Atkinson column: For Meridian, the task is simple — win the next 2

Published 4:05 am Thursday, October 29, 2015

It’s the same song, different verse for the Meridian High football team.

The 2015 season has been extremely frustrating for Meridian, and things got a lot more frustrating last Friday night. Meridian entered its game against Petal in complete control of its own destiny. Meridian could have won its final three games of the season, including a win over Petal, to enter the postseason as, at worse, the second seed from Division 3-6A. It could have been an even better situation, if the dominoes would have fallen right, for Meridian to be the top overall seed from Division 3-6A.

I guess we could play the what-if game all day, but the harsh reality is the season is now on the line for Meridian heading into its final two regular-season games.

Meridian lost another heartbreaker last Friday night on the road at Petal 28-27 in two overtime sessions. The loss puts Meridian at the back of the pack fighting for the fourth and final playoff spot over the next two weeks. Meridian does have somewhat of a more fortunate situation heading into its final two games, in that both games will be played at Ray Stadium.

I think many traditionalists that have followed Meridian football would assume these final two games should be easy, but not exactly. The 2015 season has not only been strange for Meridian, but it has been strange for all of the teams inside Division 3-6A. Meridian has  been  on the short end many times this season, but the season has also been a roller coaster ride for other teams in the division.

Meridian controls its fate over the next two weeks needing a pair of wins to clinch the fourth seed in the playoff chase, but the other three teams in the hunt still have some work to do. Brandon is back at the top of the standings of the division this week after scoring a 28-16 victory over Oak Grove last week at home. The win ties Brandon and Oak Grove for first place, but due to the victory by the Bulldogs last week, Brandon is in the top position.

Petal and Meridian are also tied for the next two spots in the divisional race, but Petal holds the tiebreaker over Meridian with its victory last week. The scenario is simple for Meridian heading into the final two weeks and the same goes for the rest of the teams inside Division 3-6A.

Meridian will play host to Terry and Forest Hill in the next two games which proves to be a much easier road considering both games are at home, but the Wildcats don’t need to sleep on Terry this week.

Terry is still mathematically in the hunt for a playoff spot and has been competitive in most of its area games throughout the 2015 season. Terry scored a huge 34-33 victory over Forest Hill to stay in the chase for one of the four playoff spots from Division 3-6A and has done it with a very good offense this season.

Terry is averaging close 25 points per game this season and has scored at least 30 points in all of its district games this season. Terry has always been a very balanced team and is a program that has slowly gotten better over the past three season. It should be a tough test for Meridian tomorrow night.

I now ask you to try and stay with me as I explain the playoff scenario for the Wildcats, because there are a lot of steps in the process. It may seem simple in some ways, but it really isn’t. Meridian holds a one-game lead on Terry and Forest Hill heading into action on Friday night, and Meridian could possibly clinch a playoff spot with a victory tomorrow night over Terry. Forest Hill does still play a huge factor in this whole situation, as the Patriots will play host to Petal tomorrow night in south Jackson.

Forest Hill could score a huge upset over Petal Friday night and throw a wrench into the discussion of playoff positioning. I believe Petal should defeat Forest Hill Friday night to avoid this crazy situation, but after all I have seen this season, don’t bet on it. Pearl is the only other team that could be in the playoff discussion, but the Pirates finish the season with games against Brandon and Oak Grove. I think it is safe to say that Pearl will not be a factor for Meridian when it comes to a tiebreaker situation, because the Wildcats defeated Pearl earlier this season.

I know that it is a lot to digest, and trust me, it gave me a headache just trying to figure it out. It’s all in the hands of our Wildcats heading into the next two weeks. It’s difficult to believe through all of the tough setbacks for Meridian this season that there is still a chance at the postseason.

I still firmly believe that Meridian is a team that you simply don’t want to see in the playoffs this season, so I think a lot of teams in Class 6A are hoping that Terry or Forest Hill will score an upset. I hope you can make it out to Ray Stadium over the next two weeks to support this squad and cheer them on to clinch a playoff spot.

I think most of my playoff scenarios might be a little inaccurate to some people, but Meridian just needs to win to get in. Go Cats!  

Robby Atkinson is the sports information director at Meridian Community College.