3. Grayson Childress - Brookhaven High School
Previous Ranking: #1
Last Performance: 16:38 5k, 21st place finish at the 2021 Watson High School Meet
Next Race: MHSAA Region 3-5A
#3 in the state for this updated All-State ranking is Grayson Childress. Like I stated in my recap article on Monday, that was not his best outing at Watson... and that is okay. Saturday had nothing to do with his fitness level. It doesn't change the fact that he has run 15:40 on 2 separate occasions, taking down many course records with him. It doesn't change the fact that he has been ranked #1 for almost 2 months straight. It doesn't change the fact that he has beaten everyone on this list except Hewes, and some of them quite handily. I'm not going to look into Grayson's Watson race too much, and the rest of the state probably should not as well.
2. Sam Arnold - Brookhaven High School
Previous Ranking: #2
Last Performance: 15:50 5k, 3rd place finish at the 2021 Watson High School Meet
Next Race: MHSAA Region 3-5A
Holding his #2 for the 5th ranking in a row is Sam Arnold of Brookhaven. Arnold had arguably his best run of the year, as well as his 3rd sub-16 5k at the Watson Meet on Saturday. He was the 2nd Mississippi finisher and 3rd overall, just 0.1 seconds off of his PR of 15:49. I have stated time and time again that Sam Arnold is quite possibly the gutsiest runner in the state, and you can always expect him to leave it all on the course and be near the front every single time.