A ragtag group of players from different places and backgrounds come together, fight through adversity, and ultimately win the big game.

This is a classic sports movie plot – and the real-life arc of the Magnolia Wildcats football season.

The homeschool program had a storybook ending to its inaugural season by winning the Mid-South Christian Football League championship. They won five of their last six games, capped by a 44-6 loss to the Faith Explorers in the conference title game on Nov. 2, to finish with a 6-3-1 record.

“It was great, because we were building the whole season. It was great to see new guys coming in and our team improving all the way to the championship. It was an amazing feeling,” said junior offensive lineman Dylan Britt, a Vicksburg resident. “We did a lot better than I thought we would. I didn’t think we would get where we were going, let alone have it be a championship blowout.

The Wildcats formed in early 2024 with the goal of providing home school students in central Mississippi the opportunity to participate in sports. In addition to the football team, they fielded a girls softball team this fall.

The program is a group of home school associations. About a third of the initial roster of 31 football players came from Vicksburg, but others hailed from the Jackson metro area and as far away as Brookhaven. The other four members of the Mid-South Christian Football League were similarly constructed, although they came from other areas of Mississippi and Louisiana.

Sophomore lineman Thomas Patterson said the team’s makeup presented some unique challenges. Unlike public and private schools where players form bonds, friendships and chemistry through their shared school experiences, the Wildcats had to do so almost exclusively during their two-hour football practices.

“It was a journey. We did not have the opportunity, like most public or private schools, to see each other for several hours each day. It took a little longer than most public or private schools, but we did it throughout the season and throughout practices, becoming closer and closer like a family,” Patterson said . “You can see it in our games. At first we were less coordinated and we didn’t know each other either. As we progressed through the season, we got better, but we also got closer.

The Wildcats also experienced roster changes and injuries during the first half of the season.

A 56-0 loss to Wilkinson County Christian Academy, an established team that won its district championship in the Mid-South Association of Independent Schools, left the Wildcats battered and bruised. Several starters were injured and had to cancel two matches.

Around the same time, several new players joined the team and quickly worked their way into the lineup. It took a few weeks to reboot and get everyone on the same page, but eventually the reinforcements meshed with the originals to move things in the right direction.

“We had some changes with the staff, some coaches left, but a few players joined us midway through the season. Kids who had a lot of potential and raw talent, said Wildcats head coach James Honeycutt. “We worked with them and it boosted the morale of the team. Once we started playing the playoff games, we realized we had a really good thing, so we kept pushing.

According to the players, the turning point came at the end of September. The Wildcats lost 40-22 to Faith Christian Home School in their conference opener, then knocked off the Hattiesburg Pine Belt Spartans 44-14 the following week and the New Orleans Home School Saints 80-0 thereafter .

“It was my second game when we finally started to get our defense and offense going. After that we were able to play,” said sophomore linebacker Rylan Fuller, who led the team with 57 tackles after joining midseason. “It took a minute to get everyone on the same page. It was a bit difficult at first. But then we finally came together as a team and were able to get through the season.

The playoffs turned into a victory march for the Wildcats. They beat the Saints again in the semifinals, 60-0, as Ethan Parker threw four touchdown passes and Byron Jones Jr. caught three.

The championship game was another blowout, 44-6 over the Jackson-based Faith Explorers. Braeden Donaldson totaled 217 yards and four touchdowns on just six carries, along with five tackles and a fumble recovery on defense.

“Looking at that scoreboard, you pause for a minute and ask yourself, ‘Am I looking at this, right?’ It was hard to believe at first,” Patterson said.

Patterson and Donaldson said the Wildcats’ trip created memories and a feeling of family — literally and figuratively. Patterson’s father, Brad, is an assistant coach for the team, and sharing this season with him is something he cherishes.

“The most important thing is doing this with my dad,” Thomas Patterson said. “Being able to share the wins and losses, being able to learn from him and looking at that scoreboard with him – 44-6 – that’s something I’ll never forget.”
Donaldson, meanwhile, said he felt a unique bond with his teammates by being on this adventure together.

“It was incredible. For a freshman team to be able to come together and work as a family — not just a team and a fraternity, but a family — to win together was incredible,” said Donaldson, who had 531 yards and eight touchdowns this season. . “It was great. We never had any problems with each other. We always stayed together and did all this together.

Honeycutt said the Wildcats will soon host an awards banquet for the team and begin preparations for their sophomore season. Registration will open this week and spring training will begin in late February. Only three seniors – Donaldson, receiver Corey Magee and linebacker Roman Tuminello – were on this year’s roster, so hopes are high for 2025.

The machinery of football will soon move forward, but the legacy and memories of the 2024 Wildcats will last forever. Not only winning a championship, but doing it in the program’s first season was special, the players said. Future versions of the Wildcats might be better, but no one can take away what they did in coming together to become their first championship team.

“I’ve been thinking all year about how I just started something with a team that started like nobody’s business. There’s a lot of different guys and types of kids, and we’ve built a huge run that I hope lasts a long time,” Donaldson said. “It’s special to be able to do this with the first team, the first coach, the first defense, first of all. It was special.

About Ernest Bowker

Ernest Bowker is the sports editor of the Vicksburg Post. He has been a member of the Vicksburg Post sports staff since 1998, making him one of the longest-serving journalists in the paper’s 140-year history. The New Jersey native graduated from LSU. During his career, he won more than 50 awards from the Mississippi Press Association and the Associated Press for his coverage of local sports in Vicksburg.

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