By CURTIS ROCKWELL/Sports Director

OCEAN SPRINGS — For the first time in 32 years, Picayune and Ocean Springs will face off on the football field when both have losing records.

A pair of perennial “Southern Six” powers off to unusual starts to the season meet in this one, as the Greyhounds host the Maroon Tide Friday night. Almost no one would have picked these two teams to each be at 1-2 at this point a month ago, but here we are.

However, both teams are coming off their first wins of the young campaign, as OSHS beat Pascagoula 22-12 and Picayune nipped Biloxi 34-31 in overtime.

“They are well coached and play with great effort,” Maroon Tide head coach Cody Stogner said, of the Greyhounds. “You can see that they have gotten better each week.”

Ocean Springs suffered a pair of rough outings the first two weeks of the new campaign, falling to Meridian 45-7 at home and then 43-21 to Petal on the road.

Last week, though, in a weather-delayed 22-12 decision over the visiting Panthers, OSHS quarterback Chalmers Berglind threw for two touchdowns to lead the Greyhounds to their first win.

The loss was the first of the season for the Panthers and new head coach Zach Green, who sit at 2-1 while OSHS is 1-2.

Meanwhile, Picayune, in yet another weather-delayed battle, Picayune got its first win of the season with a 34-31 overtime win over Biloxi on the road Friday. The Maroon Tide never trailed in regulation, but Biloxi scored first in overtime on a field goal and  the Maroon Tide answered on the second snap of their overtime possession to secure the win. Junior running back Kendall Jett pushed through between the tackles for a 4-yard score to give the Maroon Tide the win.

Maroon Tide standout senior running back Xavier Dennis carried the ball 28 times for 220 yards rushing and three touchdowns in the win, while the junior Jett registered 11 carries for 160 yards and two scores, including the game-winner.

Picayune ran for right at 400 yards against the Indians.

“They’re a really good 1-2 team,” OSHS head coach Jake Brmlett said. “Picayune will always be who they are, smash mouth, old school football. They can crease one at any time on offense and will fly around and strike you on defense.”

This marks the 26th all-time meeting between these two teams on the football field, and the series is extremely close with Picayune up just 13-12 after a 56-42 OSHS road win last season. This marks the eighth meeting this century, and the Greyhounds have won four out of the seven face-offs since 2003 in a series that dates back to 1948.

The last time these two teams came into this match-up with losing records was way back in 1994.

“I expect another great ball game,” Bramlett concluded.

No other pair of prep football teams in South Mississippi have won more games combined over the past five seasons than Picayune and Ocean Springs.

The Maroon Tide and Greyhounds have teamed up to take home 110 wins in that time span.