Mississippi FootballPOWER INDEX

Class 7A, Region 3 · Week 9, 2026

Petal High School

Petal High School is No. 14 of 225 teams in the Mississippi Football Power Index and No. 9 of 25 in Class 7A. Record at the Week 9 cutoff: 8-1 in 9 verified games.

  • State ranking: up 3 spots to No. 14 (from No. 17).
  • Class 7A ranking: up 2 spots to No. 9 (from No. 11).
  • MFPI rating: increased 0.2 points to 87.3. (provisional)

Week 9 explanation

Why Petal High School is ranked here

Strongest result

A 40–39 win over Gulfport High School on Sep 18 (home), an opponent currently No. 2 statewide. “Strongest” means the defeated MHSAA opponent with the best current MFPI rank, not its rank when the game was played.

Recent results

W 29–20 at Pearl High School (Oct 23); W 35–34 vs. Brandon High School (Oct 16); L 28–29 vs. Oak Grove High School (Oct 8). Recent-form percentile: 88.8.

Schedule strength

MFPI strength-of-schedule percentile 94.6 (100 = the strongest completed schedule statewide). Classification path: playing down — 0 games against higher classes, 6 in Class 7A, 3 against lower classes.

What changed this week

Rank and rating are separate measures. State ranking: up 3 spots to No. 14 (from No. 17). MFPI rating: increased 0.2 points to 87.3. Largest component changes since Week 8: points allowed +0.3 pts; mfpi strength of schedule +0.2 pts; opponent-adjusted performance −0.2 pts. Opponents' ratings are re-solved every week, so these can move without a new game.

Limitations

Ratings use only verified final scores through Oct 27, 2026, 11:00 AM CDT. Media rank and media strength of schedule (from MaxPreps) contribute 20%. MFPI does not consider injuries, rosters or weather, and it is not a prediction.

2026 season

Schedule & results

8-1 · 9 verified games
DateOpponentSiteResultScoreOpp. class
Aug 28Hattiesburg High SchoolNo. 44AwayW35–346A
Sep 4Ocean Springs High SchoolNo. 73HomeW43–217A
Sep 11Columbia High SchoolNo. 41HomeW34–254A
Sep 18Gulfport High SchoolNo. 2HomeW40–397A
Sep 25Clinton High SchoolNo. 36AwayW42–287A
Oct 2West Jones High SchoolNo. 42AwayW49–456A
Oct 8Oak Grove High SchoolNo. 16HomeL28–297A
Oct 16Brandon High SchoolNo. 8HomeW35–347A
Oct 23Pearl High SchoolNo. 55AwayW29–207A

Dates are game dates in Central time. Opponent ranks are current MFPI ranks, not ranks at game time. Scores come from the official MHSAA score center, with MaxPreps team schedules used only to fill gaps. Week 9 statewide coverage: 97.8% (980 of 1002 game listings due by the cutoff verified).

Why Petal High School rates 87.3

Rating breakdown

Each component becomes a statewide percentile, then carries its weight into the final score. Points are how many of the 87.3 rating points come from that component.

Opponent-adjusted performance91.535% weight · 32.0 ptsMargin of victory or defeat, adjusted for opponent strength and site.
MFPI strength of schedule94.620% weight · 18.9 ptsAverage current rating of every opponent played.
Media rank (MaxPreps)96.910% weight · 9.7 ptsStatewide ordinal rank in the MaxPreps Mississippi rankings, as a percentile.
Media strength of schedule (MaxPreps)93.810% weight · 9.4 ptsPublished MaxPreps schedule-strength value.
Points scored92.08% weight · 7.4 ptsPoints per game, capped at 49 in each game.
Points allowed21.28% weight · 1.7 ptsDefensive value derived from points allowed per game.
Record92.65% weight · 4.6 ptsWins plus half credit for ties, over games played.
Recent form88.84% weight · 3.6 ptsOpponent-adjusted performance across the last three games.

Nearby in the statewide rankings

No. 13 · aheadGermantown High School4-5 · MFPI 87.4No. 15 · behindPoplarville Jr Sr High School8-0 · MFPI 87.2

Others in Class 7A

Tupelo High SchoolGulfport High SchoolD'Iberville High SchoolOxford High SchoolStarkville High SchoolBrandon High SchoolMeridian High SchoolGermantown High SchoolOak Grove High SchoolDesoto Central High SchoolSt. Martin High SchoolMadison Central High SchoolHernando High SchoolNorthwest Rankin High School

Rankings generated October 27, 2026 · Formula MFPI-3.2 · Report a correction