French Camp Academy at Nanih Waiya

Last week's rivalry win is still fresh on the minds of Eupora fans as they went to Ackerman and knocked off rival Choctaw County 28-21 to reclaim bragging rights.

Eagles' coach Stephen Edwards made clear to his team this week that the win was to be put in the rear view quickly as they have their biggest challenge ahead. That challenge is in the form of Charleston, which is a team that has made it to the state championship three years in a row only to lose all three games in heartbreaking fashion.

“They're a physical bunch," Edwards said. "They've got athletes that come up and hit you. They're going to run the ball on offense, too. It's just smash-mouth football. They're close to Batesville and they just remind me of South Panola. When you start a tradition, those kids grow up and they want to play football.”

Eupora feels it can play up to that style as well if needed. Last week, running back Preston Perkins bulldozed his way through the Charger defense for a big fourth quarter and ended the game with 88 yards on just 12 carries.

The way the Eagles closed the fourth quarter with a win is something different than Edwards has seen from his team the last couple of seasons. Eupora has sealed wins against Class 3A opponents twice this season also knocking off Water Valley in the opening game of the season with a 13-7 win.

Closing strong is a good start to having a championship mentality and winning games like the Eagles will see tonight.

“We've just got to stay together,” Edwards said. “We're finding a way to win close games and that's just what you've got to do. I think that's the main thing. Just having the confidence that you can win.”

The only common opponent between the two teams is West Tallahatchie that Eupora beat 33-0 and Charleston beat 26-0. Charleston (4-1) has one blemish to Horn Lake 40-6 and Eupora (4-1) lost to the state's No. 3 2A team Newton 24-19.

No matter what happens, the Eagles won't be intimidated. The veteran team led by Starkville Daily News Athlete of the Week Al Dumas expects to win this game. As long as Eupora takes care of business, Dumas believes it can reach any goal set.

“I think that the sky is the limit for this team we've just got to put everything together,” Dumas said. “The Choctaw County win is just motivation for us. We know what we're capable of and we went and got it and now we want more.”

The last two weeks were just what the Panthers needed after a two-game losing streak and they started Class A, Region 3 play with a 35-25 win over Vardaman and a much-deserved bye week followed.

Iwas just a 23-year-old graduate assistant in the Mississippi State athletic marketing department back in 2008 when the Bulldogs announced they'd hired Florida offensive coordinator Dan Mullen to be the next head football coach.

I can remember the day vividly when Mullen was introduced inside the Templeton Athletic Academic Center that December. Truth be told, I was sick as a dog that day. I probably had no business being there, but I was one of only two graduate assistants on what was a very small marketing staff back then and I just had to be there to help, and to hear what this brash, somewhat cocky New Englander that experienced so much success with the Gators had to say.

I handed out a whole bunch of ‘Dan is the Man' t-shirts. While passing them out, I had a conversation with an old friend about Mullen and what MSU could expect.

“I think he's going to win and be gone before we even know it,” my buddy thought.

“If that happens, MSU hit the jackpot,” I told him.

Here we are, some nine years later and I still feel the same way. If Mullen ever bolts due to his success with the Bulldogs, good for Mississippi State.

French Camp won't be easing into its district schedule, however. Awaiting them for game two is quite possibly one of the favorites to win the state title in the Nanih Waiya Warriors (5-0, 2-0 Region 3).

The Warriors had 13-straight wins to end their regular season last year and were within a play of going to the state title. They've returned most of the team and, most importantly, their Thunder and Lightning.

They are running backs Taemaus Glass and Chris Smith who have racked up over 800 yards rushing and 19 touchdowns through five

Dennis Dodd of CBS Sports wrote a column this week and his opinion was that Mullen needs to strike while the iron is hot and get out of Starkville soon. This of course came on the heels of MSU manhandling LSU over the weekend.

Honestly, it's a similar column and thought that many have had over the course of Mullen's tenure in Starkville. It's becoming as much of a tradition for folks to write, ‘Mullen should leave' as it is for people to ring cowbells in the Junction during the Dawg Walk.

Look, I get why. To the rest of the country, Mississippi State is one of the Southeastern Conference's traditional doormats. Over the last near-decade, Mullen has, at worst, made the Bulldogs respectable and, at best, built them into a yearly

games. Both can hurt opposing teams at multiple positions and in special teams and present a major issue for coach Nathan Wright this week.

After being limited in the first part of the season, the Panthers appear to have running back Kendall Coleman Jr. back in the saddle. Coleman had played in just two games prior and touched the football seven times combined before last week.

Against Vardaman, Coleman rushed 17 times for 99 yards and a touchdown for French Camp. He also caught five passes for 111 yards and another score.

The return of Coleman should really open up the offense more for the Panthers and quarterback Holman Edwards and give the dark horse contender in the league.

If Mullen can do that at little old Mississippi State in the middle-of-nowhere Mississippi, what could he do with the resources of a Texas A&M or Notre Dame or Fill-In-The-Blank-U?

As Dodd points out, Mullen is still young for a coach (he's only 45). He's been successful at a place that, most times, wasn't all that successful before he appeared. He's going to be an attractive candidate for most any opening.

However also, as Dodd mentions, Mullen makes about $4.5 million a year. Not many schools can pony up to even make an offer worth Mullen's time.

But what if they do? According to reports through the years, Mullen has flirted with other jobs before. What if one finally comes up soon that goes from flirting, to dating to a fullon relationship?

What if MSU loses the only coach that has ever taken them to the top of the national polls? What if the Bulldogs have to bid adieu to the man that helped make Dak Prescott into a local legend and is knocking at the door of doing a similar thing with Nick Fitzgerald?

Should State fans panic? Should the Bulldog faithful scour the worldwide web and search Twitter and see where Mullen is or who he might be calling? Nope.

Dan Mullen has put Mississippi State in a place where, should he leave, the Bulldogs won't have to scrape the bottom of the barrel to find a head coach. MSU can write the big

Warriors one of their tougher test in the first part of the season.

East Webster at J.Z. George

The Wolverines bounced back nicely from their tough loss to Starkville Academy and defeated Strayhorn 28-8 a week ago. Now, they get another primer before heading into the first Class 2A, Region 2 game at Eupora next week.

J.Z. George has struggled through the first part of its schedule failing to score more than six points in each of its first four games. It did grab its first win of the year last week of 16-12 over Holly Springs, but competing with East Webster's checks. Mullen has shown wins and big things can indeed come, even in StarkVegas.

If recent history is any indication, MSU might not have much to worry about. Maybe Mullen leaves someday, but every year someone declares him gone and every following year, he shows up wearing MSU maroon and white.

But if he does leave, I'll say again what I said the day he arrived. MSU hit the jackpot. When or if Mullen goes, Bulldog supporters shouldn't say ‘oh, no.' They should instead say, ‘Thank you.'

Joel Coleman is the Mississippi State beat writer for The Starkville Daily News. The opinions in this column are his and not necessarily the views of the SDN or its staff.

offense will be tough to do this weekend.

Quarterback Charlie Brand is really starting to put it all together for the Wolverine offense as he's closing in on 800 yards passing with 10 touchdowns and just one interception. The rushing attack has also been balanced by Brand's 238 yards and 179 and 159 yards respectively from Jon Austin Roberts and Jhi Rogers.

It will be East Webster's defense that will have to get it over the top this season in the district and that unit played well against Strayhorn. If the team is relatively healthy heading into the Eupora game next week, look for a barn burner between the Webster County rivals.