Lions top Bobcats to open season
Stephens become all-time winningest coach at EMCC
SCOOBA – Bull Sullivan’s legacy has long hovered over the campus of East Mississippi Community College and has long been the cornerstone for the football program.
Legendary stories have been told about Sullivan’s coaching career in Scooba and will continue, but the same can now be said about Buddy Stephens.
For 10 years, Stephens has won at a high level at the school and taken EMCC to unprecedented heights. He added to that legacy on Thursday night to begin the season when his Lions knocked off Jones County 47-34.
The win was the 88th in Stephens coaching career and it came in his 100th game. The victory also propelled him into the No. 1 spot in he history of Lion football.
“Bull Sullivan is a great man and he coached a lot of great people here,” Stephens said. “He’s very revered and he’s very loved. If I can do half as much for the guys that played for me as he did his guys, I’ll be a success. He will always be the measuring stick of how a coach is remembered.”
Stephens might be a seasoned veteran, but the Lions were breaking in quite a few new faces on the offensive side of the football.
For beginners, EMCC had former Starkville High School offensive coordinator David Boykin making the calls for the offense for the first time and he had four freshmen starting on the offensive front. Among those starting were center Connor Reinike and left tackle Jakoby Jones, both of which played their football at SHS.
A new quarterback was at the helm as well in LSU transfer Lindsey Scott Jr. and the rust was apparent coming off that unit. It wasn’t until the 2-minute mark of the first quarter that the Lions were on the board when Scott found Dontario Drummond for a 49-yard touchdown. Jones answered quickly on the next play with an 80-yard score and it was tied at 7-7 at the end of the first.
The two teams traded scores in the second quarter as well as Scott Jr. hit Dorrean McLaurin for a 18-yard score and Weaver found Jeriko Morris from 9 yards out just shy of halftime. The second score came shortly after EMCC got a goal line stand but threw an interception on the next drive.
The pattern of miscues continued on the next drive when the Lions had sure points on a field goal before the half wiped out on a bad snap and they were tied at 14-14 at the half.
Jones parlayed that momentum in the third quarter with back-to-back long touchdowns to suddenly took the 28-14 lead early in the frame. EMCC got back on the board with a 46-yard touchdown reception from Mike Williams but miscues continued.
The big blow in the quarter came when Kirk Merritt returned a punt 87 yards, but it was called back for an apparent offsides. Instead of a score for the Lions, JCJC had a first down and it put the football into the end zone to go back up 34-23 after an extra point was blocked and returned for two points from Denzel Bonner.
Merritt brought the momentum back to the Lions again when he made an 81-yard burst on a third-down reception to cut the lead to 34-30 going to the final quarter.
It was in the fourth when EMCC took the lead back for good. Drives ended with short yardage runs from both Tyrell Price and Merritt and a field goal to put the game away.
The Lions return home to Sullivan-Windham Field next Thursday playing host to Gulf Coast Community College. The game will kick at 7 p.m.