By CURTIS ROCKWELL/Sports Director

With the current prep football season turning nine weeks old this week across South Mississippi, it’s time for our ninth installment of “A Look Ahead” here at SouthMiss6 Sports.

“A Look Ahead” has been a part of the journalistic fabric of prep football across the “Southern Six” for most of the past three decades. Each week of the season on Monday, we’ll take a look at the action set to kick off in that particular week all across this region.

Most region races are in full swing while still a few in the lower classifications are quickly coming to a close.

Here are 7 game in the “Southern 6” to keep an eye on this week…

1. PRC at Pascagoula (Game of the Week) — Just the eighth all-time meeting on the football field between the Panthers and Blue Devils goes down Friday night at War Memorial Stadium. It’s the first meeting in five years, and because of that 37-8 win by PHS in that 2020 run to the South State finals for the Panthers, Pascagoula has a slight 4-3 lead in the all-time series. Both teams sit at 1-1 in the region race, and whichever team leaves the playing surface at Dutch Binion Field this week will take a major step towards securing not only a berth in the upcoming Class 6A South State playoffs but possible homefield advantage in the opening round as well.
2. Stone at Vancleave — The Tomcats come into Jackson County this week in sole possession for the top spot in Region 4-5A. Vancleave could have been right there as well, but the Bulldogs went on the road to Waynesboro last week and laid a big egg in a 41-30 loss to Wayne County. Stone is 2-0 and VHS 1-1, as region play hits the homestretch Friday night. The Bulldogs have won two straight over Stone and three out-of-the-past four games as well, but Stone leads the all-time series that dates back 50 years to 1975.
3. Ocean Springs at West Harrison — The Greyhounds are coming off of an open date, and OSHS has a history of success under third-year head coach Jake Bramlett in the past two seasons after off weeks winning five straight in 2023 and seven straight in 2024. The Greyhounds are 2-1 in the region race, while the Hurricanes are 2-2. This is just the third meeting all-time between the two teams, and OSHS is 2-0.
4. Hancock at Gautier — A pair of teams sitting at 1-1 in the Region 4-6A race square off in yet another pivotal league match-up. The Gators probably feel like they should be 2-0 in league play after the way the game ended in a loss to PRC last week, while Hancock is happy to be all even after getting run out of the stadium in Picayune last week. This is just the fifth ever meeting on the football field between the Hawks and gators, with the last coming five years ago, and the all-time series is dead even at 2-2.
5. Biloxi at Gulfport — The longtime arch-rival Indians and Admirals meet for the 103rd time this week, in a Region 4-7A contest that matters much more to the home team than it does the Indians. Both teams are coming off of wins in league play last week, and the Admirals lead the Region race at 3-0 while Biloxi sits at 1-2. Gulfport leads the all-time series 63-35-4, and the Admirals have dominated Biloxi as of late winning four straight and 12-of-the-past-13 outings also. However, the last BHS win in this series came in historic Milner Stadium, 7-6 during the Covid campaign of 2020.
6. Bay High at Forrest County AHS — While this may surprise some, but this Region 8-4A battle between these two teams is a key encounter as far as the upcoming Class 4A South State playoffs are concerned. The Aggies are 1-1 in the region race, and a win over win-less Bay High would earn FCAHS a berth in those aforementioned state playoffs. However, as strange as it seems, if the 0-7 Tigers can put it all together and somehow pull out their first win of the season, then Bay High would keep its postseason hopes alive and could possibly snatch that state playoff bid away depending on what happens next week.
7. Wayne County at East Central — Same song, second verse. Only this time in Region 4-5A, as two teams with a combined two wins and 12 total losses between them square off in Hurley/Wade this week with each still harboring playoff aspirations. The 1-6 War Eagles could take a huge step towards another postseason trip with a win, and the Hornets can’t lose many more region games and hope to work their way into the playoffs again for the first time in three years.