EMCC's Allenzae Staggers named MACJC Special Teams Player of the Week after four-touchdown effort

SCOOBA – For his four-touchdown effort in last week's 69-0 home win over Coahoma, East Mississippi Community College sophomore Allenzae Staggers has been named the Mississippi Association of Community and Junior Colleges (MACJC) Special Teams Player of the Week.

A wide receiver for the seventh-ranked EMCC Lions, Staggers amassed 267 all-purpose yards while scoring four times during last Thursday's MACJC North Division opener versus Coahoma.  While making his collegiate punt return debut, the Wilkinson County High School product ran back six punts for 169 total yards, including returns of 81 and 35 yards for touchdowns.  Staggers also had a team-most four catches for 98 receiving yards against the Tigers with scoring grabs of 44 and 41 yards.

For the season, Staggers leads all EMCC receivers with 12 catches for 155 yards and three touchdowns.  In addition to currently leading the NJCAA statistical leaders in punt return average (28.2 yds/ret), he has also returned two kickoffs for 31 yards on the year.  

Coach Buddy Stephens' 2-1 EMCC Lions hit the road to take on Northeast Mississippi Community College Thursday in Booneville.  Kickoff is set for 6:30 p.m. at NEMCC's Tiger Stadium.  East Mississippi will then close out its September slate by playing host to rival Itawamba Community College during homecoming weekend on the Scooba campus.  The EMCC-ICC gridiron clash is set for a 2 p.m. start on Saturday, Sept. 26 at Sullivan-Windham Field.

Joining Staggers for MACJC football honors this week were Northwest Mississippi sophomore running back Justin Crawford and Mississippi Gulf Coast freshman linebacker Reggio Dean.  The trio will now contend for national honors to be announced Wednesday by the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA).