POPLARVILLE, Miss. — In November of 2019, Seth Smith took over a Pearl River football program that had been struggling to find its footing. Smith knew that it was going to take a lot of work to elevate the program back to its winning ways, but he never stopped striving for that goal. In 2022, the hard work started to show, and on Tuesday, the Mississippi Association of Community Colleges Conference named him South Division Coach of the Year.
"This award is an honor and is extremely humbling, but it's a direct reflection of our great coaches and players," Smith said. "They've put in so much work to help elevate this program. Their attitude, effort, and belief have been unwavering throughout this process. I'm just blessed to get to coach alongside these guys and blessed to get to coach these awesome young men.
"This award is absolutely because of them and reflective of them. I love these coaches and players so much and I just thank God that I get to work with them. I'm blessed to have the opportunity to be a small piece of this puzzle."
Smith's staff is comprised of defensive coordinator Ty Trahan, offensive coordinator David Chatham, running backs coach A.J. Davis, defensive backs coach Ta'Ron Sims, receivers coach Walker Mosby, defensive line coach Lorenzo Breland, defensive assistant Chase Cooley and student assistant Seth Ladner.
Smith claims the award after a season full of 'first time in a while' accomplishments. After finishing 2-7 in 2021, Smith led the Wildcats to an impressive 6-3 mark in the 2022 campaign with a 4-2 mark in conference play.
The winning season was the first for Pearl River since 2017. The Wildcats' six wins were the most since the program met that mark in 2010. PRCC narrowly missed out on an appearance in the MACCC playoffs after Gulf Coast upset Jones College on the final day of the season.
BY THE NUMBERS
Pearl River was good on both sides of the ball in 2022, but really shined on the defensive side. The Wildcats were first in the MACCC in points allowed per game and ranked third best in yards allowed per game.
PRCC's 165 passing yards allowed per contest ranked second in the league.
Pearl River defensive lineman Bryan Whitehead II (Bartlett, Tenn.) was named MACCC South Division Defensive Player of the Year.
On offense, the Wildcats racked up 2769 total yards and 22 touchdowns. PRCC finished the year as one of the most balanced offenses in the league, passing for 1231 yards and rushing for 1538.
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