CLINTON
-- For three and a half quarters the Millsaps Majors
dominated behind the strong performance of Juan Joseph and
a solid defense, but it was
Mississippi
College who came out the victor at the final buzzer as the
Choctaws rallied for 21 points in the fourth quarter
to come-from-behind and
top
the Majors 27-26 in front of an electric crowd of 5,293 at
Robinson-Hale Stadium.
From the final score down to the total yards, penalties and
time of possession, the Majors and Choctaws were neck and
neck
in
the box score, living up to the theme of the night "Backyard
Brawl."
Millsaps received the opening kickoff and ULM
transfer Guy Smith returned
the
Brannon Walls kick 29 yards to set the Majors up comfortably
at their own 36 yardline. From there, Joseph completed five
consecutive
passes to four different receivers, including a 22-yard strike
to Raymece Savage that advanced the ball to the MC 11.
After a promising
start that looked to light up the scoreboard early, the
drive stalled when a botched
handoff from Joseph to
running back Schuyler Huff
on the first running play from scrimmage
ended the scoring threat.
The SCAC’s
No. 1 ranked defense from a year ago forced a three and out
to
open the game deep in MC territory, pressuring
Adam Shaffer into a pair of incomplete passes that resulted
in the drive ending in a Jonathan Russell
punt -- one of nine on the evening.
On the ensuing
drive, back-to-back completions from Joseph and a 4-yard
rush by Schuyler Huff set up the Majors at the MC 30, where
Joseph found a streaking Savage for
a 30-yard touchdown strike and a 6-0 Millsaps lead. The point
after attempt from Sam Herman was no good.
A series
later, the Choctaws' Shaffer connected with Jake Allen down the
middle of the field for a 39-yard gain, but just when he made
his move towards the endzone to knot the game, cornerback
Jonathan Brooks stripped Allen from behind at the 3 yard line
where teammate
Kevin Peters
recovered
the fumble.
The
Majors would add a 70-yard touchdown strike from Joseph to Donnie
Epps on a dump pass down the sideline on the opening play of
the second quarter and a 1-yard rush by Huff to jump out on top
20-0 late in the second quarter.
MC tacked on a late 36-yard field goal from
sophomore Kyle Kruse to make the halftime margin 20-3.
The Choctaws
would cut the lead to 20-6 on their second series in the third
quarter when Kruse connected on a 19-yard field goal after a
strong defensive stand from the Majors.
After allowing MC to trot 70 yards down the field to the 2 yard
line on a pair of long receptions and rushes from Gerald
Brown and Jake Allen, the Millsaps defense stuffed the Choctaws
on three consecutive running plays to keep them out of the endzone.
The Majors O answered right back, traveling 66 yards over 10
plays in 4:04 that ended in a Joseph strike to senior Louis Conley
on a fade from 4-yards out in the back left corner of the endzone.
The point after attempt failed from freshman Taylor Russolino.
The
drive was kept alive on a roughing the passer call on a third-and-seven
from
the Majors'
own 37
yardline.
The fourth quarter was a whole different story with a huge change
of events.
Following a Shaffer touchdown strike to playmaker Marcus Terry
just minutes into the quarter that cut the lead to 20-13, Terry's
name was called once again when he helped the Choctaws convert
a fake punt with just over
eight minutes
remaining from MC's own 5 yardline.
Terry
scampered
51
yards
on the
play, which appeared to be a double handoff, setting up a Justin
Bullard touchdown catch that cut Millsaps' lead to 26-20 and
rejuvenated the home crowd.
Marcus Cowan's interception on Millsaps' next series gave
MC a first down at the Majors' 16 with 5:23 left.
From there,
Gerald Brown swiftly went 16 yards for a touchdown and Kruse's
extra
point sealed the deal.
For Millsaps, Joseph was 25-of-37 for 289 yards
and three touchdowns (18-of-25 for 235 yards in the first)
passing but was sidelined late in the third quarter to allow
sophomore Chris Graves to run the offense. Graves played
the remainder of the game, completing 6-of-13 passes
for
48 yards while tossing two picks.
Savage led all receivers with five catches for 76 yards and
one score while Conley and Epps added a touchdown apiece and
McCarty, Smith, Huff, Burt Pereira, Michael Galatas, Jordan
Marshall, Kenneth Metzger, Tye Menist and senior fullback
Neil Woodall each hauled in a catch or more.
Terry accounted for 124 all-purpose yards for the Choctaws,
converting on a 51 yard rush on a fake punt and hauling in
seven catches for 73 yards and a score. Allen added three
catches for 83 yards while Bullard had four catches for 41
yards including a 5-yard touchdown catch late in the fourth
quarter.
Shaffer looked promising at times and ended up 18-of-45
for 245 yards and a pair of touchdowns.
Game Notes:
The Choctaws outrushed the Majors 164-28
The Choctaws lead the all-time series 28-11-6
The Choctaws own a 4-3 lead over Millsaps since the
rivalry renewed in 2000
The Choctaws scored 21 unanswered points over a 7:15 span
in the fourth quarter
The Majors rotated in 74 different players including 27
new players
The Majors haven't won a season-opener on the road since
Austin College in 1998
The Majors allowed four sacks in tonight's game (they
surrendered just seven in 2006)
The Majors set a new single-game team record with 31 pass
completions (29 vs Rose Hulman in 1997)
