From grade school to middle school to high school, Todd Mays always played quarterback.

In 2011, Mays passed for 3,116 yards and 28 touchdowns as he helped lead Olive Branch to an undefeated record and the Mississippi High School Activities Association Class 6A state championship.

These days, Mays is on another undefeated team. However, his plays at quarterback occur in the fourth quarter when his team way ahead.

For some, the change in fortune would be a disappointment. Instead, Mays saw it as an opportunity.

“This is the best place to be,” Mays said. “I can play quarterback. I can play running back. I can play receiver. These coaches know what they are doing. The more things you can do, the more colleges will come calling.”

While Mays has played a complimentary role for second-ranked East Mississippi Community College, the colleges kept calling.

On Tuesday, Mays made his choice verbally committing to Oklahoma State University. Junior college sophomores, who have completed degree work, can sign in December and enroll at their senior college of choice in January.

“I was really excited when they offered,” Mays said. “It’s another offense similar to ours here. They have a lot of offensive play-makers and do a lot of different things. I am excited about going there and seeing where I can fit in.”

This season, Mays has completed 13-of-14 passes for 149 yards and a touchdown. He has rushed 54 times for 325 yards and six touchdowns, while catching 12 passes for 164 yards and another touchdown.

EMCC will play host to fifth-ranked Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College at 2 p.m. Saturday in the semifinal round of the Mississippi Association of Community and Junior Colleges playoffs. While defending its 2013 National Junior College Athletic Association national championship, EMCC has now won 21 straight games. The Lions can win a fourth-ever state championship with two more wins. A potential third national championship would come with three more wins.

“This program is all about winning,” Mays said. “You come here because you have a chance to win. The expectations are high but we like it that way. We just have to stay focused on the task at hand and get the job done.”

One of the more outgoing personalities on the EMCC team, Mays was an understudy to Dontreal Pruitt, who is now at Troy, a season ago. Mays spent the 2012 season red-shirting at Arkansas State. When Pruitt graduated, it appeared to open the door for Mays to play quarterback. Instead, EMCC signed Clemson transfer Chad Kelly late in the spring.

Kelly has thrown for 2,874 yards and 35 touchdowns this season.

“You have to take those things in stride,” Mays said. “You just come out and work hard everyday and find a way to help your team win. As long as the team has success, I am happy. As far as playing on the next level, I always knew it would work out.”

EMCC falls to No. 2: After leading the NJCAA national rankings for nine straight weeks, a surprise took place Tuesday when EMCC fell to No. 2 in the latest poll.

EMCC (9-0 overall, 6-0 MACJC North Division) earned the preseason No. 1 ranking for the second time in program history. The Lions have held a comfortable margin in the polls since that initial ranking.

However, Iowa Western Community College (9-0) took over the top spot Tuesday. The Reivers hold a five-point lead over the Lions in the poll. EMCC had five of nine first-place votes, while Iowa Western had three and No. 3 Trinity Valley (Texas) Community College (9-0) had the other.

The NJCAA rankings include a majority computer component which ranks schools based on strength of schedule and minority human vote.

Iowa Western got enough of a boost from beating then No. 4-Hutchinson (Kansas) Community College 58-34 last week. Iowa Western has two regular-season games remaining.

EMCC could get a similar boost this week when it faces No. 5 Gulf Coast (8-1, 5-1 MACJC South Division) in the opening-round of the MACJC playoffs. The Lions could also play two games before the final NJCAA rankings are released.

Iowa Western will play host to the Graphic Edge Bowl in Cedar Falls, Iowa, on Dec. 7. The MACJC state champion is slated to play in the Mississippi Bowl at Biloxi High School, also Dec. 7.

The final No. 1 team in the ranking will play host to the national championship bowl site so either bowl game could land the final game.

The two previous EMCC national championship teams were No. 2 entering bowl season but finished No. 1 after winning the postseason game.

Thus, EMCC will be on the look for victories and style points in the remaining portion of its 2014 schedule.

Latham wins weekly honor: Former Columbus High School standout Quan Latham is this week’s MACJC Special Teams player of the week.

Latham recorded his third blocked punt of the season in Thursday’s 65-0 win over Mississippi Delta Community College. Latham now has four blocked kicks in his two-year EMCC career. The sophomore also has three pass interceptions on the year, including two defensive touchdowns.

Follow Scott Walters on Twitter @dispatchscott

Scott was sports editor for The Dispatch.