Tallulah Academy will make its sixth appearance in the Mississippi Association of Independent Schools (MAIS) 8-Man state championship game when the Trojans suit up to take on the Tunica Academy Blue Devils in less than 24 hours at Jackson Academy in Jackson, Miss.
The Trojans (10-1) are fresh off a 52-30 home playoff win over Newton Academy in a rematch of a regular season game that saw TA overpower the Generals by 30 points. The Trojans' lone loss of the year came in a 36-28 defeat in week four to Manchester Academy.
The Blue Devils (12-0) enter the championship game after defeating North Sunflower 64-44 in round 3 of the playoffs.
The Trojans will lean heavily on offensive stars Dee Morgan at quarterback, Wyatt Bedgood and Brayson Morson at running back and Landry Tweedle, Arnett Sevier and Henry Ellerbee at wide receiver. Linebacker Judd Dennis and offensive linemen Kody Vickery and Colton Cone will also likely be integral cogs in the Trojans machine during Thursday's championship battle.
TA head coach Bart Wood said he expects his team to be focused and disciplined during Thursday's game, preaching execution of the fundamentals that got his squad to the league's final game.
"Our kids have had a really good year and they play hard and that's what we're going to expect out of them this week," Wood told Mississippi Gridiron. "We're just going to go play Tallulah football. Control the ball on offense and stop their speed on defense."
Thursday's championship game will mark the first time Tallulah and Tunica academies have met on the gridiron.
"We don't know much about them because we've never played them before," "Wood said. "It's going to be fun and interesting."
For the Trojans, a win Thursday would mark MAIS state title number four, added onto victories in 2015, 2016 and 2018. The Trojans lost the 2020 championship in TA's last trip to the title game.
The Trojans and Blue Devils are set to kick off the 2022 MAIS Class 2A state championship game Thursday at 3 p.m.
