HSFT Stop #53: Lafayette

OXFORD, Miss. (WCBI) — Lafayette coaching legend Anthony Hart is back in Oxford to lead the Commodores this season. Hart was at the helm when Lafayette had back-to-back undefeated state championship seasons in 2010 and 2011. He became the first coach in Mississippi high school football history to post a perfect 16-0 record. Now, just over a decade later, he’s back.

“I would not have come to a place that was not a good place. And this is a great place,” Hart said. “We enjoy living here, we enjoy the school, the people and love the kids here.”

And his players are happy they’ve got him.

“Coach Hart is a wonderful guy. He don’t play no games,” senior captain Davion Bell said. “He’s strict, whatever he says goes. We know he’ll lead us to a victory for sure.”

Hart has the numbers to back up that success. The Commodores lost just 16 games in seven seasons under Hart.

“That’s what we preach,” Hart said. “If you don’t shoot high, you’re not going to hit it. I can tell you that.”

Hart said this Commodore squad is defined by their speed, physicality and work ethic.

“We’ve put in a lot of hours here and they’ve worked extremely hard and bought in,” Hart said.

Hart’s first game back at Lafayette is set to be a big one: the Crosstown Classic.

“It’s going to be a tough one with Oxford. It’ll be a full house,” Hart said. “It was a battle then and it’s going to be a battle now. So it’s going to be a challenge for us but it’ll be fun. Play good teams, you get better.”

Lafayette will host Oxford to kick off the season Aug. 25.