By CURTIS ROCKWELL/Sports Director

One of the best ways for a sportswriter to make a fool out of himself is to try and predict the weekly outcomes of any type of sporting event, but especially high school football games.

Not that I need any help, but here goes…

Have no fear, Rock’s Locks is here again y’all…

Yes, 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.

There has been a lot of talk about Rock’s Locks over the years. But I didn’t care what was said, I decided to try and sometimes make a fool out of myself again this year.

Last week, Rock’s Locks turned in an 11-2 worksheet.

In the words of Credence Clearwater Revival….”I wanna know, have you ever seen the rain…”

1. Ocean Springs at Gulfport (Game of the Week) — In this game last season, Gulfport snapped a school record 25 game region win streak for Ocean Springs and the Admirals used that as a springboard to go on to win the league en route to taking the Class 7A state championship. The Greyhounds are now 16-1 in league play under head coach Jake Bramlett, after a 21-14 win over Biloxi last week in the region opener for both teams. This is the league-opener for the Admirals, who also stopped a five game losing streak to OSHS last year with that big win. Gulfport leads the all-time series 22-12, but the series is dead even at 6-6 over the past 12 games since 2014. Gulfport 42, Ocean Springs 14.
2. West Harrison at D’Iberville — Another big battle to stay atop the Region 4-7A standings as the Warriors host the Hurricanes this week. These two county rivals are coming off of different results last week in their region openers, as DHS dispatched Harrison Central and St. Martin out-scored the Hurricanes.. This is the 10 all-time meeting between the two Harrison County foes, and the Warriors are a perfect 9-0 including a 25-7 win last year. D’Iberville 42, West Harrison 7.
3. Bay High at Hancock — A big game for these two Hancock County rivals for a different reason, as both come in big need of a win. The Tigers are now 0-13 under the direction of second-year head coach Katlan French, and are off to a 0-4 start for the second straight season. Meanwhile the Hawks are 1-3. This marks the 56th meeting all-time between the two teams on the football field, and Bay leads the all-time series that dates back to 1959 34-21. But the Hawks have won five in a row dating back to 2013. Make it six…Hancock 42, Bay High 6.
4. Biloxi at St. Martin — Back to the Region 4-7A race that will affect the league standings early on, as the Indians travel a short distance to take onthe Yellow Jackets. This is the 27th meeting on the gridiron in a series that celebrated its 30th anniversary last season and dates back to 1995. Biloxi leads the all-time affair at 15-11, but St, Martin snapped a six game BHS win streak last year with a 28-24 road win. St. Martin is unbeaten at 5-0, while Biloxi has dropped four straight and sits at 1-4 overall. St. Martin has never, in its 68 year history as a football program, started a season off at 6-0,until now…St.Martin 38,Biloxi 17.
5. St. Stanislaus at Stone — A pair of teams off of differing results last week meet in the Tomcats’ new on-campus Stadium Friday night. The Rocks are 1-4, and the Tomcats 2-2 This marks just the eighth all-time meeting in a series that dates back 544 years and started in 1972. Stone leads the series 5-2, after a 42-7 win last year. Stone 35, St. Stanislaus 7.
6. Greene County at Pass Christian — Region 8-4A play gets underway for both the Pirates and Wildcats at Buddy McDonald Stadium this week. Green County fell to Gautier last week, while PCHS beat East Central. This is just the 14th all-time meeting, as the Wildcats hold a commanding 10-3 lead all-time in the series even after a 28-14 wy by the Pass in Leakesville last season. Greene County won the first eight meetings from 1997-2010. Pass Christian 42, Greene County 21.
7. Forrest County AHS at Moss Point — The other Region 8-4A opener this week sees the Tigers hosting the the Aggies. Moss Point is coming off of its first win of the season and sits 1-4. Forrest County is just 2-3, but stopped a three game losing streak with a close 13-12 win over Purvis last week. This is just the fifth meeting all-time between the two teams on the football field, and MPHS is up 3-1 after the Aggies earned their first-ever win in the series last year with a 6-0 win in five overtimes. Moss Point 23, FCAHS 13.

A Six pack to go:

Richton 28, Resurrection 7

PCS 35, St. Patrick 13

Long Beach 21, South Jones 14

Harrison Central 8, Jackson Callaway 7

Petal 24, West Jones 17

Clinton 20,Madison Central 14