Sims has led the Panthers to the postseason in 10 of his 14 years at the helm of Pascagoula. He’s also sent countless stars to the next level.
However, the 2025 team might possess the most football talent and have the closest relationship of any Pascagoula team in the last two decades.
“I’m super excited,” said Sims. “We’ve got a bunch of young men that are dedicated to the game of football. They are dedicated to each other. They’ve come out and worked really hard in the offseason to get to this point. You can tell they are tight by the way they hang out. They spend a lot of time together on the field and off the field, and you can see that. It’s been a fun year for me, and being in this thing 18 years as a head coach, this is a really special group.”
“It becomes bigger than football at the end of the day,” stated senior linebacker Jarrad Loper Jr. “At the end of the day, you want to have that bond. You want to have friends. You want to be able to say that you have more than just teammates — you have brothers. It’s a family."
“A lot of these guys are my homeboys,” described senior Tylan Wilson. “I grew up with them. I knew they could play and they were playing basketball. I was like, ‘Come play football for one year and see where that gets you.’ They came, and look at where they’re at now.”
“Everything we do out of school, our parents are always asking, ‘Who are you going with?” explained senior Tomareo Johnson. “It’s either Tylan Wilson, Jarrad Loper, all those guys. The whole team, we all get along. There’s no animosity. It’s a family here at Pascagoula.”
Five years ago, Pascagoula’s team began running its practices like a college program. There is a focus and intensity level that allows the Panthers to get an unprecedented amount of gamespeed reps before breaking down the tape following the session. With both sides of the ball littered with DI talent, there are very few practices as competitive as Pascagoula’s.
“Our guys get to go good against good out here every day and it’s tough,” added Sims. “We have guys that can play, guys that can get after it, so it really raises the level of competition. When you compete, it makes you better. You can’t take a play off. If you take a play off, you are going to get hammered.”
“It’s competitive every practice,” said senior runningback Amarie Jackson. “There’s going to be a little scuffle every now and then, but we make each other work.”
“We are all competitive,” described Loper. “The way we get on each other’s tails shows you how competitive this group is. Every day we’re going at it. The receivers and the defensive backs go at it every day. Me and Amarie go at it every day. There is never a dull moment.”
“Very excited for this season,” noted Johnson. “Our defense has guys in the front and the back. I’m just so excited. Our offense gives us competition and we make each other better for Fridays.”
Despite a defensive backfield equipped with numerous SEC guys, Pascagoula brings back four out of five offensive linemen from a season ago. A unit that helped the Panthers score 40+ points in half of their regular-season games in 2024 is ready to build on that success this season.
“Our offensive line has really stepped up this year,” said Sims. “They are really meshing together well. We’ve got to build a little depth there, but the way they’ve come together and the way they’ve worked together has been a real surprise for me.”
“They’re amazing,” stated Jackson. “We only lost one starter on the offensive line. Everybody else is back. We are looking to replace that starter and we have one guy who is banged up, but other than that, we’re straight.
“They’re dogs,” described Wilson. “We have Jeremiah [Moore] who is going to lead the pack, lead the offensive line. He is going to make sure that none of them are slacking and none of them are on the ground or walking off the field. He does all that for them and the whole team.”
“The intensity is great,” added Loper. “Our smallest lineman Jeremiah is so intense, and then we have big Thomas [Ashe] on the edge. It’s hard to get past them.”
With unlimited talent and a work ethic tough to match, the Panthers players have one goal in mind:
“A successful season for me would be a state championship, a gold ball,” listed Johnson. “Everybody on this team wants it bad. Last year hurt us, so we want it bad this year.”
“A successful season would be winning the gold ball,” said Wilson. “Not going to the gold ball. Winning the gold ball.”
“We all have that one goal to win the state championship, but we haven’t gotten past that hump,” described Loper. “We need to make it out of the second round.”
“State,” Jackson explained. “That gold ball. That’s what everybody wants, but we want it more.”
“Competing at the highest level possible every single day,” Sims said. “Not only games, but in practice... Click here to read full article
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