NEMCC football came within one kick of an upset Saturday afternoon in Scooba. Northeast Mississippi Community College fell 28-27 at East Mississippi Community College after a 40-yard field goal try sailed wide left with 1:06 left in the game. The Booneville-based Tigers had jumped out to a two-touchdown lead in the first quarter.
The loss drops Northeast to 1-5 overall and 0-3 in Mississippi Association of Community Colleges Conference (MACCC) play. East Mississippi improved to 5-1 and 1-1 in the league, according to the official box score posted by Northeast athletics.
Fast Start for the Tigers
Northeast could hardly have opened the game better. Quarterback Xae Mayes ran in from 4 yards out with 8:57 left in the first quarter. Later in the period he found Jeremiah Thomas for a 75-yard touchdown pass, and Northeast led 14-0 after one quarter.
After East Mississippi got on the board early in the second quarter, Mayes answered with a 37-yard scoring strike to Kelvin Walker, and the Tigers led 21-7 with 10:19 left before halftime.
East Mississippi’s 21-Point Swing
The Lions then took control of the second quarter with three straight touchdowns in about seven minutes:
Trey Irving hit Sharroid Whitehead for a 71-yard touchdown pass.
Lo’Kavion Jackson intercepted a Mayes pass and returned it 55 yards for a touchdown that tied the game 21-21.
Marcus Flowers Jr. scored on a 6-yard run with 2:03 left in the half, giving East Mississippi a 28-21 halftime lead.
Mayes pulled Northeast back within a point on a 16-yard touchdown run midway through the third quarter, but the extra point failed and the Tigers trailed 28-27. Neither team scored again.
NEMCC Football Comes Up Just Short Late
Northeast had one last chance late in the fourth quarter. The Tigers drove inside the East Mississippi 25 and faced fourth-and-3 at the 23. After East Mississippi called timeout with 1:06 remaining, Daniel Sherman’s 40-yard field goal attempt went wide left. East Mississippi took over and held on for the win.
The game was about as even as a game can be on the stat sheet. Both teams finished with 414 yards of total offense. Key numbers from the box score:
Mayes completed 18 of 31 passes for 302 yards with two touchdowns and one interception. He also led Northeast in rushing with 47 yards and two touchdowns on 12 carries.
Thomas caught two passes for 97 yards, and Walker had five catches for 86 yards.
Northeast’s defense picked off Irving twice, with interceptions by Adam Greer and Jerone Baskin.
For East Mississippi, Irving was 26 of 34 for 285 yards and two touchdowns, and Flowers ran for 116 yards on 23 carries.
Another Close Loss, and What’s Next
It was the third one-score loss of the season for Northeast, which also fell 27-26 to East Central in the opener and 31-28 to Jones. The Tigers’ only win came 18-15 over Southwest Mississippi. Saturday’s result extended Northeast’s losing streak to four games.
Northeast returns home for a MACCC game against Mississippi Delta Community College on Thursday, Oct. 8, at 6:30 p.m. at Tiger Stadium in Booneville. After that, the Tigers play at Pearl River on Oct. 15, at Coahoma on Oct. 24 and host Holmes on Oct. 29.
Jon R Myers is the executive editor of Alcorn County News and the founder of the Mississippi News Group, which he started in 2013 to cover communities across North Mississippi. He also founded the Mississippi Sports Group in 2006, which grew from a single community publication into a statewide network covering high school and college athletics. He reports on local government, public safety, schools and community life in Corinth and Alcorn County, working from public meetings, agency records and interviews with the people involved. Contact him at editor@alcornnewsms.com with news tips or corrections. For a correction, include the article link and supporting source material.
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