East Centrall CC sophomore cornerback Fred McGee, a former Greene County stankdout, is shown going untouched into the end zone on a first quarter pick six for the Warriors. (EC Photo)
From Staff Reports
The talents of several former Greene County Wildcats were on full display Thursday night in Decatur as the Pearl River Wildcats traveled to take on East Central Community College in a big MACJC South Division matchup.
The homestanding Warriors came out with a solid 35-0 win over PRCC, but former Cats on both sides of the stadium performed well for their respective teams.
East Central struck quickly in the win with three first quarter touchdowns. The Warriors first drive covered seven yards in just one play just seconds after a recovery of a Pearl River fumble deep in PRCC territory. A little over a minute later, East Central was in the end zone again. Sophomore cornerback Fred McGee (Greene County) returned an interception 37 yards untouched to give the Warriors a 14-0 lead with 11:11 to play in the first quarter.
Complete individual stats were not immediately available. However, Thursday’s showing was not surprise for McGee, who had a pick six in his freshman season and entered the PRCC game as the Warriors’ second leading tackler with 17 total stops, including 15 solo tackles. McGee’s teammate at ECCC and formerly at Greene County, Anthony Blakely, entered the matchup near the top of the defensive stats page for the Warriors with 15 total tackles, including 4.5 tackles for loss.
On the other side of the field, former GCHS standout Noah Mitchell continued his strong play for PRCC with six stops against East Central.
Mitchell is the leading tackler in the MACJC with 11.5 tackles per game according to the latest stats. Former GCHS offensive lineman Hayden West is also playing well as the starting center for PRCC.
With the win, the Warriors improved to 3-1 overall on the season and 2-0 in MACJC South Division play. The Pearl River Wildcats fell to 1-3 overall and 0-2 in the division.
East Central now begins what is most likely the most difficult stretch of games in the NJCAA this season. The Warriors will face five straight opponents currently ranked in the NJCAA Top 20, including three in the Top 10. It begins with a trip to defending national champion and No. 5 ranked East Mississippi on Thursday, Sept. 26. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. at EMCC’s Sullivan-Windham Field in Scooba.
Pearl River returns home Thursday for a 6 p.m. kickoff against No. 19 Hinds.
Elsewhere, former Wildcats Jordan Chapman and Blake Daughdrill will look to help their Jones Bobcats rebound from a 20-14 loss at Mississippi Gulf Coast when they travel to Summit to take on the Southwest CC Bears on Thursday.
Former GCHS football standouts (L-R) Fred McGee, Noah Mitchell, Anthony Blakely, A.J. McGee and Hayden West, competed against each other Thursday night in the East Central vs Pearl River matchup. Photo by Shelley Mitchell – Herald Contributor
