6A South Playoffs: Brandon tops Harrison Central 39-13, but loses star tailback Nate Blount to injury

BRANDON — The story coming out of Bulldog Stadium Friday night could have been top-seeded Brandon’s dominant 39-13 first-round win over Harrison Central.

And it was, until one fateful play in the third quarter.

The Bulldogs’ sensational tailback Nate Blount left the game with what appeared to be a serious injury to his shoulder and did not return. The sophomore had rushed 16 times for 108 yards and a touchdown when he went down.

He walked the sidelines with a sling on his left shoulder after the game.

“We’ll have to wait and see,” Brandon coach Sam Williams said. “We’ll find out tomorrow how bad it is. Could be good, could be bad, but if it is we’ll go with that ‘next man up’ mentality. It’s the playoffs, and nobody is going to feel bad for us.”

The Bulldogs (9-2) will face Warren Central in the second round next week in Brandon. The Vikings (8-3) defeated D’Iberville 30-21 Friday night on the coast.

The Bulldogs beat the Vikings 38-20 back on Oct. 1, and appeared fully capable of doing it again based on how the played against Harrison Central (6-4) Friday night.

Brandon got on the board on their second possession with two explosive plays. Quarterback Landon Varnes connected with receiver Devin Thigpen for a 40-yard gain, then hit Lester Miller for the 25-yard touchdown pass over the middle of the field to take a 7-0 lead.

The Bulldogs drove it to the Rebels’ seven-yard line on their next possession, but Varnes got picked off in the end zone by Kieron Jones.

Harrison Central went on a monster drive on the ensuing possession, going from their own one-yard line to the Brandon 37 in 16 plays, before the drive stalled. The Rebels handed the ball to Raymond Collins on 4th-and-3, but he was gobbled up by a host of Bulldogs in the backfield for a three-yard loss to get the turnover on downs.

Brandon capitalized on the turnover, going 60 yards in eight plays and taking the 15-0 lead on Blount’s three-yard touchdown run with 6:29 left in the second quarter.

Bulldog senior defensive back Chris Brooks jumped a route on a screen pass and came up with an interception with 1:57 left in the first half. Williams dialed up a trick play on 3rd-&-goal from the seven yard line, but it was called back for illegal touching and the Bulldogs settled for a field goal to take the 18-0 lead into the half.

They got an onside kick to open the second half and, three plays later, stretched the lead to 25-0 on freshman Daylon Stewart’s 26-yard end-around run.

And so it went — the Bulldog defense kept the Rebels’ splendid quarterback Christian Turner guessing all night, with Harrison Central’s two touchdowns coming late against the Brandon second string.

Blount’s injury came on the second possession of the second half. Facing a 3rd-&-3 at the Harrison Central 12-yard line, Blount took the handoff and rushed for five yards before being met by a host of Rebels.

If Blount is unable to go next week against Warren Central, Brandon will need some other guys to step up. That starts with Jarvis Durr — the “dash” to Blount’s “smash” in this Bulldog offense.

“It’s time for me to show what I’ve got,” Durr said. “It’s time for me to put on a show in practice next week and then get this show on the road. It’ll be different, but we’ve got another back, Daylon Stewart, who knows and understands the game, so we should be good.”

Durr finished Friday’s game with 83 yards on 12 carries.

Quarterback Landon Varnes, who was coming off one of his best games of the year in a blowout win over Pearl, completed six of his 19 pass attempts for 97 yards.

“It feels good to be moving on to the next round,” Varnes said. “But we’ve got to attack every week from here on. I can’t wait to get back to it Monday. We always have confidence, but we know (Warren Central) is going to come in with some revenge on their minds, so it’s time to go to work.”