EMCC trio sweeps MACCC Football Player of the Week honors after Lions’ successful title defense

SCOOBA – On the heels of successfully defending their conference championship and earning a spot in the upcoming NJCAA Division I Football Playoffs, the Lions of East Mississippi Community College have swept the MACCC Football Player of the Week honors for offense, defense and special teams.

For their individual efforts during EMCC's 27-20 home win over Copiah-Lincoln in Saturday's MACCC Football Championship Game, freshman wide receiver Raymon Blackmon, sophomore linebacker Tyrese Hopkins, and sophomore kicker Cole Arthur have collected this week's respective conference awards.

Blackmon, out of Dothan, Alabama, provided the necessary offensive spark the Lions needed with a pair of catch and runs in the fourth quarter that totaled 121 receiving yards and helped lead the reigning conference champions to their ninth league title in 15 years. He turned a pair of Ty Keyes passes into touchdown receptions of 42 and 79 yards to give EMCC seven-point leads over Co-Lin during the latter part of the contest. Blackmon finished with four catches on the day for 126 receiving yards and the pair of scores.

Hopkins, a Macon native, recorded a team-high eight tackles, including a timely 10-yard quarterback sack, and forced a late-game fumble in the title game. The Southern Miss bounceback's third-quarter sack helped give EMCC excellent field position that provided needed momentum for the Lions to grab their first lead of the game heading into the fourth quarter. Hopkins then helped preserve the victory by chasing down Co-Lin running back Johnnie Daniels from behind following a catch and forced a fumble that was recovered by the Lions at their own 16-yard line with just over a minute left to play in the game.

Arthur, a Leake Academy product, hit both field goal attempts and converted all three point-after-touchdown tries to score nine points against the Wolves. He was responsible for EMCC's first six points of the game with second-quarter field goals of 21 and 29 yards. In addition to averaging 53.5 yards on six kickoffs during the championship contest, Arthur connected on all three of his PAT attempts during the second half.

Head coach Buddy Stephens' fourth-ranked and 9-2 EMCC Lions will travel to Hutchinson, Kansas, to take on top-ranked and unbeaten Hutchinson Community College on Saturday, Dec. 2, to kick off the 2023 NJCAA Division I Football Playoffs. Kickoff is set for 2 p.m. CT at Gowans Stadium. The semifinal contest will be streamed live on ESPN+, and tickets are available for purchase online at njcaa.org/tickets.