SCOOBA — With 64 points showing on the Sullivan-Windham scoreboard Thursday night, one might find it strange where East Mississippi Community College football coach Buddy Stephens found the separation between two nationally ranked junior college powers.
“Our defense played its tails off,” Stephens said. “On every snap, they really brought it. The defensive effort was sensational. That is why we won the game.”
No. 16 EMCC forced six turnovers and had a stop on downs as it ushered in its new stadium with a 34-30 victory against No. 2 Mississippi Gulf Coast C.C. in the season opener for both teams.
In pregame ceremonies, the $4.7-million dollar, 5,000-seat stadium had a formal ribbon cutting ceremony at midfield. The Lions and Bulldogs ten christened the field with another installment of what is becoming one of the state”s best rivalries.
“Being my first junior college game, the atmosphere was everything I could imagine and then some,” said EMCC freshman quarterback Bo Wallace, a native of Pulaski, Tenn. “Everybody had told me what type of rivalry this had become. It really was a lot of fun to play in that game.”
The contest matched the past two state champions. EMCC defeated MGCCC 75-71 in the 2009 state title match. MGCCC won the 2010 state championship. While Thursday”s contest won”t be discussed for years to come like the 2009 shootout, it still was a mighty fine game.
Buoyed by a capacity crowd, EMCC sprinted to a 20-0 lead. Not intimidated, MGCCC scored on three consecutive possessions in the final 5 minutes, 7 seconds of the first half to forge a 20-all halftime tie.
Each team scored on its first possession of the second half. The Lions defense then took control in the final 23:07, allowing only a Taylor Pontius 23-yard field goal midway through the final quarter.
“Times like this are when you find out how close you are as a team,” West Point native and EMCC freshman free safety Justin Cox said. “By the day, we are getting stronger as a team. As long as we depend on each other, we will be all right. There was a time where we had to look inside and see who wanted it more. We made the plays and came out on top.”
Cox”s third interception came in front of the goal line and closed business with 16 seconds left. Cox had thefts on back-to-back snaps but a penalty nullified the first.
“This was a total team effort, especially on the defensive side of the ball,” West Point native and sophomore cornerback Jeremy Cannon said. “We wanted to do this for the players, the coaches, and our fans. The atmosphere was totally electric. We knew we had to keep making plays to make sure we won the ballgame.”
Cannon set the tone early with a fumble recovery on MGCCC”s first possession. Patrick Wilson was carrying the ball inside the EMCC 20-yard line when Cannon reached in and made the swipe.
Cannon ran 50 yards with the theft, setting the Lions up for an easy first score. EMCC moved 30 yards on five plays, with Wallace scoring the first of his five touchdowns.
After forcing a punt, EMCC moved inside the MGCCC 35 before turning the ball over on downs.
An interception by JaMichael Myles set the hosts up for their next scoring march. Myles” interception came inside his team”s red zone. This time, the Lions moved 83 yards on 13 plays. Wallace had six pass completions, including a 7-yard touchdown thrown to Hamp Glover.
After Cox”s first interception, EMCC moved 71 yards on eight plays. Wallace hit Jeremy Reed for a 20-yard pickup and Lacoltan Bester for a 28-yard pickup. Wallace found Alventray Tarleton on a 15-yard scoring pass. The conversion failed, but EMCC led 20-0.
“Gulf Coast has such a fine team, we knew they would come back,” Stephens said. “We made too many mistakes tonight. What we did find out tonight, though, is we really have a great football team. We have to keep working hard and eliminating our mistakes to reach our potential.”
Quarterback Raymond Cotton and fullback James Gillum rallied the Bulldogs. MGCCC moved 65 yards on 13 plays and 64 yards on six plays. Cotton scored from 2 yards out before Gillum scored from 10 yards minutes later.
A 35-yard punt return by Otis Jacobs set MGCCC back up in the final minute of the half. Javon Bell hit Cotton for a 24-yard pickup on a half-back pass. Two plays later, Cotton found Cade Amacker for a 3-yard touchdown pass to tie the score at 20.
“We knew we had to make a play in the second half,” Cannon said. “It was anybody”s game, and it was all about determination. We knew the offense would score. It was our job to force some more turnovers and give our team the momentum.”
The Lions moved 76 yards on seven plays to start the second half. Wallace kept the ball on a fourth-and-goal 2-yard sneak for the touchdown.
But MGCCC answered as Cotton scored on a 1-yard run.
EMCC appeared in trouble a few plays later. Tied at 27, the Lions fumbled possession and MGCCC recovered at the EMCC 16. On the next play, Quinn McClendon forced a fumble and gained 20 yards to give the ball back to the Lions.
EMCC moved 54 yards on six plays to take the lead, as Wallace hit Rodney Davis on a 24-yard scoring strike in the corner of the end zone.
“Starting about two weeks ago, I felt like we would give this kind of effort,” Wallace said. “When fall camp ended and school started, you could sense a change in attitude. Gulf Coast won the title last year. They were coming to our place, though. We wanted to take this one from them.”
Wallace, a transfer from Arkansas State, was 30 of 45 for 389 yards and three touchdowns. He didn”t throw an interception and rushed for two more scores.
EMCC”s defense took over after it grabbed the lead. The Bulldogs” final four possessions included Cox”s second interception, a field goal, a turnover on downs at the EMCC 26, and Cox”s third interception.
“Win or lose, this was going to be a very special day for our school,” Stephens said. “To be able to win the game makes it that much more special.”
MGCCC had 29 first downs and 498 yards. The Bulldogs ran 59 times for 334 yards, while two quarterbacks went 16 of 30 for 164 yards. Gillum ran 31 times for 174 yards, while Cotton had 22 rushes for 132 yards.
EMCC had 22 first downs and 458 yards. The Lions ran 23 times for 69 yards. EMCC committed 13 penalties for 108 yards and had three turnovers. Davis had five receptions for 110 yards, while Bester had six catches for 103 yards.
Both teams will play at 6:30 p.m. Thursday. EMCC will play at Hinds C.C., while MGCCC will play at Mississippi Delta C.C.
Scott was sports editor for The Dispatch.
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