THE OFFICIAL SITE OF
Gautier High School Athletics

When talk among Mississippi high school football fans turns to championship contenders in Class 5A, one hears the usual suspects mentioned: West Point, West Jones, Picayune, Lafayette. But lately, fans are hearing some buzz about a dark horse, and it’s a team from the Gulf Coast. After a 2-0 start, the Gautier Gators are starting to get some attention from fans across the state. Gautier’s 52-41 victory over Pascagoula on Sept. 3 turned heads everywhere, both for some of the eye-popping statistics and the way the Gators won — taking an early lead, falling behind and rallying in the second half. “I think the thing we’ve been trying to instill is belief, and finish,” said Gautier head coach Marc High. “And we talk big about family. We want to be a big family here, bring family dynamics to the program.” The Gators are hoping to represent the Gulf Coast in postseason, where success has been sporadic in recent seasons. Picayune won state championships in 2011 and 2013, but the last time a team from the three coastal counties (Hancock, Harrison and Jackson) won a state title was in 2009, when St. Stanislaus won it in Class 4A. Before that, one has to go back to 2002, when D’Iberville took home the Class 5A championship. While High likes the attention his program is getting, he says talking about a championship is premature. Gautier showed up in several statewide polls last week and received votes in the Associated Press state rankings. “It does (feel good), but it’s like we tell the kids, these rankings mean nothing,” said High. “The only rankings that mean anything are at the end of the year. “All these accomplishments, all these trophies everybody’s talking about, they’re the ones that are catching dust. The gold football trophy at the end, if we’re fortunate enough to win one, is dustless; it will never catch dust.” To get there, Gautier relies on a pass-happy offense, led by junior quarterback Kaden Irving. As a sophomore, Irving led all Mississippi quarterbacks in passing yards per game, throwing for 2,399 yards in seven games, an average of 342.7 yards. Irving completed 167 of 263 passes (63.5%) for 15 touchdowns and only five interceptions as the Gators finished 5-4 (including two forfeits because of COVID-19). “I think the new Air Raid offense that we started last year is what has brought everybody to the scene here in Gautier,” said Irving. “It’s a fun thing to watch. Everybody gets the ball, and I’m throwing it every play.” After an average game in the season opener against Provine, a 33-7 win, Irving and Co. aired it out for real in the win over Pascagoula. Irving was 28 of 40 passing for 485 yards and six touchdowns, and he also ran for a score. With the two schools less than 10 miles apart, and sharing the same school district, winning over the Panthers for the second straight season, after losing 11 straight in the series, was sweet indeed. “The first game, we definitely weren’t hitting on all cylinders, but we made up for it in the second game,” said Irving. “We like games where we have to fight. Our offense is a big-play offense, and we were able to make some plays. “It felt good at the time to beat Pascagoula, but now that we’re past it, it’s not that big of a deal. We’re just worried about the next game up.” That game will be another Jackson County clash, this one at home against Moss Point, which is coming off an impressive 47-35 win over Vancleave this past Friday. The Gators had an open date last week, which High was fine with after an emotional win over Pascagoula. “It just kind of fell that way,” said High. “At first, when we made the schedule out, we looked to get a game for that week. A lot of people like (an open date) right before region. But the way it kind of fell out, it worked out best for us, with the way everything’s going for us.” Now in his fourth season as the head coach, High is a native of Stone County who played on two South State championship teams at Stone High in the early 1990s. After a 3-8 season in 2019, High put in the pass-happy offense last year and has seen his team’s profile grow. “Last year, everybody started tagging us the Air Raid, so I guess we just stuck with it,” said High. “I think it was (Mississippi State coach) Mike Leach coming around saying ‘air raid, air raid,’ and the kids started buying into it. “They liked it, so now we’ve got some shirts being made with Air Raid on the front. We’re going to take what you give us, and we’ve got some guys that we feel like do a good job of spinning the ball.” ‘THE BEST