Rockets unable to propel to victory over Grenada

Neshoba Central’s playoff run came to an end on Friday night, falling 31-7 on the road at Grenada in the MHSAA 6A quarterfinals to finish 6-6 on the season.

Senior running back Mekhi Gaddis continued his dominant season on Friday night, breaking off a long rushing touchdown in the first quarter for the only Neshoba Central touchdown of the night.

Gaddis has had a great senior campaign, rushing for just under 2,000 yards on the season and scoring 16 touchdowns on the ground for the year.

Offensively, Neshoba Central was also led by a three-year starter at quarterback in Will Williams, who provided a steady hand under center, throwing for just under 1,000 yards and six touchdowns on the year. Williams finished with over 3,000 passing yards in his career for the Rocket offense.

Defensively, the Rockets were led by a solid and consistent group, including senior defensive back and Southern Miss commit Zach Ruffin, senior linebacker Will Huffman who totaled over 100 tackles on the season, and senior defensive lineman Anthony Hopson Jr. who was a defensive stalwart in the middle all season long for the Rocket defense.

It was a very promising first year under Head Coach Shannon Ruffin for the Rockets, in which they significantly improved as the season went along.

After starting the season 1-4, Neshoba Central finished the year winning five of their last seven games, which put them in second place in the region, beating Vicksburg, Columbus, Ridgeland, and Callaway and set them up to host their first round playoff win over Lake Cormorant. The Rockets also added a key non-region win over West Lauderdale during the regular season.

Even with the loss of a solid contributing senior group, there is plenty of promise for the future of the Neshoba Central football program.