By CURTIS ROCKWELL/Sports Director

The prep football season turns 10 this week. Can you believe it…???

But, as usual, Rock’s Locks is back to fill y’all in on it all.

Rock’s Locks is back in South Mississippi for yet another prep football season. Rock’s Locks was a steady feature in several daily newspapers (remember those?) across South Mississippi for much of the past three decades and has been a part of the journalistic fabric of prep football across the “Southern Six” for most of that time frame as well. Each week we will attempt to provide some insight with some prep pigskin prognosticator picks and provide you readers with much material to ridicule me with I am sure.

With the regular season winding down, let’s jump right in here..In this sequence of photos, Pascagoula tailback Sean Norvell tightropes the sideline vs. Biloxi in recent action. (Photo by Bobby McDuffie)

In the words of Boris Pickett and his Crypt-Kickers, “We did the mash, we did the Monster Mash, It was a graveyard smash…”

1. Gulfport at D’Iberville (Game of the Week) — The Region 4-7A title in all likelihood will be decided at some point Friday night as DHS hosts the Admirals in a battle for the top spot. Gulfport is taking aim on its first league crown in six years, and comes in sitting atop the region race with a perfect 4-0 mark, while D’Iberville sits in a tie with Ocean Springs in the second slot each at 3-1. Even though this all-time series dates back 37 years to 1988, this is just the 17th meeting on the football field between the two teams. Gulfport has a commanding 11-6 lead, and the Admirals have won three straight and six out of the last eight games over DHS. The Admirals return to the top of the loop…Gulfport 38, D’Iberville 21.
2. Pascagoula at Hancock — While neither of these teams are fighting for a region title, this is still a key contest in Region 4-6A play this week as the Panthers head to Brett Favre field to take on the home-standing Hawks. The two teams are knotted up in second place in the Region race, each sporting 2-1 marks behind 3-0 Picayune. And both combined losses for Pascagoula and Hancock in league play came at the hands of the Maroon Tide. The team that takes this one will in all likelihood secure the second seed and the home-field advantage in the opening round of the upcoming Class 6A South State playoffs as well. Pascagoula 24, Hancock 20.
3. Picayune at Gautier — And speaking of perennial state power Picayune, the Maroon Tide go in search of their 28th straight region win this week on the road at Vaughan-Wallace Stadium against the Gators. Picayune is a perfect 3-0 in Region 4-6A, and the Maroon Tide is also 15-0 all-time against Gautier. This is the first meeting in three years for the two teams, when they played twice in 2022. If the Gators are gonna break that win-less streak, there’s no better time to do so than this week as Gautier is on the verge of falling out of state playoff contention at 1-2 in league play after two straight losses by a combined total of three four points. We don’t see it happening…Picayune 42, Gautier 14.
4. Stone at Northeast Jones — As the old crow flies, the distance between Stone High and Norteast Jones is about 67 miles or abount an hour by car. Or, almost 54 years it seems. When the Tomcats travel to Tiger Stadium in Laurel on Halloween Night this week, it will mark the first regular season meeting on the football field between Stone and NEJ since Sept. 24th, 1971, or 54 years and one month. The two teams have met in the South State playoffs more recently, as in 27 years ago, on Nov. 13th, 1998, a 6-0 home win for the Tigers. The last home game against NEJ was also in the state playoffs 45 years ago, in round one of the 1980 postseason, which the Tigers also won 21-14. In fact, Stone and Stone County is 0-5 all-time on the gridiron against NEJ. But a first-ever win by Stone over NEJ this week will give the Tomcats the Region 4-5A title. Stone 23, NEJ 13.
5. West Harrison and Biloxi — Just the third meeting all time and the first in five years between these two teams on the football field is set for Friday night what could turn into an important Region 4-7A battle. Currently, the Hurricanes sit solidly as the fourth seed in the region race, which of course is the cut off line for qualifying for the state playoffs. A win by West Harrison would secure the first-ever playoff berth in program history for the Hurricanes. They’ll get it…West Harrison 40, Biloxi 22.
6. East Central at Vancleave — A game that will be talked about in duck blinds and deer stands all across Jackson County for the next year goes down in Vancleave Halloween night as the Bulldogs host the longtime arch-rival Hornets. Both teams are in dire need of a win to keep their playoff hopes alive, as VHS is 1-2 in Region 4-5A and ECHS win-less at 0-3. Vancleave is looking for its fourth straight trip to the postseason and seventh in the past eight years, while East Central has missed the playoffs the past two seasons. This marks the 65th edition of this annual affair. Vancleave 7, East Central 6.
7. Terry at George County — This match-up at Gill-Martin Stadium in Lucedale Halloween night will decide the third seed in the region 3-6A race. In most cases, the difference between the third and fourth spot in a region probably doesn’t mean much, but that’s not the case for the Rebels and Bulldogs in this one. The fourth seed in Region 3-6A will head to Picayune to open the upcoming Class 6A South State playoffs, while the third place team will get either Pascagoula or Picayune. It’s not good news for the home team…Terry 21, George County 20.

A Six Pack to go: Ocean Springs 77, Harrison Central 7

Purvis 21, Wayne County 19

(Rock’s Locks Thursday night)

Pass Christian 42, Bay high 0

West Marion 42, St. Stanislaus 0

Stringer 42, Resurrection 0

Columbia 29, Poplarville 24