Rivalry Week: No. 4 Bulldogs prep for PRCC

PERKINSTON — No. 4 Mississippi Gulf Coast is in the midst of Rivalry Week, preparing for the 101^st meeting against Pearl River on Thursday. The Bulldogs are coming off a huge win at then-No. 6 East Mississippi, so there's got to be laser focus on the Wildcats.

"They beat us last year," Gulf Coast coach Jack Wright said. "They're our rival. But all these games are important. Last week was important; this week is important. Next week will be important. I think our kids know that. It's college football, and everybody has capable players and capable coaches. You have to go play every single play as hard as you can. They're our rival, and that means a lot to me and the people around here, but if you're a player, you have to play just as hard against them as anybody else."

Kickoff at A.L. May Memorial Stadium is set for 7 p.m. Tickets are on sale at http://mgcccbulldogs.com/tickets, and the game will be streamed at https://mgcccbulldogs.com/watch. The Bulldogs' radio broadcast can be heard on SuperTalk 103.1 FM. 

Gulf Coast is 4-0, having finished out non-division play last week. This will be the first of five straight South Division games to close out the regular season. The Bulldogs are aiming to extend a school-record four straight division titles, and that road hits PRCC (0-4, 0-1 South) this week.

The Wildcats found some offensive punch last week, dropping a heartbreaker to Hinds in overtime. As the Bulldogs' play-caller, they have Wright's attention.

"They're very, very good on defense," he said. "They don't give up a lot of big plays and they create a lot of havoc in the backfield. They're one of the top defense we've seen. There's a lot of speed over there, and they're sound. There's not a lot of people running open."

Gulf Coast was able to hold the Lions 27 points under their average last week, and the secondary was a big part of that. The Regulators broke up 10 passes last week, helping to slow down an explosive unit.

DK McGruder (So., Natchez/Adams County Christian) had three tackles and one of those PBUs.

"DK came off an injury," Wright said. "He didn't play against Southwest, but he bounced back and had a great game against East Mississippi. He was matched up against great receivers, sometimes in man, sometimes in zone. He reacted to the ball well and made a couple of good pass breakups. You could just feel his presence out there."

Game #5

WHO: Gulf Coast (4-0, 1-0 MACCC South) vs. Pearl River (0-4, 0-1 MACCC South)

WHEN: Thursday, Oct. 5, 7 p.m.

WHERE: A.L. May Memorial Stadium, Perkinston

WATCH: https://mgcccbulldogs.com/watch

LISTEN: SuperTalk 103.1 FM

The Series

Series record: Pearl River leads 56-43-1

First Meeting: 1926

Last Meeting: Sept. 29, 2022, Pearl River 24, Gulf Coast 14

Notes: Gulf Coast has won four of the last five, 10 of the last 12 meetings dating back to 2011, and 14 of the last 17 back to 2007 … Gulf Coast is averaging 26.6 points in the last 12 games, Pearl River 12.8 … Gulf Coast has seven shutouts in its 41 victories, the last of which came in 2014 … Pearl River has 19 shutouts, the last of which came in 2003 … Gulf Coast won six straight between 2011 and 2016 … Pearl River's longest win streak is 17 between 1953 and 1965 … The biggest Gulf Coast win in series history was a 52-7 win in 2008, while the biggest Pearl River win came in 1961 (60-6) … This is the only MACCC opponent Gulf Coast has a losing record against … Wright (4-1) has the second-best record among Gulf Coast coaches against Pearl River (Louis D. Megehee, 2-0).

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