Fans of Mississippi’s college football team will be disappointed to learn that the state’s top high school player, one of the most distinguished in history, is leaving Mississippi when he signs Wednesday’s national letter of intent. Even worse, he will almost certainly play in the Western Division for the Southeastern Conference. McKinnley, the George County defensive tackle, will announce his decision at his high school at 9:30 a.m. According to insiders, he will pick Alabama or Texas A&M. However, Auburn and LSU are also in his final four schools. Jackson was at Texas A&M last weekend. Jackson was visited by Nick Saban, his new defensive line coach Freddie Roach, and Jackson last week. Auburn and LSU also visited schools. Lane Kiffin, New Ole Miss’s head coach, was in George County last week as a last-gasp attempt to make some progress but it didn’t seem to be enough. That’s understandable. Kiffin was late for this game. Zack Arnett, Mississippi State’s defensive coordinator, was reportedly also in Lucedale. However, it seems that he did not succeed. Matt Caldwell (Jackson’s high school coach) said, “Your guesses are as good as mine.” “McKinnley plays it close to the vest,” said Matt Caldwell, Jackson’s high school coach. This is based on Saban’s track records and the fact Roach developed a warm relationship when Roach was Ole Miss’s recruiting and coaching staff. Next, I think that Jackson’s new owner will get a three year starter and then will head to the NFL. This assumes that Jackson is not seriously injured. Jackson is one the most outstanding, if not the greatest, high school defensive linemen this eye has ever seen. You don’t have to believe me. Petal’s Marcus Boyles explains why his Petal Panthers compete with George County in the same division and classification. Boyles stated that McKinnley was one of those once-in-a lifetime guys. “He’s a game-changer. He’s a really special player.” Petal defeated George County in the fall by simply avoiding Jackson. Boyles stated, “If McKinnley lined-up over the center, then we ran wide.” They did a great job moving him. When they moved him to one or the other side, we ran the ball in the opposite direction. We were able to quickly get the ball out of their hands when we threw it. We knew that we couldn’t do a five-step drop because we couldn’t block him for so long. It’s impossible to do double or triple teaming. He is too strong and too fast. His first step is explosive and fast. You can see him on film, and you notice that the center’s hand begins to move. Jackson was the MVP of the Mississippi-Alabama All-Star Game, in which Jackson defeated the best offensive linemen from Alabama the same way as he did George County’s. According to various recruiting agencies, Jackson is a four-star recruit (out of five). That begs the question: What happened to the other star? Boyles might have the answer. Boyles stated that McKinnley may have played hard at times in his youth, and that he might have taken some plays off. “But that was not something I saw this season. “As far as I could see, he played his tail off every snap.” Ole Miss was evidently much in the hunt to Jackson’s services up until Matt Luke was fired. Jackson’s friends said that he loved Luke and had a close relationship with Roach. It is difficult to understand why Mississippi State never was in the tournament. He was recruited hard by the Bulldogs. Jackson is the first cousin of Eric Moulds. He was one of State’s greatest players. Another cousin is Dylan Lawrence, a freshman defensiveback at State. State has a history of sending its defensive linemen to the pros in recent years. Montez Sweat and Jeffery Simmons were both first rounders in 2019. In 2016, Chris Jones, who was a Super Bowl hero for Kansas City, was second rounder. In 2015, Preston Smith was a second-rounder. Fletcher Cox was a first rounder in 2012. He is still one of the best-rated defensive tackles in the game. Jackson apparently didn’t care about any of this. None of that seems to have mattered to Jackson. McKinnley, a Mississippi native and bred, is expected to play against Mississippi teams at least for the next three seasons.