Tigers
end season in Senatobia
Northeast
Sports Information
Northeast Mississippi
Community College’s football team capped its 2009 season with
another close one.
Northeast (2-7, 2-4 in North Division) held the
state’s topped ranked pass offense to under 250 yards through
the air, but it was not enough as the Tigers fell in the season
finale to the Northwest Rangers 17-14 Saturday, October 24.
Northeast kept Northwest on its heels during the
first half --taking 7-0 and 14-7 leads before the Rangers could
respond.
Creighton Nelms (Kossuth) gave the Tigers an early
7-0 lead when the sophomore fullback broke out into the flat along
the home side at Ranger Stadium and hauled in a four-yard pass from
Clint Wilson (Olive Branch) just over seven minutes into the game.
Tyler Turner (Southaven), who was perfect on the
day in PATs, booted home the extra point try to give Northeast a
seven-point cushion with 7:51 left in the first quarter.
Turner was responsible for the Tigers opening score
when he found Dominque King on a 37-yard pass during a fake punt
that carried the Tigers down the Ranger 8.
Northwest (6-3, 4-2) wasted little time in responding
to Northeast’s score when Ranger quarterback Casey Weston
found Michael Lindsey streaking across the middle for a 70-yard
score as Northwest scored 61 seconds after Northeast took its initial
lead of the contest.
Both teams held each opposing offense in check until
late in the first half when Northeast managed to take another seven-point
lead on Northwest.
(add first name) King, who caught seven passes for
over 100 yards on the day, scampered in from 36 yards out on a Wilson
laser to the sophomore receiver with 1:14 remaining in the first
half.
Northeast’s lead was short lived again, however,
as Northwest answered with a second quick scoring strike of its
own just 61 seconds later.
Weston hit Marquise Green on a 21-yard jet as the
Rangers tied things just 13 seconds before half following Kevin
Bufford’s second PAT of the day.
Not to be lost in the Tigers’ defensive effort
to stop the Rangers’ offense -- was Northeast running back
Jeremy Cannon (New Albany) breaking the 1,000-yard rushing plateau
on a 3-yard run with 5:27 left in the second quarter.
Cannon got the milestone run on an unfortunate play
for the Tiger offense as Northeast was penalized for a holding call
three yard beyond the line of scrimmage. The sophomore running back’s
rush counted to the point of the penalty giving Cannon 25 yards
on his eighth carry of the day and 1,002 yards on the season.
Both squads stumbled coming out of the halftime
break with Northeast forcing Northwest to cough up the pigskin on
its first drive of the second half.
John Brown (Lakeland, Fla.) separated the ball from
a Northwest carrier and Jarryn Bingham (Jackson) jumped on the loose
pigskin to put the Tigers in excellent field position but the Northeast
offense couldn’t convert in the red zone and let the 14-all
score stand.
Northeast and Northwest had shots at taking a lead
in the third quarter and came up short on field goal attempts. Northeast
missed from 32 yards out on a fourth-and-seven with 5:09 remaining,
while Northwest couldn’t find the range on a 48-yard boot
with 1:54 showing in the frame.
Bufford made up for his miss in the third quarter
when he put the Rangers up for good in the final frame on a 34-yard
field goal with 10:03 remaining for the final digits.
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