Not too long ago,  Pearl River Central’s football team was considered dismal.

A win Friday, however, and the Blue Devils will be considered champions.

The Blue Devils, 9-4 on the season, face arch-rival Picayune, which stands 11-2, Friday night for the Class 5A South State championship.

The game is considered the biggest in PRC’s history, and one of the biggest ever in Pearl River County.

“We are excited,’’ PRC coach Eric Collins said. “But we know our job is not finished and we want to take it as far as we can.’’

Last season,  the Blue Devils won just one game and they went winless two seasons ago. A win Friday would vault the suprising squad into the state championship.

“If you have to say something to get them up at this point, then there is really not a lot that you can say,” Collins, in his second year at the helm of the Blue Devils, said. “Our kids are well aware of what’s on the line and what we are playing for.”

The Maroon Tide dispatched PRC 41-14 almost eight weeks ago in the regular season meeting. It was the 14th straight win over the Blue Devils by the Maroon Tide.

“We are not playing history on Friday night, It’s a whole new ball game. “ Collins added. “What happened last time has no bearing on this game. We are going to go out and play our game, and may the best team win Friday.”

The Blue Devils like to run the football out of their single wing attack, and have been quite successful doing so. Tailback Trey Wynn leads PRC’s ground game, having run for over 1,400 yards and scored 14 touchdowns. Bryce Spence has rushed for right at 800 yards as well.

But the Blue Devils can throw it also, as they displayed against Long Beach last week when quarterback Dylan Spiers tossed a pair of scoring passes to tight end Brandon Comeaux. Spiers has 11 scoring strikes this season.

“We worry about the run first,” sad Spiers. “When they get stuck on the run, we come out with a pass.”

Defensively, Collins will count on ends Steven Kubicki and Desmond Michel to control the Tide. Kubicki leads the team with 11 sacks while Michel has nine.

Linebackers Cody Barrow Adam Perrone and Brandon Padgett, each with over 100 total tackles, lead PRC in stops.

Defensive back Christian Smith had two interceptions and a fumble recovery against the Bearccats last week.