MACON — JaQuaris Jamison tried everything he knew.
The Noxubee County High School junior attempted to run a post route. When stopped, he quickly shifted to a corner post route. That didn’t work, either, so Jamison juked and side-stepped tacklers and looked like he was heading for the end zone when he avoided a Louisville player around the 35-yard line.
“I thought I was home free, but somebody came from behind me and somebody came in front of me,” Jamison said.
The 5-foot-10, 195 defensive back nearly used blocking help from Timothy Bland to return an interception almost 90 yards before being corralled at the 3-yard line.
Even though Jamison didn’t score, his interception helped turn the momentum back in Noxubee County’s way and played an integral role in a 35-28 victory in the Mississippi High School Activities Association (MHSAA) Class 4A North State title game at Tiger Stadium.
No. 1 seed Noxubee County (10-4) won its eighth-straight game to set up a game against No. 1 seed East Central at 3 p.m. Saturday at Ole Miss’ Vaught-Hemingway Stadium in Oxford. East Central (13-0) defeated No. 1 seed Poplarville 52-45 on Friday night to win the South State title.
“I was reading the quarterback and following his eyes and I got on the ball and jumped it for a pick,” Jamison said. “He was locked in and I had to jump it to stay on top of everything.”
Leading 28-21, Louisville (13-3) had moved into Noxubee County territory and was gaining steam. But on first-and-10 from the 31, Jamison made the defensive play of the game in center field. Stationed around the 10, Jamison followed quarterback
Deonte Yarbrough and went high in the air to snare his pass. He said the Tigers do work like that every day in practice, so he was ready to make his second interception of the season.
“It was real big,” Jamison said. “It was a game-saver. It changed the game right there.”
Jamison hoped Bland was going to help him take the football all the way back. Unfortunately, Jamison said Bland fell down. With plenty left in the tank to reach the end zone, Jamison said he tried a last-ditch effort to zig and zag to get there.
“I was dragging and pulling,” Jamison said. “The first man in front of me had my leg and pulled me. They grabbed my leg together and I couldn’t get there.”
The interception set up a 3-yard touchdown plunge by L.C. Clemmons. The senior fullback, who also plays linebacker, used second effort to break the plane. Samuel Lowery’s kick gave the Tigers a 35-21 lead with 8 minutes, 8 seconds remaining.
Final stand
Louisville used a 94-yard screen pass with 2:23 left to cut its deficit to 35-28. Noxubee County went three and out on the ensuing series. Louisville preserved the clock by using all three of its timeouts to get the ball back with 1:53 to go. The Wildcats gained 10 yards on their first play but two incompletions set the stage for Keymarcus Jackson’s interception that sealed the deal.
Noxubee County coach Tyrone Shorter credited his defense for coming up with big plays when it had to. Chaokang Brooks had pressure on the quarterback on the final play.
“Coach (Ed) Square does a great job with those guys,” Shorter said of his defensive backs coach. “We had some guys banged up and we had some guys step up. Jamison did a great job. He is an upcoming guy. That pick was huge.
“I am proud of the defense. The defense played really well all night.”
Junior defensive tackle Tamorris Luster said the Tigers were able to generate pressure up front when they needed to. Even though the Tigers only had three sacks, they contained the Wildcats’ rushing game and limited their big plays in the screen passing game.
“We just had to stay low and fire off the ball,” said Luster, who is 6-foot, 201 pounds. “When we fired off the ball, we created pressure and keep them inside so they weren’t able to bounce outside and make plays.”
Shorter praised the defensive front for getting pressure on the quarterback even when the Tigers didn’t blitz. The Tigers did much of that damage without senior Myles Smith, who had to leave the game in the first half after suffering what appeared to be a leg injury. Smith was on crutches on the team’s sideline in the second half.
Path to title game
The ups and downs Friday night resembled the path Noxubee County followed to get to the North State title game. Luster said the Tigers “kept praying and overcame trials and tribulations.” A little of timely assistance from Jamison and Jackson helped the Tigers get past the final hurdle to secure their date in Oxford.
Following losses to Starkville, Meridian, West Point, and West Monroe (La.), Noxubee County edged Louisville 35-30 in a Class 4A, Region 4 game on Oct. 6 in Macon. The victory snapped the Tigers’ three-game losing streak. It also set the Tigers on a path to win their sixth-straight region title with another undefeated run that helped them extend their Region 4 winning streak to 30 games.
The Tigers’ victory Friday night was their fifth in a row in the series, dating back to a 28-6 loss on Sept. 6, 2013, when the teams were in different classifications (Noxubee County, 4A; Louisville, 3A).
Noxubee County will go for its fifth state title, and third in the last four years. All of the championships have come since 2008. East Central, which is in Moss Point (about 30 minutes east of Biloxi), will make its first appearance in a state title game.
Jamison said the Tigers “bonded together” after their 2-4 start. He said the team was “separated” and had to build confidence and trust before it started to jell. As it did, the 2017 squad has come to resemble Noxubee County teams of the past in that it has played some of its best football in October and November.
“We were going to have to play big because Louisville is a good team and they never give up,” Jamison said.
Follow Dispatch sports editor Adam Minichino on Twitter @ctsportseditor
Adam Minichino is the former Sports Editor for The Commercial Dispatch.
You can help your community
Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 41 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.