The Charleston High School Tigers and the West Tallahatchie High School Choctaws will renew their football rivalry in the annual “Battle of the Golden Egg” Friday night.
This year’s contest featuring the longtime cross-county rivals will be played at Choctaw Stadium in Webb. Kickoff is 7 p.m. The winner will claim a brass football trophy and, perhaps more importantly, countywide bragging rights for at least one year.
The Class 2A Tigers will enter the contest with a 2-1 record, while the Class 1A Choctaws are 3-0 on the young season.
According to a 1955 story in The Sumner Sentinel, the first game of the series was played in 1950 — then a 19-0 Charleston Warriors win.
The Tallahatchie County clash has been played practically every year since, with the exception of a four-year stretch from 1974-1977, as well as 1996, 1998, and the COVID-impacted years of 2020 and 2021.
Charleston has held crowing rights in the series for more than three decades, winning 35 consecutive matches, including a 50-12 decision in the teams’ Sept. 15, 2023, meeting in Charleston. The game is alternated between the schools.
The Choctaws last defeated the Tigers in 1984, a 24-12 home victory for the Choctaws.
Despite the recent lopsided nature of the game, Charleston head coach LaDon Taylor on Tuesday predicted, “It’s going to be a battle and another tough game for us. ... This is going to be a very intense deal this week.”
West Tallahatchie head coach Shane Hargett said, “We’re going to give them all we’ve got. That’s all we can do. We look forward to the challenge.”
