The cliché is as old as the hills, but it still holds grains of truth.

Winning cures all.

Bogue Chitto had all that a school needs to have for a successful homecoming on Friday night. They had a huge crowd, glittery gowns and a crown for the queen that reached towards the heavens. Without a win, the night would still have been a lot of fun for the Bobcat faithful.

After starting the season with three straight defeats, the Bobcats broke through for a cathartic 44-26 win over the Mount Olive Pirates to put a cherry on the homecoming sundae. Mommas and daddies took pictures of sweaty, smiling players on the field after the game. The happy feeling that permeated the crowd only comes after a win.

There probably isn’t a better example of how small-school football runs in cruel cycles than the Bogue Chitto Bobcats. Between 2011-2013 the Bobcats went 31-7 and played for a 1A south state championship. The following three years seasons saw the team win a combined three games.

Last season saw an improvement when the Bobcats finished 5-5 in the regular season and qualified for the 2A state playoffs for the first time since moving up in classification.

Bogue Chitto (1-3) isn’t going to back down from anyone, and the Bobcats aren’t done winning games this season. They’ll look to win their second in a row on Friday when they travel to Salem (1-3).

For the longest time, it looked like the Enterprise Yellow Jackets would get to feel the endorphin rush of winning on Friday night. They led Clarkdale for much of the game before a furious Bulldog rally in the final minutes snatched the victory.

Clarkdale scored, recovered an onside kick and then completed a touchdown pass to pull out the win. It doesn’t matter what school you support, everyone wants to see the players from Enterprise have their hard work rewarded with a win this season. 

Enterprise (0-4) hosts McLaurin (3-1) Friday on Harry Cole Field.

Wesson won their fifth-straight game in their rivalry with Loyd Star on Friday when they rolled the Hornets 40-20. Coming into the season, Cobra coach Jeremy Loy counted on running back depth and defensive speed to be two areas where his team would be the strongest.

That analysis looked to be spot on against Loyd Star. Junior running back Damien Smith had six carries for 99 yards and two touchdowns, and senior JaQuavion Harris added 91 yards and two touchdowns on 10 carries. The defense slowed down a Hornet rushing attack that came into the game averaging 400 yards per game.

Wesson (2-1) celebrates homecoming on Friday when they host Richland (0-4), while Loyd Star (3-1) hosts the always-formidable Stringer Red Devils (3-1) on W.E. “Sambo” Smith Field.

Defense has also been driving the Lawrence County Cougars, as they’ve put together a two-game win streak.

On Friday the Cougars put away Bay High 20-7 in game that saw the teams tied at seven-all going into the fourth quarter. The Cougars (3-1) have given up seven points in their last two games and host a Franklin County (0-4) team this week that is giving up 47 points per game this season.

The Brookhaven High Panthers were the only other area team to take home a win in the fourth week of the regular season. Brookhaven got a team win with a stout defense and a deft passing game in a 33-3 triumph over McComb.

Senior Don Blandon had his biggest game of the season, as he caught three passes for 85 yards and a touchdown. Fellow receiver John Hilbert added two touchdown catches and the Panther defense scored a touchdown as well.

Brookhaven (3-1) is off this week as they prepare for a seven-game region schedule that makes up the remainder of their season.

Mississippi State commit Javeious Purvis accounted for four touchdowns as the Pelahatchie Chiefs whipped West Lincoln 56-0. The Bears were in a 42-0 hole at halftime and couldn’t get anything going against a Pelahatchie team that will be a 2A south state contender.

Things won’t get much easier this week for West Lincoln (2-2) as they host Pisgah (3-1) for homecoming.

The Brookhaven Academy Cougars are another team licking their wounds after a big defeat this week. The Sylva-Bay Saints won 40-7 in dominating fashion. The Cougars (2-1) will try to right their ship on Friday when they travel to Ben’s Ford Christian School (1-3) in Bogalusa, Louisiana.

Thursday will be the first chance for area fans to catch the Copiah-Lincoln Wolves as they make their home debut at 7 p.m. in Stone Stadium.

Co-Lin (1-1) is hosting Pearl River (0-2) in the division opener for both teams. Co-Lin dropped their season opener on a last-minute field goal at Holmes, 29-28. Last week they bounced back with a two-score win over Northeast, 21-7.

Holmes is 2-0 now after upsetting No. 8 Jones County on the road last week in Ellisville. The Bulldogs run a triple-option attack that teams dread defending. In a league where most defenses are geared to stop the spread, trying to slow down the Bulldog rushing attack is like visiting the dentist.

The Pearl River Wildcats lost their opener to Itawamba after the Indians staged a second-half rally. Last week Pearl River was blown out by the defending national champion East Mississippi Lions.

Last season the Wildcats beat Co-Lin 40-21 on homecoming in the final week of the season. The loss gave Co-Lin a 4-5 record and broke a streak of eight consecutive winning seasons for the Wolfpack.

Story by Cliff Furr