QUARTERBACK’ IN KADEN IRVING Gautier has plenty of weapons for Irving to throw to. Chief among these is junior Aaron Phillips, who caught six passes for 155 yards and two touchdowns against Pascagoula. “In my opinion, it’s the best offense you can run,” said Phillips. “Having the best quarterback like Kaden Irving is something that can’t be stopped. And we’ve got other receivers who can make plays, and if we all stay on the same page, we can win every game we play.” Indeed, the Gators also feature senior Ayden Morgan, who has 13 catches for 194 yards and a pair of scores in the first two games, including 10 receptions for 130 yards and a touchdown against Pascagoula. “I feel like as a player, I just need to continue to be a leader, get better at being a leader and keep everybody in the same state of mind,” Irving said. One of Irving’s biggest weapons is his size and athleticism. A stout young man at 6-foot-2, 220 pounds, Irving is also a top-level baseball player who has already committed to Ole Miss for baseball. “(My size) gives me an advantage,” said Irving. “I’m not easy to bring down; it’s hard for just one person to get me to the ground. “I take things from a lot of quarterbacks that I watch, but I’d have to say the one that I try to emulate the most is (Kansas City Chiefs star) Patrick Mahomes, just because we’re similar. We’re both physical and we can throw the ball from all different arm angles.” LINEMAN BRYSTON HURST With as much offensive firepower the Gators possess, the player getting the most attention from college recruiters is left tackle Bryson Hurst. A Dandy Dozen selection by the Jackson Clarion-Ledger, Hurst is the most sought-after lineman in the state and has committed to Ole Miss. “When you’re 6-6, 350 (pounds) and can run the way he can, that’s why he has 13-14-15 (Division I) offers,” said High. “Being a big guy like that, and being able to do what he can, it allows us to do some things we might be able to do otherwise.” Hurst says his No. 1 job is to, “keep people off Kaden’s back. That’s what the left tackle usually does. “The biggest thing I need to do is get stronger,” Hurst said. “Right now, I squat about 625 (pounds), and I’m trying to get that up. I just need to improve in every way, although I think I have the best footwork.” Hurst’s agility comes in handy when Irving has to wing it when a play breaks down. “I’ve been playing with Kaden since Peewee football,” said Phillips. “We’ve been on the same page our whole lives. “He sees everything on the field, so if a certain route isn’t open, I can go to him and work it out to where I get open. He’ll call a play out of the playbook, but he can adjust it to where I can get open and make a play. One thing about Kaden, he’s going to make sure you can make a play.” REGION CHANGES After the Moss Point game this week, Gautier jumps into Region 4-5A play on Sept. 24 at George County. Later in the season, the Gators confront challenges from Vancleave, East Central and, of course, Picayune, which has dominated the region in recent years. The makeup of the region has changed noticeably this season, with Hattiesburg and Wayne County moving to Region 3-5A. Pascagoula moved up to Class 6A, replaced by West Harrison, and George County dropped from 6A, while Vancleave moved up from 4A. But, as High said, “Picayune is still Picayune, and we’ve had some great battles with them the last few years. We’ve gone to overtime with them; last year, it was the last play of the game. So that’s definitely a hurdle for us. “George County’s come in and they’ve got a couple of elite guys, so they’re going to be extremely tough. Our region is a little different, because we have a lot of power-run teams, so we know that when we get through these first three games, we’re going to see some sure-enough tight end wing sets, full-house backfields that we’re going to have to prepare for.” However, High also thinks his team has the mentality to handle adversity that a tough schedule brings. “We talk to them a lot about how to overcome adversity, discipline,” said High. “Anything that we think can help us win a football game, we sit down and discuss it. “A lot of it is just in the big games — and we’ve been in a lot of big games in the past four years, going toe-to-toe with Picayune, Wayne County, Hattiesburg — there’s no off week. So, I think that’s gotten through to the kids.”

THE OFFICIAL SITE OF
Gautier High School Athletics

AIR RAID OFFENSE AND QB ‘THAT CAN’T BE STOPPED’ HAS GAUTIER TURNING HEADS ACROSS MS

STAN CALDWELL

Sun Herald | 9/14/2021

PHOTO CREDIT: HANNAH RUHOFF