A year ago, Josh Perry and Clayton Holmes weren’t even students at Porters Chapel Academy. Tonight, they’ll take the field as two of the best football players the school has seen.

The Eagles’ backfield duo, who combined for more than 5,000 yards and 55 touchdowns this season, will play what is likely their final high school game in the Mississippi Private School Association’s All-Star Game at Mississippi College. Kickoff is at 6 p.m.

“We’re lucky that we have another football game to play. Not everybody gets this opportunity,” Perry said. “It’s definitely special. You just want to enjoy it while it’s here because when it’s gone, it’s gone.”

Perry and Holmes both transferred to PCA for their senior year — Perry from Warren Central and Holmes from St. Aloysius. They immediately turned PCA from a team with playoff aspirations into a championship contender.

Holmes threw for 1,574 yards and 19 touchdowns at quarterback, and ran for 909 yards and another 12 TDs. Perry, a tailback, rushed for 1,537 yards and 19 touchdowns. Together, they also returned five kicks for touchdowns as PCA averaged 38 points per game. They also played key roles on defense, with Perry making 119 tackles at linebacker and Holmes intercepting a team-high five passes at safety.

With the two backs getting the bulk of the carries, PCA rolled to a 13-1 record and the MPSA Class A South State championship game. It was the school’s third trip to the semifinals in four seasons.

“The addition of those two kids, without a doubt, put us over the top. We had a good core coming back, but they really filled two positions that we needed. We would not have gotten where we were without them,” PCA coach Randy Wright said. “They were great athletes, but they were also great kids. They were very coachable and did everything we asked.”

Holmes will likely play quarterback for the South in the all-star game. Perry, though, has been working at wide receiver. It’s a position he played at Warren Central, but he was moved to tailback at PCA because of his size and the team’s needs. Perry said the move back to receiver hasn’t been a tough one.

“It’s a little odd. But I played receiver at Warren Central so I feel comfortable at receiver. That’s actually my first position,” said Perry, who caught seven passes out of the backfield this season, for 106 yards and two touchdowns.

Holmes said he’d definitely try to throw a few balls Perry’s way if both are on the field at the same time tonight.

“If we’re in the game at the same time I’m going to look for him because I know he’s an impact player,” said Holmes, who had 2,042 yards passing and 2,164 rushing in a four-year high school career that included stops at Tallulah Academy, St. Aloysius and PCA. Holmes also ran for 24 career touchdowns. “I’m glad we both made it, instead of just one of us.”

*

Contact Ernest Bowker at ebowker@vicksburgpost.com.