Poplar Bluff throws around Fox to advance

POPLAR BLUFF — Jeridon Young had a defender on his feet after catching a short pass a few yards short of the end zone. The Poplar Bluff senior managed to hop over the goal line for quarterback Mason West’s third touchdown Friday night.

“No matter what it took, I just wanted to get in,” said Young, who scored his first touchdown of the season early in the fourth quarter.

Darrius Graham also crossed the goal line with a defender tugging on his jersey in the first half while Chris Matlock caught a 55-yard touchdown pass in the third quarter. The Mules played pitch and catch nearly to perfection to beat Fox 30-0 in the MSHSAA Class 5 District 1 quarterfinal at Mules Stadium.

“They did a good job of taking away our outside game and their two inside linebackers make a lot of plays,” Mules coach David Sievers said. “They do a good job. They’re big and they’re physical.

“Luckily we were able to throw the ball around a little bit.”

West finished with a career-best 326 passing yards on 16 of 23 passes. Matlock led with seven catches for 182 yards while Graham caught four passes for 79 yards.

Poplar Bluff’s three running backs — Makel McFarland, Atari Amos and Amare White — combined for 93 rushing yards.

“Take what they give you,” Sievers said. “We ran the ball just enough to keep them honest.”

Poplar Bluff (5-5) travels Friday to The Pit to face top-seeded Jackson (6-3) in the district semifinal.

“It’s an opportunity,” Young said. “Truly blessed to be there as a group, go convert and try to get to the ’ship.”

It’s the eighth straight year the Mules have reached the semifinal but they’ve yet to play in the championship game since the current playoff format that started in 2012.

Jackson, which has won the last four district titles, beat the Mules 35-7 on September 16 and has won eight straight against Poplar Bluff, including three times in the postseason.

Last year, Poplar Bluff lost to Seckman 35-34 in the semifinal as a late comeback ended up a yard short.

The Mules faced a similar situation near the goal line to start their first drive Friday night.

On a fourth-and-1 after a Fox penalty put the ball 2 yards short of the goal line, the Mules were hit for a loss to turn the ball over on downs.

Poplar Bluff defensive lineman Kayson King made a tackle for a loss on third down to force Fox to punt from its own 4. The snap then sailed over the punter’s head and out of the end zone for a safety.

The Mules led 2-0 with 2:04 left in the opening quarter.

It was the second time this season Poplar Bluff led 2-0 and the third safety by the Mules defense.

On the ensuing drive, West hit Graham for passes of 20 and 30 yards before McFarland found an opening for a 19-yard touchdown run with four seconds left in the quarter.

“We weren’t real fluid tonight on offense but a lot of it was what Fox did,” Sievers said. “They took away what we wanted to do. They gave us something different than what they did all year long on film.”

In the previous meeting four weeks earlier, the teams were tied at 7-all by halftime. This time the Mules were able to score twice before the break, both after turnovers.

King’s sack forced a fumble on a third-and-15 that Lincoln Warren recovered for the Mules at their own 45. West hit Romeoh Wontor for a 30-yard pass and Matlock for a short pass before finding Graham. The junior stretched over the goal line with 2:06 left in the half to put the Mules up 16-0.

Poplar Bluff never punted but turned the ball over on downs three times while Fox intercepted a pair of passes, one in the final minute of the first half and the other 64 seconds into the second half.

“They did a good job of taking away what we wanted to do because what we wanted to do was run to the edge,” Sievers said.

Fox (2-8) got inside the Mules 20-yard line once in the third quarter but a fumbled snap was recovered by Poplar Bluff’s DJ Hubrins.

Fox committed four turnovers with three fumbles and an interception by Graham in the final minute of the first half.

Poplar Bluff got to the Fox 30 with 12 seconds left, but West’s pass was picked off by Fox defensive back Kevin Nguyen at the 1-yard line.

Poplar Bluff’s defense finally got its first shutout of the season and held Fox to 112 total yards. It was the first shutout by the Mules in 19 games since Week 2 last season against DeSoto.

Matlock’s 55-yard touchdown catch and run with 3:08 left in the third quarter capped an eight-play, 90-yard drive as the Mules led 23-0.

Young's touchdown catch finished a six-play, 91-yard drive.

“It was an extremely ugly 30-point win, but it’s better than a really pretty 2-point loss,” Sievers said.

As the fourth seed, Poplar Bluff, which improved to 4-2 in the postseason at Mules Stadium, will not have another home game unless the Mules reach the state playoffs, which start November 19.

The other semifinal features third-seeded Cape Central at second-seeded Oakville.