Boniol works into fine form for Starkville

Starkville and Pearl are not surprised to be in this position.

The Yellowjackets and Pirates are exactly where they thought they would be tonight, which is playing in Oxford's Vaught-Hemingway Stadium for the Class 6A State championship.

Pearl has been the No. 1 team in 6A from week one to this point and breezed through a 15-0 regular season. For SHS, it was expected that it would make a run to the finale either with the enthusiasm brought by new coach Chris Jones and the talent returning from a seven-win team that missed out on the playoffs.

Jones' last memory of the 2016 season was holding the gold trophy on the field at Davis Wade Stadium in Starkville as a state champion for Kemper County. He said his first Jacket team is just as prepared for this moment as the Wildcats were in Class 3A.

| Page 8 Note: Admission for games at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium for state championships is $15 for all ages. Individuals that leave the stadium have to pay to re-enter. Also, a clear-bag policy will not be enforced, but any bags will be searched. Stadium gates will open one hour prior to kickoff of first game. Garrin Boniol has a plan.

As the kicker for the Starkville Yellowjackets, there's not a day that goes by that Boniol doesn't look to get better.

The work ethic of Boniol is what impressed SHS coach Chris Jones immediately in his first season with the team.

“He's prepared for something bigger than this and the college level,” Jones said. “He's preparing for the NFL. He comes out and warms up 20 minutes early. He lifts weights and he's always doing something.

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