High School Boys Key Matchups
Steven Johnson v. Jadarrius Gordon (400m)
Two 400m runners that are both opening up their season in a high-caliber atmosphere is Germantown's Steven Johnson versus Canton's Jadarrius Gordon.
Both Johnson and Gordon are both state medalists in 'Mississippi Large School' - Johnson is the 2021 MHSAA 6A 400m Bronze Medalist, and Gordon is the 2021 MHSAA 5A Silver Medalist.
Johnson has one slight advantage on Gordon, and that is that Johnson was able to get to an indoor meet this season and compete at the 2022 Last Chance Invitational. At that meet, Johnson went 51.89 in his first-ever indoor meet. This tells us that he will be very meet coming into this 400m race at the 2022 Madison Central Track Classic.
Johnson hasn't lost an outdoor 400m in the regular season since 2020. Gordon opened up his 2021 outdoor campaign with a 50.59, and has a PR of 50.01.
Put these two alongside JoeDarrius Dorsey of Port Gibson, and we will have quite the thriller in the 400m at the 2022 Madison Central Track Classic
Miguel Bankston v. Dominic Turner (800m)
A matchup that I am personally very excited about, the two headliners in the 800m at the 2022 Madison Central Track Classic will be the showdown between the top two returners to the MHSAA 6A State Meet in that event, and that is 1:58 runner Miguel Bankston versus 1:59 runner Dominic Turner.
Bankston and Turner only faced off once during the 2021 outdoor track season in the 800m, and that was at the 2021 MHSAA 6A State Meet where Turner barely edged out Bankston for the silver medal. Their competitive rivalry will continue on Saturday as they will face off against each other in not only the 800m, but the 1600m as well.
With stars like Bankston and Turner aligning, we could potentially see our first sub-2 800m of the season at the 2022 Madison Central Track Classic on Saturday.
Jessie Williams v. Jerry Johnson (Long Jump)
Facing off again in the Long Jump after a tiebreaker at the 2022 Pearl Track and Field Opener is Pearl's Jerry Johnson versus Jim Hill's Jessie Williams.
At Johnson's and William's last meet, they both jumped 22-3 in non-ideal conditions. Currently, they are tied for #1 in the state with that performance at Pearl.
They now face off once again in the Long Jump at the 2022 Madison Central Track Classic. Johnson's PR is 23-5 and is an extremely consistent jumper, jumping between 22-2 and 23-5 and placing inside of the Top 2 in every single meet since the 2021 outdoor season.
Williams, on the other hand, is on a hot streak and track and field stock is shooting up, hitting PR's every time he toes the line.
Expect another dog fight between these two tomorrow.
Jonathan Phillips v. Colin Brannon (3200m)
Two of the best MHSAA Large School cross country runners will be facing off in the 3200m at the 2022 Madison Central Track Classic. Those runners are Madison Central's Colin Brannon versus Pearl's Jonathan Phillips.
Both Brannon and Phillips finished inside of the Top 10 at the 2021 MHSAA 6A Cross Country State Championships - Brannon in fifth in 16:30 and Phillips ninth in 16:37. Both serve as their PR's.
This will also be both Brannon's and Phillip's second meet of the season. Brannon opened up his outdoor season at the 2022 Clinton Season Opener with a 10:34 3200m in terrible condition, and Phillips opened up his outdoor campaign with a 1600m/800m double at his home meet, the 2022 Pearl Track and Field Opener, going 4:58 and 2:16.
Both Brannon and Phillips specialty event, in my opinion, is the 3200m. It still isn't quite the time to be running crazy quick, but with these two alongside 4:36 1600m runner Christian Parks, we could definitely see some exciting racing in the 8-lap event at the 2022 Madison Central Track Classic.