Despite last season’s hiatus, the Oxford varsity football team made their way back into the playoff bracket this season as the number one seed in region one.
The Chargers started off their season on Aug. 25 at Lafayette High School for the 52nd Crosstown Classic. While the first quarter started slow, the second quarter allowed the Chargers to score 22 straight points including a pick-six by sophomore transfer Collin Flanagan. Oxford would then finish out the game strong winning by the final score of 42-7.
Coming off of a big win over their rivals, the Chargers would travel to South Panola for their week two matchup. The Tiger offense began to run up the score on the Chargers leading 14-3 at the half. The third quarter sparked a new beginning for the Chargers as they were led by senior Ken Herron with two interceptions including one that ended with a touchdown. Along with Herron, sophomore quarterback Mitchell Grandjean also scored his first touchdown of the season leading the Chargers to a 31-14 win.
Now that the Chargers had two road wins under their belt, they would then travel back home to play the Grenada Chargers for their annual homecoming matchup. The game went back and forth all night as both teams were able to find the end zone quickly, but Grenada would come ahead and lead at the half. Similar to the week before, Oxford quickly secured control in the third quarter scoring two touchdowns and gaining the lead. Even though the Chargers led, Grenada refused to back down scoring two touchdowns of their own and giving Oxford their first loss of the season with the final score of 31-28.
The following week, the Chargers would host the highly ranked Tupelo Golden Wave for a hugely anticipated rivalry game. With the adrenaline that comes with an exciting rivalry game, the Charger defense was able to hold the Wave to two touchdowns in the first half but trailed 14-7. However, that adrenaline would only last for so long and the Chargers would go on to lose the game 49-7.
Looking to bounce back from a big loss to the Golden Wave, the Chargers would now travel to Starkville for a rivalry matchup like no other. Similar to last week’s matchup, the Starkville Yellowjackets were also highly ranked in the state of Mississippi and would cause the Chargers problems all night. Although the Chargers were able to keep the game close at the half, quarterback Trey Petty and the Yellowjackets brought the sting giving the Chargers their third straight loss with the final score of 33-13 keeping the Lil Egg Bowl trophy in Starkville for another year.
Following a bye week, the Chargers were seeking a much needed win as they would travel to Horn Lake for their first region matchup of the season. Like many other games this season, Oxford would trail at the half 7-0. In the second half, the Chargers were led by senior Xavier Lewis scoring two receiving touchdowns and earning a big win by the final score of 28-14.
To continue region play, the Chargers would host the Desoto Central Jaguars on Bobby Holcomb Field. Oxford was led by senior Jay Brown with 100 rushing yards and one touchdown helping the Chargers win the game 44-20.
The Chargers would then travel to Southaven for a chance to clinch the first spot in the 7A playoffs. Starting the game fast with two passing touchdowns by Grandjean, Oxford was right on track to come away with a victory. Continuing out the game strong, the Chargers would win 29-7 and become the first ever 7A team to make the playoffs.
While already clinching a game in the playoffs, the Chargers now had the chance to clinch a home playoff game at Lewisburg. After trailing 21-0 in the first quarter, Oxford stayed resilient, came back, and tied the game before the half. The Chargers were able to finish with a 35-28 win over the Patriots.
To finish out the regular season, the Chargers were back at Bobby Holcomb Field for their senior night matchup against the Hernando Tigers. The Chargers exploded on offense scoring 42 points, gaining a total of 304 yards and ended the regular season with another victory and improving to 5-0 in the region.
For round one of the playoffs, the one seeded Oxford Chargers were set to host the four seeded Germantown Mavericks. With ten lead changes all night, neither team was able to pull ahead of the other causing the game to go into overtime. The Chargers were able to come away with a 47-44 victory after a rushing touchdown by senior Jack Harper to end the game.
A rematch between Starkville and Oxford was the matchup for round two of the playoffs, but this time the Chargers would host. While Oxford had improved since the last time they met, the Yellowjackets did as well. Wide receiver Braylen Burnside and the Yellowjacket offense ran through the Charger defense scoring twenty points ending the Chargers’ season with the final score of 20-0.
