Friday’s River City Rivalry game against Warren Central is important to the Vicksburg Gators on a lot of levels.

It’s an opportunity to get back in the win column and shake off the unevenness that has plagued them this season. It’s the difference between being involved in the Region 2-6A championship picture, or needing to win out just to get into the playoffs.

Mostly, though, it boils down to one thing for VHS head coach Christopher Lacey.

“To me, it’s about us getting some respect more than anything,” Lacey said. “We lost the seventh-grade game, we lost the eighth-grade game, we lost the ninth-grade game and we lost this game last year. The last time we won was 2011. In my mind, we just have to get some respect. Respect is earned. Our objective is to go out here and earn our respect.”

Warren Central (4-2, 1-0 MHSAA Region 2-6A) has beaten Vicksburg in 34 of their 42 meetings, including the last 11 in a row.

The Gators’ only sustained run of success against Warren Central was a string of six wins in seven years from 2005-11. That was followed by the current losing streak, in which Vicksburg has scored an average of seven points per game.

Reversing that overall trend, Lacey said, starts with breaking the current one. The last two meetings with the Vikings have been decided by a total of three points, but simply staying close is not good enough, Lacey said.

“We compete in everything, even whose grass is the best-looking grass on campus. At the same time, we haven’t beaten them. My biggest thing is stop just trying to be OK and going to the game, keep it close and be competitive. No. We want to go out there and beat them,” Lacey said. “One win isn’t going to cure 34 wins. In my eyes, we just have to start something now and start some consistency and get it done.”

Consistency is another issue the Gators (4-2, 0-1) have had trouble with during their first six games this season. They were able to overcome double-digit deficits in the second half to beat Natchez and Terry, but couldn’t find the same magic in last week’s 21-20 loss to Neshoba Central in the Region 2-6A opener.

Lacey said a number of little mistakes added up to cause the Gators problems.

“We killed drives on play clock issues and things of that nature” against Neshoba Central, Lacey said. “We dropped passes. Little stuff like that, and it was all discipline. That’s what we’re going to try to work on this week.”

If they don’t, the Gators will have some serious work to do in the Region 2-6A playoff picture. An 0-2 start would end their chances of earning a second consecutive region championship, while likely forcing them to run the table in their last three league games just to secure a berth in the Class 6A playoffs.

“These are district championship games,” Lacey said. “It’s going to come down to us, Warren Central and Neshoba Central. We failed at the first test of it. We get another opportunity this week to go out and try and put ourselves back on good footing. We have to handle our business.”

FRIDAY’S AREA GAMES
All games start at 7 p.m.
Vicksburg High at Warren Central (Radio: 107.7 and 105.5 FM)
St. Aloysius at Manchester (Radio: 101.3 FM)
Wilkinson Christian at Porter’s Chapel (Radio: 104.5 FM)
Tallulah Academy at River Oaks
Sharkey-Issaquena Academy at Claiborne Academy
Central Hinds at Tri-County
Clinton Christian at Port Gibson
Madison Parish at Mangham