Mississippi Power Rankings: Week 1

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The 2023 campaign has arrived and without further ado it is time to unveil the initial Power Rankings for the season. Check in weekly for updates!</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>#1. Oak Grove</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>From a pure talent perspective the Warriors are the most loaded team in the state. Nine starters return on both sides of the ball led by QB [player_tooltip player_id='344082' first='Anthony' last='Maddox'] offensively and DE [player_tooltip player_id='617237' first='Caleb' last='Moore']. and CB [player_tooltip player_id='616688' first='PJ' last='Woodland'] defensively.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>This week: vs. Wayne County (8/24)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>#2. Starkville</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Jackets may have the most offensive talent in the state led by QB/WR duo [player_tooltip player_id='273258' first='Trey' last='Petty'] and [player_tooltip player_id='139597' first='Braylon' last='Burnside']. Coach Chris Jones will try to take Starkville to back to back titles in the toughest division in the state.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>This week: vs. Noxubee County</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>#3. Brandon</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Coach Sam Williams has got the Dogs to the state title game two years in a row but they have been unable to pull off the victory once they get there. The two-headed offensive monster of [player_tooltip player_id='273250' first='Landon' last='Varnes'] and Nate Blount are back to try to get the job done. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>This week: vs. Picayune</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>#4. Picayune</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Led by [player_tooltip player_id='344053' first='Chris' last='Davis'] and [player_tooltip player_id='344138' first='Jamonta' last='Waller'] the Maroon Tide looks to three-peat after moving from 5A to 6A. Picayune brings a 26 game win streak into 2023.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>This week: @ Brandon</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>#5. Tupelo</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Golden Wave looks to again be the class of Northeast Mississippi. The Wave returns nearly all of their offensive production led by [player_tooltip player_id='344100' first='Jeremiah' last='Harrell'] at QB.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>This week: vs. Whitehaven (TN)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>#6. Madison Central</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>It is no secret that the Jags lost a ton of production off of last years squad but Coach Toby Collums feels like he has plenty of talented option. Never count out MC, even in that division. Opportunity to learn a lot about the team in Week 1.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>This week: vs. Ocean Springs</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>#7. Clinton</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Arrows look to continue to be right in the thick of things in 2-7A. Don't gorget they knocked off eventual state champ, Starkville, in the regular season last year.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>This week: @ Warren Central</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>#8. West Point</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Green Wave is the going away favorite after remaining in 5A during this reclassification season. [player_tooltip player_id='344052' first='Kahnen' last='Daniels'] projects to be the top offensive player in the classification.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>This week: @ Louisville</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>#9 Ocean Springs</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>A lot of new faces will be counted on for the Greyhounds down on the coast led by new head coach, Jake Bramlett. The defense returns the majority of production from 2022 but offensively replacing Bray Hubbard is not for the weak of heart.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>This week: @ Madison Central</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>10. South Panola</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>It's hard to have any preseason list without including South Panola after their years of dominance. [player_tooltip player_id='346336' first='Michael' last='Johnson'] and [player_tooltip player_id='910403' first='Julius' last='Pope'] are Power 5 level talent who will be depended on offensively. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>This week: Houston (TN)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->