High school football south state preview: Gautier Gators

The Gautier Gators, led by head coach Marc High, find themselves 11-1 heading into their south state matchup against Brookhaven.

While they are currently preparing for a south state matchup, getting there was anything but easy. Gautier won their playoff opener over Natchez by scoring in the final minute to win 36-30 and won their second round playoff game over Wayne County by one point after stopping a two-point conversion. Coach High says that those games have proven that his team can win close games. Star linebacker Fred Nicholson spoke on the importance of home field advantage throughout the playoffs.

“It’s a lot,” Nicholson said. “We really wanted to get that because of our long winning streak at home. We have amazing fans that show up here every Friday. we really have homefield advantage and it was a really big goal of ours.”

“I have called this group the cardiac kids because they have almost given me a heart attack five times this year,” coach High said. “It shows their resilience. They are able to come through when the game is on the line. Big time players make big time plays. We have been here before, we know what it takes, and Brookhaven has a really good team. Two 11-1 teams, it’s going to be a heavyweight fight, and we are looking forward to it.”