Harrison Central falls just shy to Callaway with 21-14 final score

GULFPORT, Miss. — Harrison Central welcomed Callaway for some Thursday night football, with the Red Rebels looking to rally after trailing 21-7 at halftime.

Harrison Central came out of the break looking to make things interesting, and freshman Xavier McCall helped spark the offense. McCall took the handoff and followed his blockers, powering his way down to the 30-yard line while dragging a defender with him to pick up valuable yardage.

The Red Rebels were pushed back on the next sequence, but quarterback Caleb Russell nearly made something happen out of a bad snap. Russell recovered the ball, rolled left, cut back to the right and dove toward the line to gain. However, he was ruled down just short of the first down.

Harrison Central’s defense then came up with a big stop. Sophomore defensive lineman Jarren Johnson stuffed the Callaway runner in the backfield for a huge tackle for loss. Da’Vontae Durr followed with another big stop at the line of scrimmage. The Red Rebel defense continued to pressure Callaway’s offense as the quarterback dropped deep into the backfield before being brought down by Jarren Jones and DaShawn Brooks. The play resulted in an 11-yard loss and kept Harrison Central within striking distance.

The Red Rebels eventually found the end zone to cut into the deficit, but the comeback came up just short. Callaway held on for a 21-14 victory over Harrison Central. The Red Rebels will begin regional play next week when they hit the road to face West Harrison.