Alabama commit Jaylen Mbakwe led the offense and Auburn commit D.J. Barber led the defense as Clay-Chalkville earned a 28-14 victory over Oxford on Friday night at Lamar Field in Oxford.

The Cougars (9-0 overall, 6-0 in Class 6A, Region 6) took control when Barber blocked an Oxford punt early in the second quarter, and Mbakwe found Mario Craver for a 37-yard touchdown pass on the next play for a 14-0 lead.

“On the blocked punt, it really wasn’t supposed to happen,” Barber said. “It was a return call. I just took the risk and was able to get quick and block the punt, which gave us good field position. Our defense is stingy.”

Clay-Chalkville the No. 2-ranked team in 6A, has won 11 straight regular-season games.

History lesson: Mbakwe said his long-time friendship with Craver leads to big things on the field. “Me and Mario have been playing together since little league,” Mbakwe said, “so our connection on the field is really special. I know him and he knows me, so it is real easy when we connect.”

Stat sheet: Mbwake completed 8-of-15 passes for 125 yards and added 15 carries for 70 yards. … Aaron Osley ran 19 times for 90 yards and a touchdown for the Cougars. … Barber finished with nine tackles and two sacks to go with the blocked punt. … Oxford’s Mason Mims connected with Nick Richardson on TD passes of 17 and 19 yards in the second half. … Clay-Chalkville’s Roderick Ivy returned a fumble 35 yards for a second-half touchdown.

Coachspeak: “Clay-Chalkville is a good football team. We knew it was going to be a big challenge for us. For us to beat them, we had to play our best football and we didn’t tonight. We really shot ourselves in the football with penalties and turnovers. We gave up a couple of big plays and out just can’t do that against a team that is one of the best in the state.” – Oxford coach Sam Adams

“This wasn’t our best football game, but we will get better.” – Clay-Chalkville coach Drew Gilmer

Playoff push: The win clinches the Region 6 title for Clay-Chalkville. “Region is a tough region so to win tonight was big-time for us. Oxford is a good team, but we have to clean up a lot of stuff if we are going to make a run in the playoffs,” Gilmer said.

What’s next?: Clay-Chalkville caps the regular season with a home game against Shades Valley next week, while Oxford (6-2, 5-1) plays Center Point at home.