When he thinks about the history of Porter’s Chapel Academy football, head coach Blake Purvis shakes his head in frustration.

When he played at the school in the mid-2000s, some of the best teams in school history had the bad luck of drawing that year’s eventual state champion early in the bracket. More recently, when he was the coach, the same scenario has occurred.

Porter’s Chapel (8-4) will go on the road Friday to West Helena, Arkansas, to play DeSoto School (10-0) in the second round of the MAIS Class 2A playoffs. It’s the third consecutive season in which the Eagles have won their first playoff game and then had to face the No. 1 seed the following week.

“Obviously, the deeper you got the better the year is. Unfortunate for us we fell where we fell and we get to go see No. 1 here instead of getting them later or even on the opposite side of the bracket,” Purvis said. “The ultimate goal is to win it all. If you’re going to win it all you’re going to have to beat the best that’s in there whenever you see them. We just happen to see them a round earlier than we did last year.”

Rather than curse their bad luck, the Eagles are accepting the challenge head on. They’re coming off one of their best games of the season in a 48-22 blowout of Park Place in the first round and have been almost unstoppable on offense.

Quarterback Jase Jung has obliterated the Warren County single-season rushing yardage (3,552) and touchdown (47) records, and his backfield mate Auston Moore has also run for more than 650 yards and 12 touchdowns. As a team, the Eagles are averaging around 350 rushing yards and 42 points per game.

Against Park Place, the Eagles also added a new wrinkle with an effective passing game. Jung, Moore and Chad Fuson combined to throw nine passes — the most the team has attempted in a game this season. They only completed three, but all of them went for long touchdowns.

Being able to hit those big passing plays, Purvis said, will be important against DeSoto. He’s confident the team can run the ball on anyone, but pushing a defender or two back off the line of scrimmage will make that a lot easier.

“With our offensive line and Jase and the run game, if we can get people to tighten up down in there it gives us a chance to take those shots over the top,” Purvis said. “And if they’re trying to defend that then it loosens the box and maybe makes life easier in the run game.”

Purvis said another reason to be optimistic about his team’s chances on Friday is a past failure. DeSoto routed Porter’s Chapel 52-14 in the Class 2A semifinals last season, on its way to an undefeated season and state championship.

While it was obviously disappointing, Purvis thinks the entire experience — from the long trip north, to seeing the game day atmosphere — will help the second time around.

“I think going up there last year is going to be a big help to us. They know what to expect. Last year was a lot of unfamiliarity for a lot of reasons. Now these guys that have been there last year know what they’re going up there to see,” Purvis said. “They know the atmosphere they’re going to be in. It’s a hostile environment. It’s one of the toughest places to play a road game. But I think they know that, they’ve talked about it, and mentally they’ll be prepared for that and hopefully take some of that edge off early on and be ready to come out and play football in the first quarter.”

And however things turn out, Purvis was proud of how this group of seniors has helped resurrect a struggling program.
PCA had a run of 12 consecutive seasons from 2009-20 with a record of .500 or below, but has been a playoff regular and championship contender the past four years. It won a playoff game in each of the past three.

The success has reset expectations for the program, and a win over the reigning Class 2A champion and current No. 1 playoff seed would raise the bar even higher.

“Your expectation now is the playoffs, and winning games. When you get in you expect you can play with anybody in the bracket. These guys have worked to that,” Purvis said. “That’s what they talk about and what they expect to do. For three years in a row they’ve done it. As a program, we’ve built and created that mindset and I think it has contributed to the success that we’ve had.”

MAIS Class 2A playoffs
All games Friday, Nov. 8, at. 7 p.m.
Porter’s Chapel at DeSoto School (Radio: 104.5 FM; Livestream on YouTube)
Newton Academy at Ben’s Ford
Tunica Academy at Prairie View
Delta Academy at Humphreys Academy