[6/30/03]There’s no truth to the rumor that the Jackson Passing League will be renamed the Vicksburg Passing League. If Vicksburg High keeps dominating the summer football league the way it has, though, organizers may have to consider it.

The Gators will go for their fourth straight JPL championship when the league’s playoffs begin on Tuesday. The double-elimination tournament begins at 4 p.m. behind Hughes Field in Jackson. Admission is free.

VHS is 8-3 this summer, has beaten all three teams it lost to and is a favorite to win another title. To hear VHS coach Alonzo Stevens tell it, only the Gators can keep themselves from winning.

“I hope we just don’t act like the Lakers, and get complacent,” Stevens said. “I warned those guys about being complacent, because everybody is gunning for us.”

At the top of the list of teams seeking to dethrone the Gators are the Jackson-area schools. Lanier and Murrah have beaten VHS this summer, although the Gators won in rematches.

Jim Hill, Provine, Terry, and Madison Central will also provide stiff challenges. The tournament brackets haven’t been set yet, but Stevens joked that the Jackson schools would all love to get their shot at the Gators.

“They’ve got a lot of bad blood. They’ve teased us all summer that it’s the Vicksburg Passing League,” Stevens said with a laugh. “I told (players) to look for the worst. Last year they fixed us where we had to play Jim Hill, Provine, Madison Central, and then Callaway for the championship. I think Provine had eight downs in that game.”

Other than building rivalries, playing in the JPL has helped build the VHS program over the past four years. VHS has played in the championship game each season it has been in the league, and won the last three.

The experience of winning has paid off in the fall. VHS advanced to the North State title game in 2001, and was a Region 2-5A co-champion last season.

“It’s good for us, because it’s what it’s going to take this year. We want to be mentally tough early. We’ve been to North State, we’ve been district co-champs, there isn’t anything left to do but play on that last Friday,” Stevens said. “It’s a confidence builder. Speed-wise, athleticism-wise, you’re not going to find any better than the Jackson schools. That’s good for us to play those guys.”

Playing in the league as well as at several summer camps has also helped the Gators skill players gain valuable game experience at their positions. James Jackson, A.J. Hicks, and Eugene Morgan are locked in a three-way battle for the starting quarterback job, and the playing time has helped all three, Stevens said.

Speedy receivers like Ben Shelton and Maurice Taylor, both returning starters, are also getting plenty of repetitions with all three QBs. That will help ease the transition from two-year starter Justin Henry to a new signal-caller, and keep the Gators’ potent offense firing.

“Playing with Justin, you get spoiled,” Stevens said of Henry, who threw for 3,484 yards and 30 touchdowns in his three-year varsity career. “Jackson, Morgan, and A.J. all have great ability. They just need to work on their reads.

“The Mississippi State camp really helped Jackson and A.J., because they got a chance to play. The more reps they get, the more it’s going to help us during the season.”