Taking 2-0 district mark to Southaven

Oxford stayed undefeated in region play Friday night after scoring 24 unanswered points to run away with the game after being tied 20-20 in the third quarter. The Chargers came away with a 44-20 win to move to 2-0 in region play.

The Jaguars made the game interesting in the second half when Eric Perry ran for an 83-yard touchdown to make it 13-12. Oxford answered  with a Mitchell Grandjean 4-yard touchdown to Kingston Gregory to take a 20-12 lead.

DeSoto Central (3-5, 0-2 Region 1-7A) next hit a  big 78-yard touchdown from Perry to Hannah to tie the game at 20-20 after the 2-point attempt. The Chargers held the Jaguars to 24 yards the rest of the night. The Chargers added 102 yards of offense to run away with the game. 

Jamarion Pegues scored a 1-yard touchdown as the third quarter closed to seal the game for Oxford. The touchdown was set up by a 53-yard reception to Dane Harmon to set them up on the Jaguar 5-yard line. 

“I thought we played really well in the fourth quarter. That’s something you work toward, and I thought we did an excellent job of that. We want to play better in the second half, and I thought we did those things,” said Oxford Head Coach Chris Cutcliffe. 

Oxford scored 17 points in the fourth quarter. Wilkinson kicked his third field goal of the night from 42 yards to start the quarter. He finished 3-of-3 on field goals on the night. 

The Chargers added a touchdown on fourth and goal when M. Grandjean found Zae Lewis from 4 yards out. Since the Desoto Central touchdown to tie the game, M. Grandjean would finish 8 of 9 passing for 61 yards and 1 touchdown. He added 27 yards on the ground with a long of 19 yards to keep the ball moving for the Chargers. 

The Oxford defense got the final score on the night when Kamar Houston blocked a Jaguar punt and returned it himself for a touchdown. 

 Oxford moves to 2-0 in region play and tied for first place with Hernando with the win. Oxford will return to action Friday as they travel to DeSoto County to face the Southaven Chargers. 

Southaven (1-6, 1-1 Region 1-7A) looks to bounce back after losing in a low scoring affair to Lewisburg 7-0.  The game was tied at 0-0 until Lewisburg scored with 4:51 left in the 4th quarter. 

Common opponents Oxford and Southaven have played this season are South Panola, Tupelo, and Desoto Central. Southaven lost too South Panola 21-12, Tupelo 40-7, and gained their only win of the season against Desoto Central 36-12.

“We have played Southaven a bunch over the years. They are always number 1 and well coached.  Coach Stevenson on defense gives us problems. He is very versatile defensively and they will be very fast and physical. It is something  that we will have to be prepared for,” said Cutcliffe.