When the MHSAA announced that this year’s football state championships would be returning to the campus of Southern Miss for the fourth time in six years, there was some pushback from those in the north half of the state. But after another successful weekend in Hattiesburg, the event hopefully found its permanent home.
It’s not due to the fact that Hattiesburg is just a short drive away for those who call Marion County home, but it’s a far better host site than Starkville or Oxford – and even Jackson.
The big advantage that Southern Miss has in its favor is a turf field. The other three major host sites all play on a grass field, which is not advantageous for hosting seven games across a three-day span. I much prefer grass over turf when it comes to picking a playing surface for one game per week, but the football state championships are a different animal.
I think back to last year’s championships that were held at Ole Miss. The stadium was a great venue, and the facilities outclass Southern Miss’ (though not by an outrageous amount), but the field was, shall we say, in less than stellar condition by the time we saw Columbia square off against Louisville. Even though it was the first game of that day, a Saturday, the contest came after a weekend full of rain which meant that the conditions were going to be sloppy to begin with. Pair that with four games played on that same field in the preceding two days, and there was plenty of slipping and falling.
I get that it’s considered “football weather” when there’s rain or a muddy field (or snow, but we live in the South), but it becomes a bit of a safety concern when the field’s been chewed up by players’ cleats across an entire weekend. It’s something that is worth considering.
Another point in Hattiesburg’s favor is that, aside from Jackson, it’s the best host location-wise. Sure, it’s well South in proximity, but I’d argue that it’s the easiest to get to. Oxford isn’t far from an interstate, sure, but it’s still a good 30-minute drive from Interstate 55 to the campus of Ole Miss. Conversely, Southern Miss is just a five-minute drive, give or take, from Interstate 59. The campus is also right off of U.S. 49, which by far makes it the most convenient for travel.
Both Hattiesburg and Oxford are less than 90 minutes away from Tennessee, in Oxford’s case, or the Gulf of Mexico, in Hattiesburg’s case. Both are the two extremes when it comes to how far they are from the center of the state, so the facilities have to be the determining factor here.
I don’t know if this is a hot take or not, but I enjoyed when the state championships were played in Jackson. Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium was supposed to host the 2021 championships, but the site was moved to Hattiesburg after Deion Sanders’ Jackson State Tigers were in a position to host the SWAC Championship. Because of this, Mississippi’s capital city hasn’t hosted the event since 2013. It’s the place where I’d go to see the big game growing up, and I’d like to see it go back there some time if the rotation continues.
You can speculate on what the reasons are why the MHSAA hasn’t gone back to Jackson. The reported reason for the departure in 2014 was due to financial disagreements between the MHSAA and Jackson State University.
But how did this year’s state championships go, you might ask? Without a hitch.
I attended the Class 6A State Championship matchup between Grenada and Hattiesburg, and what an atmosphere it was. I knew I was going to a game Saturday, but I had to choose between that and the Class 4A final of Louisville and Poplarville. In hindsight, I probably should have gone to the latter, but the prospect of seeing Hattiesburg play in front of its hometown crowd was too rich to pass up. And the fans showed up and showed out, filling the visitor’s section of The Rock to make the stadium as full as I’ve seen in at least a couple of years.
It was easy as pie to get in and out of the stadium, and there was no hassle to be found anywhere. It was an enjoyable experience, despite Grenada making it a not-so-enjoyable game with a 43-14 beatdown of the home team – and believe me, Grenada deserves all the praise for winning the way it did in that environment.
Combining a turf field, environment and location, Southern Miss is clearly the best option in the state of Mississippi. If Jackson State implemented a turf field (I’m not sure I’d be in favor because, again, grass fields are always better if given the choice between the two), I’d like to see them resume hosting duties. But because of Jackson's grass, Hattiesburg gets the pass.
