SCOOBA — East Mississippi Community College defensive backs coach Clifton Collins knew his unit was going to be talented but young this season.
That’s why he counted on sophomore Jeremy Cannon, of West Point High School, to step up and make a difference.
“He has really matured as a person and a player and has become one of our leaders,” Collins said of the 5-foot-10, 190-pound Cannon, who played mostly in a reserve role last season. “He has paid the price to be the leader. He worked his butt off in the weight room and with his summer running.”
Collins was pleased with the freshmen coming into the secondary for 2011, including former West Point High standout Justin Cox and Jason Yarbor and Shaquille Fluker, of Meridian, but he knew that group needed a little glue to make it stick.
“I knew that with the class we were going to sign in the secondary he was going to be the one (sophomore) to start,” Collins said of Cannon. “He is going to have a chance to play on the next level. He is the only player on our team who has a stat in every statistical category, and I would have not problem matching him against our opponent’s best receiver.”
For Cannon, EMCC’s march to the MACJC state championship and an 11-0 mark entering a matchup against No. 1 Arizona Western in the El Toro Bowl on Dec. 3 in Yuma, Ariz., is more than just a little bit of redemption for last year’s team that fell short of giving EMCC back-to-back state crowns.
“I felt like we had something to prove,” Cannon said. “From the very beginning of the season we talked about winning a championship. We are going after a national championship.”
Cox, a teammate of Cannon two years ago at West Point, agrees.
“Coach (Buddy Stephens) has been talking about winning a national championship from the very beginning. I’m used to winning at West Point, and that’s something we wanted to continue.”
While Cannon was a defensive back at West Point High, the move to safety in junior college level from quarterback in high school was a drastic one for Cox.
“I think I have adjusted to it pretty quickly,” he said. “As the season has gone along I feel more comfortable.”
Cox and Collins feel the former West Point High standout’s experience at quarterback gives him an edge as a free safety.
“By looking at the quarterback’s eyes, I know where he’s about to throw the ball,” Cox said. “I know what he’s thinking.”
Said Collins, “I played quarterback in high school and turned into a defensive back. Quarterback and safety is pretty much the same thing, just on the other side of the ball.”
Cox did a good job of reading the quarterback in a 34-30 season-opening win against Mississippi Gulf Coast C.C. on Sept. 1, intercepting three of his season-high five passes.
“He really had four, but one of them got called back,” Collins said.
Cox signed with Mississippi State out of high school but wound up in Scooba due to academic reasons.
It didn’t take Collins long to know he and the Lions had something special in the 6-3, 190-pound Cox.
“He got here a little late, but as soon as he touched the field I knew he was an athlete,” Collins said. “The first time we timed him I got him with a 4.2 (in the 40) and threw my watch down because I thought it was broke. I told another coach to time him again and he got almost the same thing.”
While Cox spent his high school career on the offense, Collins said safety is a natural fit.
“He is a true defensive back,” Collins said. “He has so much ability, and once he gets a chance to work more on his technique in the spring he is going to be a complete guy. He has a chance to be a Division I guy and then on to the NFL.”
When the Lions go to the nickel package, sophomore Amos Tatum comes in as the fifth defensive back. The sixth defensive back in the dime package is freshman Frank Richardson Jr., of New Hope High.
“My specialty is long-yardage situations when we know they are going to pass,” Richardson said. “That’s my role, so that’s the part I’m going to play. There is a little pressure when I come in because you know what they are going to do, but you just have to be ready for it.”
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 37 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.