The Charleston High School Tigers will kick off the 2023 football season with a home game on Thursday, Aug. 24, while West Tallahatchie will be at home for their opener on Friday, Aug. 25. Charleston starts at 7 p.m. and West Tally at 7:30.
“Our game will be Thursday instead of Friday this week,” said head coach LaDon Taylor, in his fourth year at the helm of the CHS varsity program.
The Tigers of Charleston will begin the defense of their 2022 Class 2A North State championship-winning season by playing host to the Tigers of Ripley High School.
In 2022, Ripley, a Class 4A team, compiled a 9-1 record in the regular season. One of their big wins was a 6-0 victory at Senatobia High School. Ripley won one playoff game before losing to Louisville.
Charleston put together a 7-3 regular-season record a year ago, winning the north half crown for the seventh time in program history — their first as a member of Class 2A — and punched their ticket to the 2A state title game in Hattiesburg. There, the Tigers fell 42-12 to Scott Central to end the season at 11-4.
The Class 1A West Tallahatchie High School Choctaws will start their season Friday night by hosting Class 2A school, the Riverside High School Bulldogs, at Choctaw Stadium in Webb. Riverside was 1-9 one year go.
Shane Hargett begins his third year as Chocs head coach.
West Tally is coming off a 2022 campaign that saw them compile a 6-5 record in the regular season before losing a first-round road playoff to finish 6-6.
Charleston will host North Panola Sept. 1, visit Clarksdale Sept. 8, host West Tallahatchie Sept. 15, travel to Cleveland Central Sept. 22 and to Winona Sept. 29, host Riverside Oct. 6, travel to O’Bannon Oct. 13 and host North Side Oct. 20 before visiting Leflore County Oct. 26.
West Tally will play at O’Bannon Sept. 1, host Coahoma County Sept. 8, visit Charles-ton Sept. 15, travel to McEvans Sept. 29, host South Delta Oct. 6, visit West Bolivar Oct. 13 and host two Thursday night games: Simmons on Oct. 19 and Leland on Oct. 26.
Editor's note: This story has been edited to reflect that West Tallahatchie's Aug. 25 game starts at 7:30 instead of 7.
