some junior high kids coming up who could make an impact — especially in the interior lines.”
In last Friday’s contest with Choctaw County High, the Tigers felt the wrath of the defending state champion. The Chargers entered the game very motivated after dropping their last two games of the regular season by a total of four points.
While the Chargers secured the game by the end of the first half, which found the Tigers down by a 34-8 margin, the Edwards High squad owned a brief 8-7 lead early in the first period.
That lead was earned when quarterback Ian Harris raced 10 yards to the end zone for the score.
A subsequent pass from the junior quarterback to A’Kerrion Ingram rendered the Tigers’ 2-point conversion attempt successful.
However, the Tigers were unable to find the end zone again until a second half 45-yard pass from Harris to Jamarion Willis posted the local team’s final point of the night.
There were a dozen seniors wearing their Edwards High uniforms for the final time last Friday night.
That group included James Archibald, Tramell Armstrong, Rashad Birdow, Antwan Brinkley, Darious Calvin, Thomas Foster, Jermaine Hooper, James Jones, Rayquan Maxon, Anthony Moreno, Anthony Townsend and Carlito Williams.
