EMCC Lions drop heartbreaking 36-34 home decision to Itawamba in seesaw gridiron affair

SCOOBA – In a tightly contested MACCC North Division battle that featured four fourth-quarter lead changes, the home-standing Lions of East Mississippi Community College dropped a heartbreaking 36-34 decision to the Itawamba Indians during Thursday night action played at EMCC's Sullivan-Windham Field.

After EMCC reclaimed the lead by a single point (34-33) on Gavin Griffin's 5-yard scoring run with just under two minutes remaining in the seesaw affair, ICC promptly drove 60 yards on five plays en route to snapping the program's 10-game series losing skid against the Lions on Eli Burciaga's 27-yard field goal with only 23 seconds left on the game clock.

The Lions seemed to be on the verge of being in early control of the contest when reigning NJCAA Division I Offensive Player of the Year Ty Keyes scrambled for a 21-yard touchdown four minutes into the game to cap a 12-play, 73-yard scoring drive. After Dylan King's interception of a Ty Davis pass gave EMCC the ball back near midfield, the Lions appeared to be driving in for another score with a first-and-goal opportunity from Itawamba's 8-yard line. Three plays later following a timeout, ICC defensive lineman Chuck Taylor hauled in Keyes' pass attempt and rumbled 89 yards for a touchdown. The successful PAT tied the game at 7-7 with 6:13 left in the opening quarter.

The two teams traded touchdowns again early in the second quarter. On the first play of the quarter, Keyes finished off a nine-play, 64-yard drive by running it in from 14 yards out to give the Lions their first lead of game at 14-7. Aided by Tyran Mosley's 69-yard return on the subsequent kickoff, the Indians' first play from scrimmage resulted in a 15-yard touchdown toss from Davis to Chris Reed. The point-after attempt was missed to keep the score at 14-13 with most of the quarter still left to play.

The defenses ruled the remaining 14:35 of the quarter, however, as the two teams combined for four punts between them as well as swapping pass interceptions on three consecutive possessions. The Lions also created another turnover with a fumble recovery midway through the quarter, though they could not take advantage of the opportunity.

Itawamba struck first following intermission by moving the ball 55 yards on five plays during the second half's initial possession. Davis and Mosley connected on a 24-yard scoring strike to put the visitors on top (20-14) for the first time in the game with 12:19 remaining in the quarter.

After EMCC failed to generate any offense on its opening drive of the half, the Indians went ahead by two scores at the 5:05 mark when Davis and Reed hooked up for a 71-yard catch and run to the end zone.

The Lions responded to their largest deficit (27-14) of the contest by scoring on their next two next possessions. They first drove 67 yards on 10 plays, as Jaylen Jennings barreled in from 4 yards out to make it a 27-21 contest while closing out the third-quarter scoring.

EMCC then held Itawamba to a three-and-out to pave the way for an eight-play, 73-yard scoring drive that was capped by Jaylon York's tipped 44-yard touchdown reception from Keyes. Hayden Houpt's successful PAT gave the Lions their second of three different one-point leads on the evening at 28-27.

The game's momentum changed again when Itawamba forced an EMCC special teams mistake on Chasden Collins' fumbled punt return that was recovered by the Indians. Following a 41-yard, Davis-to-Mosley pass play to begin the drive, Davis found Ethan Minor in the end zone for a 3-yard touchdown toss. The failed two-point conversion attempt through the air kept it a five-point contest (33-28) in favor of the visitors.

The Lions answered by grabbing the momentum right back with a 13-play, 61-yard scoring drive that took nearly five minutes off the game clock and was prolonged by a crucial facemask penalty called on a play where Keyes was sacked for what would have been a 17-yard loss. Following Griffin's 5-yard scoring plunge to put EMCC back up again by a single point (34-33), an unsuccessful two-point conversion attempt via the pass then set the stage for ICC's winning drive that resulted in the program's first victory over the Lions since the 2012 season.

Despite being outgained in total offense yards (477-339), rushing yards (233-45) and first downs (32-13) by EMCC during the contest, the Indians improved to 3-1 overall on the season with their division-opening victory over the Lions. In contrast, East Mississippi fell to 1-3 overall (0-2 in MACCC North) on the year for the first time since opening the 2010 season with three straight losses on the way to a breakeven 5-5 season.

Individually for EMCC, Keyes was 28-of-50 for 244 passing yards, one touchdown and two interceptions. York, who is ranked among the top NJCAA Division I receiving leaders, continued his stellar sophomore season with a career-high 10 catches for 112 yards, including his 44-yard scoring grab. Jennings and Griffin both approached the century mark on the ground for the Lions with 91 and 84 rushing yards, respectively, on 20 carries apiece and one touchdown each.

Head coach Buddy Stephens' EMCC Lions will look to get back on the winning track next Saturday (Sept. 28) when they play host to the Coahoma Tigers during homecoming festivities on the Scooba campus. Kickoff is set for 2 p.m. at EMCC's Sullivan-Windham Field.