When West Lowndes football coach Anthony King looks at Mississippi’s three Division I football programs, he sees opportunity knock.
New Mississippi State coach Mike Leach is known for his pass-heavy “Air Raid” offense. Coach Lane Kiffin at Ole Miss plans to lean on the passing game heavily. And quarterback Jack Abraham and Southern Miss will throw their way to success.
That means a lot of openings for receivers like West Lowndes senior Jherquaveus “Qua” Sanders. The 6-foot-2, 180-pound speedster signed his national letter of intent to Jones County Junior College on Wednesday, and he’ll be eligible to sign with a Division I program after just one season.
“Hopefully I can go to Jones, put up some good numbers, and in December, I can be signing another scholarship to a Division I school,” Sanders said.
That’s the goal for Sanders, who saw interest from Memphis and Southern Miss and received NCAA offers from Austin Peay and Jackson State. Neither of the FBS schools dangled an offer, though, so Sanders decided to go the junior college route despite pushes from coaches as late as Wednesday morning.
“I think he made a really good decision by going there,” King said. “I think better football is ahead of him once he gets stronger.”
King said Sanders’ slight frame is partially the result of West Lowndes’ size or lack thereof — a MHSAA Class 1A school, West Lowndes doesn’t have a strength and conditioning program for its football team. The school will implement athletic periods next season, King said.
And if Sanders can add 10 to 15 pounds of muscle, King said, he’ll reap the benefits. Sanders has history playing quarterback and running back as well as receiver, and many schools recruited him as a safety.
“That experience is gonna benefit him big time at the next level,” King said.
The senior had 600 receiving yards and 499 rushing yards in just 10 games in 2019, helping the Panthers reach the playoffs. A first-round blowout loss at Biggersville put a damper on things, though.
“It was tough the way it ended, but everything happens for a reason,” Sanders said. “Our team overcame a lot of adversity. We had several different injuries, but injury comes with the game of football.”
Now, the senior will finish up the basketball season before he heads to Ellisville to play for the Bobcats. Once there, he hopes to make the difference his coach knows he can.
“I just felt like Jones was the place for me,” Sanders said. “They’re the place that I can call home, the place where I can go in and make an immediate impact.”
Theo DeRosa reports on Mississippi State sports for The Dispatch. Follow him on Twitter at @Theo_DeRosa.
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 24 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.
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 24 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.
