By Scott Walters
When East Mississippi Community College football players start filling Twitter with senior college scholarship offers, one knows the end of the season is near.
That also means the Lions are ready to get down to business.
As EMCC sophomores and transfers get set to pick their new homes for January, the hunt for this season’s Mississippi Association of Community and Junior Colleges (MACJC) state championship begins in earnest.
No. 3 EMCC (8-1) faces No. 6 Jones County Junior College (8-1) in the opening-round of the playoffs.
Kickoff is set for 1 p.m. Saturday at Bobcat Stadium at Sim Cooley Field in Ellisville.
“It’s the most exciting time of the year,” EMCC sophomore wide receiver Kirk Merritt said. “Everybody wants to play senior college ball and now is the time to make those plans. You have the holidays. You have exams. You also have a chance to win a national championship. Everything goes by so fast at this time of year. You got to be at your best in all areas.”
When the calendar has flipped to the playoffs, that is indeed when EMCC has been at its best.
In Buddy Stephens’ first nine seasons as head coach, the Lions have put together a 10-3 record in the MACJC playoffs — qualifying in eight of nine seasons. The Lions lost in the first round three times but won both games and a state championship five other times.
EMCC has added to a 5-0 record in state championship games with an identical 5-0 record in bowl games.
“Winning the national championship is the goal for this program,” EMCC sophomore wide receiver Mike Williams said. “You come here because you plan on playing for a national championship. Even though we got knocked down, there is still everything to play for. We are excited about (Saturday). This program is all about winning championships. We are ready to go out and get that done.”
EMCC has worked itself back into the national championship discussion. The Lions won the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) national championship in 2011, 2013 and 2014.
EMCC was ranked No. 1 nationally when it saw a six-game winning streak snapped with a 61-38 loss at Northwest Mississippi Community College in Senatobia. The Lions fell to seventh but have moved back up to fifth (after a 72-7 home win over Coahoma Community College) and third (after a 51-41 win over Hinds Community College).
In the latest NJCAA rankings, EMCC actually bypassed No. 4 Northwest despite losing the head-to-head game on Oct. 12.
“Our league is too good, if you win, everything takes care of itself,” Stephens said. “I think we are maybe in a little better position than we thought we would be. This (playoff field) helps. In my 17 years coaching in this league, we have never had a set of playoff teams this good.”
The other MACJC semifinal matches Northwest (7-1) and No. 12 Hinds (6-2).
The NJCAA rankings are two-thirds computer and one-third human vote. The computer relies heavily on a strength of schedule component. A chance to play two Top 12 (and potentially two Top 8) teams in the playoffs will help the EMCC cause substantially. The Lions passed the Rangers this past week thanks to a road win over Hinds, which was then ranked No. 7.
“I like how we are playing now,” Stephens said. “We have gotten that hunger, that swag back. Even though we were winning games, we weren’t playing with that edge. I think Northwest humbled us a little bit. It is good to have that edge back. The national championship teams we have had in the past had that edge. We have been trying to get that back for the last couple of seasons.”
EMCC dropped the season opener to Jones a year ago. The Lions then won their final 11 games but could not get higher than No. 3 in the final rankings before the bowl games. A Mississippi Bowl win allowed EMCC to finish No. 2 nationally.
To achieve a national championship shot this season, EMCC will have to win its final two games and get some help with either No. 1 Iowa Western Community College (8-1) or No. 2 Arizona Western College (7-0). The Lions were only 0.09 points behind Arizona Western. That deficit could be wiped out easily with a pair of playoff wins.
Both Iowa Western and Arizona Western have two games renaming on their respective schedules.
Merritt said the team was refocused and “hungry again” after the loss to Northwest.
“I think we needed to something to wake us up,” Merritt said.. “We weren’t working to the level we needed to be working. That has been fixed now.”
When Lindsey Scott, Jr. transferred from LSU in August, he did so because of the national championship pedigree of the EMCC program.
Scott said a national championship “would look good on the resume” as he prepares to find a new home for January.
“This program wins championships,” Scott said. “Nobody will be happy unless we clear these final hurdles.”
EMCC beat Jones 47-34 in this year’s season opener in Scooba. The Lions erased a 28-14 third-quarter deficit in the win.
Scott threw for 429 yards and four touchdowns in his EMCC debut. That came with less than 10 days of practice time with his new team.
“Jones has an excellent team,” Stephens said. “We were fortunate to put some things together late to win the first time. Both teams are in a better place now. It’s like any other week. Whatever it takes to be 1-0 when the week ends.”
Follow Dispatch sports writer Scott Walters on Twitter @dispatchscott
Scott was sports editor for The Dispatch.
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