WESSON - Despite cutting the deficit to 10 points in third quarter of Saturday's MACCC semifinal loss, Northwest was outscored 21-0 over the course of the fourth quarter in a 48-14 loss to No. 4 Copiah-Lincoln.
Ranked No. 10 entering the contest, Northwest fell to 7-3 to conclude the season, bowing out in the semifinal round for the first time since 2018. Copiah-Lincoln will advance to the MACCC Championship contest at East Mississippi this weekend.
Things got off to a rocky start from the opening kickoff, as a fumble on the Rangers' kickoff return was recovered by the Wolves. However, the Northwest defense locked in and held Co-Lin to a field goal.
Northwest and Co-Lin then traded empty possessions, but the Wolves would get good field position a short time later, as
Keegan Patterson was picked off by Kaden Dukes at the Rangers' 29-yard line. Four plays later, Johnnie Daniels would score the first of his four touchdowns, giving the Wolves the 10-0 lead midway through the first quarter.
With the Rangers unable to cross midfield on the next possession, Co-Lin embarked on a nine-play, 38-yard drive that carried over into the second quarter. However, Brandon Gilliam would miss a 26-yard field goal attempt, keeping Northwest within striking distance.
Offensive struggles continued for Northwest on its next two possessions, as the Rangers were forced to punt both times. Later in the second, the Wolves widened the gap on an 88-yard score from Daniels, followed by his third touchdown from a short six yards out. The two scores pushed the deficit to 24-0 late in the second quarter.
Northwest did manage to spoil the shutout before halftime, as an eight-play, 75-yard drive ended with a short touchdown run by
Xavier Davis.
Jackson Uselton converted the point-after kick, cutting the lead down to 24-7 with 1:44 remaining.
Momentum seemed to favor the Rangers as the second half began, with the Northwest defense forcing a three-and-out on the Wolves' opening possession of the third quarter. An 11-play, 70-yard drive followed for Northwest, capped off by a 10-yard strike from Patterson to
Jarnorris Hopson. The touchdown brought the Rangers back within 10, trailing 24-14.
However, Co-Lin would respond, marching 49 yards on 11 plays for a 33-yard field goal from Gilliam. The Wolves would end the third quarter with a 27-14 advantage.
Despite the surrendered score, Northwest remained close at the start of the fourth quarter. Unfortunately, what seemed like a huge break would soon turn the tide back in the Wolves' favor, as a
Fredd Adams interception was flipped one play later with Christopher Burnett's interception of Patterson. The Rangers' turnover resulted in a seven-play, 95-yard drive that was capped off by a score from Daniels, pushing Co-Lin back to a 34-14 advantage.
Just two plays into the Rangers' next possession, the Wolves picked off Patterson once more, setting up Co-Lin at the Northwest 35-yard line. Two plays later, the quarterback took it 35 yards for another score, further widening the deficit to 41-14 with less than eight minutes to go.
Four plays later, another interception resulted in a 49-yard pick-six by Malachi Williams, giving the Wolves the final touchdown of the afternoon.
Co-Lin racked up 425 yards of total offense, with 267 coming on the ground. Northwest was limited to just 240 yards of offense, with just 62 yards rushing. In all, the Rangers turned the ball over six times in the loss, with four of those being interceptions.
Patterson completed 14 passes for 154 yards and a touchdown, while Hopson caught seven passes for 67 yards.
D'mariun Perteet compiled 46 yards on nine carries to lead the Rangers on the ground.
For the Wolves, Daniels netted 163 yards and four touchdowns on 14 carries. He also finished as Co-Lin's leading receiver, earning 43 yards on five catches.
Tristan Shorter and
Ja'Marlin Green led Northwest on defense, tallying eight tackles apiece, with Shorter also accounting for two tackles-for-loss.
Charles Thomas also had two pass breakups to go with his pair of tackles.
Jahron Manning led Co-Lin with seven tackles, an interception, a forced fumble and a pass breakup. Collin McGowan also completed six tackles with a sack.
Shade Foster had a busy day punting for the Rangers, booting six punts for 249 yards, with his longest going for 51 yards. Northwest did not attempt a punt return and logged just 58 kick return yards on eight attempts.
Gilliam logged 130 yards on four punts and finished 2-for-3 in field goal attempts.
