No. 1 EMCC travels to No. 4 Co-Lin in MACJC state title rematch; Lions look to tie NJCAA consecutive wins mark

SCOOBA – Looking to tie the all-time NJCAA standard of 26 consecutive wins, the top-ranked and three-time NJCAA Champion Lions of East Mississippi Community College hit the road for the first time this season by taking on preseason No. 4 Copiah-Lincoln Community College Thursday evening in Wesson.  Kickoff for the rematch of last year's MACJC State Championship Game is set for 7 p.m. at Co-Lin's Stone Stadium.

Having extended their current streak to 25 consecutive victories with last Thursday's 69-20 season-opening home victory over Southwest Mississippi, eighth-year head coach Buddy Stephens' EMCC Lions will bid to equal Blinn College's 26-game win string compiled during the three-year span between 1995 and 1997.  East Mississippi's current streak dates back three years ago to the team's last-second 47-46 home setback to then-No. 15 Co-Lin in the 2012 MACJC State Semifinals contested on the Scooba campus.

Last week's 49-point home triumph over Southwest Mississippi matched the average scoring margin (+49.3 ppg) the Lions have achieved during their current win streak.  During the previous 25 games, EMCC has averaged 58.4 points per contest offensively while allowing an average of only 9.1 points an outing on the defensive side of the ball.  In addition, the two-time reigning national champions have reached the 50-point plateau 18 times during that stretch with 10 shutout victories.

East Mississippi's 764 yards of total offense (379 rush/385 pass) in its season opener marked the second-best, single-game total offense effort under Stephens' guidance.   Only a 786-yard total offense performance at Southwest Mississippi in 2012 currently ranks ahead of the team's total offense numbers produced last Thursday night against the Bears.  Additionally, EMCC's 379 rushing yards (on 39 carries) a week ago against SMCC, including 100-yard rushers DJ Law (13-142) and Jacquez Horsley (10-121), established a new single-game program standard during the Stephens era.  

Guided by veteran head football coach Glenn Davis, fourth-ranked Co-Lin is also 1-0 on the young season after claiming a 26-14 road win over Itawamba last Thursday in Fulton.  Last year's Wolfpack squad was 8-3 on the season, earning a 44-30 home win over Northwest Mississippi in the state semifinals before dropping a 54-15 decision to the visiting EMCC Lions in the MACJC State Championship Game.          

Dating back to Stephens' first season at the EMCC football helm, the Lions are 4-2 against Copiah-Lincoln since 2008 with identical 2-1 marks against the Wolfpack in both Scooba and Wesson.  A year ago, East Mississippi prevailed on both campus sites, winning 46-10 at home during Week 2 (Sept. 4) when the teams were nationally ranked No. 1 and No. 3, respectively, and then completing the season sweep with the 39-point triumph in the state title game held at Co-Lin.  Previously in Wesson, EMCC dropped a 48-21 road decision to Copiah-Lincoln during the 2010 state semifinals and posted a 27-13 victory at Stone Stadium in the 2009 season opener.    

In advance of the second straight top-five MACJC matchup between EMCC and Co-Lin, Stephens' Lions are 13-1 collectively against top-five teams in his seven-plus seasons at the Scooba helm, including 11 straight wins since falling, 40-21, at No. 5 Mississippi Gulf Coast during the 2010 season opener.  Overall, Stephens is 22-7 against nationally ranked opponents, including a 15-3 career mark versus top-10 foes, dating back to the 2008 campaign. 

Now 69-10 (.873) as the NJCAA's top-ranked active head football coach by career winning percentage, East Mississippi's Stephens actually owns a higher career winning percentage away from home (34-4 for 89.5%) than on the Scooba campus (35-6 for 85.4%).  The Lions' only road losses since 2008 came during the 2012 (Itawamba), 2010 (Gulf Coast & Co-Lin) and 2008 (Jones County) campaigns. 

EMCC's football games will be broadcast live by WFCA-FM (107.9), out of French Camp, with Jason Crowder and Charlie Winfield slated to call the play-by-play action and Glen Beard set to serve as the Lions' sideline reporter this season.  EMCC's 2015 football radio broadcasts will also be carried live by SuperTalk Mississippi (WZKR-FM 103.3) out of Meridian as well as through EMCC's new radio station, WGTC-FM (92.7), originating from the Golden Triangle campus in Mayhew.

In addition, EMCC's weekly live video-streamed football broadcasts will again be available in HD at www.EMCCathletics.com/live.  Alternate audio streams of the radio broadcasts will also be available at www.wfcafm108.com.  Fans are also encouraged to follow EMCC Athletics through the college's athletics website, www.EMCCathletics.com, and on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook (@EMCCathletics) via the school's social media hub at www.EMCCathletics.com/Social-Media-Hub.