South ÂÒÂ×ÄÚÉä entered the 2025 football season with its third coach in four years and hadn't won a game in 1,043 days leading into its opening game at Ripley on Friday.
The Black Eagles' last win came on Oct. 21, 2022, against St. Albans under coach Carl Lee.
Following that victory over the Red Dragons, SC lost its next 22 games by an average of 54 points, suffering 11 shutouts in that stretch.
That all changed on Friday against the Vikings.
Ripley took the lead with 24 seconds remaining. However, SC marched down to the 37-yard line and quarterback Ceno Riley cut loose a Hail Mary throw that ended in the hands of Amari Valentine.
Pandemonium ensued as South ÂÒÂ×ÄÚÉä left Jackson County with a 27-23 victory over the Vikings.
Oh Hail (MARY) Yeah! #WarEagle pic.twitter.com/yVU9NXPJ5Q
— Coach Donnie Mays (@CoachDMays) August 30, 2025
"When I saw the ball go up, I was praying to God that Amari would somehow catch it," SC lineman Elijah Bausley said. "I saw the ball get tipped and Amari dive for the ball. I then hoped that he caught it because I didn't know. I then saw coach [Donnie] Mays running on the field.
"I see him run excited, and I was too shocked to do anything. I just started screaming. It was crazy."
The four-point win over Ripley was the first of the Black Eagles' second stint under Mays. He coached South ÂÒÂ×ÄÚÉä from 2013-21, left for Hurricane for three seasons and returned to the Black Eagles this year.
South ÂÒÂ×ÄÚÉä had lost its last three season openers before Friday's victory.
Black Eagles running back Malcolm Brown, like Bausley, was filled with excitement following the Hail Mary.
"I was full of excitement, and it was like that throughout the team," Brown said. "We were all energized. We were excited to win. First win in a couple of years feels good. That puts smiles on everybody's faces. We all celebrated together like a family. It feels great."
Mays used verses from the Bible, he said, to motivate the Black Eagles.
Mays said he quoted Mark 10:43-45, referencing that it had been 1,043 days since SC last won a game.
"Whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be slave of all," reads the New International Version translation of that passage.
Mays said his message from that was, "You have to lose before you win."
The veteran coach also cited Revelation 19:17 -- 19-17 being the final score from the Black Eagles' last win over St. Albans in 2022. That passage says God sent flesh-eating birds to devour evil.Â
Mays' message will now adjust as the Black Eagles got that monkey off their back.
"It's one game at a time. Nothing's changed," Mays said. "The only thing that's changed is their mentality. They actually believe they can win, which is the best thing in the world for us. During the pregame talk the other day, there was a look of fear in their eyes. It wasn't fear of the opponent.
"It was fear that, 'Here we go. Is this going to be another one of those types of years?' We gave ourselves [an opportunity] at the end of the game, and they capitalized."
Now a junior, Bausley was thrown into the fire as a freshman. In that 2023 season, the Black Eagles were winless for the first time since 2003.
SC is using house money now entering its open week before its second game of the season next Friday against the Winfield Generals.
"I feel like we have the ability to compete against any other team that we go against," Bausley said. "The past two years, I wasn't thinking like that."
Brown wants to stay on this high note.
"We know how it feels to win, and we don't want to lose no more," Brown said. "We need to use this as a building block and keep moving forward up from here."
Mays saw the Black Eagles step up when needed most.
"My biggest takeaway has to be the composure of the quarterback play," Mays said. "I don't know how many times Ceno threw the ball last year, but he threw it 29 times the other night. He did things that I've seen veteran quarterbacks do. The last throw he made was a perfect location. He's starting to grasp the offense, which makes things better.
"It was also great seeing our young freshmen [step up]. Devin Lazo, Amari Valentine and Elijah Mason all played exceptionally well. We had a bunch of young kids that were put in a position that they probably shouldn't have to be in until they are juniors or seniors. But, they excelled at what they were going against."
