SENATOBIA - History was made in the waning moments of Thursday's 41-13 Homecoming victory for No. 9 Northwest.

After being held scoreless in the first half, sophomore tailback Jaquerrious Williams powered his way to three second half touchdowns, lifting the Rangers past Itawamba in the regular season home finale. The most significant of his three scores came with 3:54 remaining, as the Tupelo native collected his 31st career rushing touchdown, setting the new program record.

"It really means a lot to me," Williams said, following the game. "I couldn't get it done without God above and for my front five. They work hard every night for me. To be able to be number one in the record books means a lot, knowing that there were lots of good players that had this before me."

Williams now ranks ahead of previous record-holder Justin Crawford's 30 touchdowns (2014-15), John Avery (25; 1994-95) and 22 each from Ricky Blake (1987) and Rontae Bass (1991-92). He also sits at 1,907 career rushing yards, 175 shy of tying Eldra Buckley (2003-04) for fifth all-time.

As for the game itself, Northwest scored on its first drive with Jamarien Bracey's six-yard rush at the 8:35 mark of the first quarter. The Bryant, Ark. native now has seven touchdowns on the season and one score in each of the last three games.

Itawamba gained some momentum on its next drive, as the Indians crossed midfield in hopes of evening the score. The Northwest defense had other ideas however, as Kylan Robinson laid a big hit for the third down stop, forcing the Indians to punt.

Though the first quarter ended with the same 7-0 score, the Rangers closed out the quarter inching their way downfield. The 11-play, 97-yard drive concluded early in the second with a 30-yard touchdown strike from Michael Hiers to D.T. Sheffield, pushing Northwest to a 14-0 lead.

After a couple back-and-forth punts, Northwest took over on Itawamba's 45-yard line after a penalty-plagued possession for the Indians. With 7:06 remaining in the quarter, Hiers connected with sophomore receiver Jacoby Jones for a 34-yard score, lifting the Rangers to a 21-0 halftime advantage.

Northwest received the ball to open the second half and Williams immediately took over, scoring five plays into the third quarter on a 45-yard breakaway run, stretching the Rangers' lead to 28-0.

Itawamba finally made its first trip to the end zone just a couple minutes later, as R.J. Wilson spoiled the shutout on a 13-yard carry. In exchange, Northwest embarked on a 14-play, 82-yard drive that lasted nearly seven minutes and ended with a short 3-yard score from Williams, pushing the Indians' deficit to 34-7.

ICC would tack on another score with 8:35 left to go, but the Indians did not draw any closer. With just the clock left to burn, Northwest did just that and let Williams command the ground game. Before celebrating the victory, the Rangers took care of one last item of business, as Williams' 11-yard run into the home corner of the end zone forever cemented his place in the record books.

Williams led the Rangers with 115 yards on the ground, tying his season-high and earning his fourth straight game with 100 or more rushing yards. Bracey also earned 60 impactful yards and one touchdown.

Through the air, Hiers finished 17-of-21 for 209 yards and two touchdowns, officially surpassing 2,000 passing yards on the season. His top target was E. Jai Mason, who collected eight receptions for 85 yards, followed by Sheffield's five receptions and 70 yards. 

Robinson and Sam Brumfield commanded the Rangers' defense, combining for 19 total tackles and two quarterback hurries from Brumfield. Byron Pearson also collected a 26-yard interception, while Kiyon Williams accounted for one tackle-for-loss.

For Itawamba, Dylan Faulk completed 23 of his 36 pass attempts for 151 yards. The Indians had no passing touchdowns, but were led in receiving with nine catches for 82 yards by Chris Howard, while Shamar Sandgren and Eric Watts came away with 45 receiving yards apiece.

Darrius Conley and Peyton Rea paced the Indians' defense with nine tackles each, followed by eight from Corley Hooper.

Northwest has now clinched its 32nd playoff berth in program history and the eighth consecutive postseason appearance since the 2014 season. 

Northwest (6-2, 4-1 MACCC North) will close out the regular season next Thursday evening, October 28, at Mississippi Delta. The Trojans (4-4, 2-3 MACCC North) stumbled after a 2-0 start to the season, but are coming off back-to-back victories against Northeast and Holmes.