SENATOBIA – In what turned out to be a classic, the #4 Northwest Mississippi Community College football team (9-2, 6-0) was able to dig deep late to earn their third straight MACCC and Region 23 Championship in a nail-biter, taking down #9 Hinds Community College (7-4, 5-1) 33-29 at Ranger Stadium at Bobby Franklin Field on Saturday afternoon.
"It means a lot to me," Sophomore Avery Jackson said. "We had won a championship two years in a row, you don't want it to be the last one when you are playing. It just feels good to keep the tradition going. I'm pretty sure there are many more to come."
The three-peat is the first team to do it since East Mississippi Community College in 2016 through 2018, and only the third team to do it since 1998.
"Every day we work so hard, put in the long hours, and the late nights and early mornings," Sophomore Jamarcus Flowers said. "With the defense and the offense going back and forth, Northwest versus Northwest every single day, we were just getting each other better and better, and it finally paid off."
The victory sets up the Rangers with the opportunity to play in the NJCAA Division I National Playoffs, with the top four teams in the country earning a spot in the postseason picture, beginning with semifinal action on November 20 and 22. The field as it stands looks like it will include top-ranked Hutchinson Community College, #2 Iowa Western Community College, and #3 Trinity Valley Community College.
"I'm just looking forward to playing another week with the guys," Anders said. "I love this team, and they have grown up right before our eyes. The young guys aren't playing like freshmen anymore. They are playing like second-year and third-year guys."
It was a strong start for the Rangers at home, with the defense stopping the opening drive for the Eagles with a forced fumble, and the offense turning around and driving 53 yards to open the scoring with a Noah Gillon run to the end zone to make it 7-0 after just four and a half minutes.
"We were playing with a bunch of intensity," Jackson said. "We knew who was coming in and we knew what we were coming in to do, and we responded the right way. We played how Northwest plays."
There was a bad turn on the scoring play, though, as Gillon was helped off the field with an injury, forcing Northwest to give the ball to third-string quarterback Zach Benedict to run the offense.
The defense continued to do their part despite the minor setback, forcing another three-and-out and giving the offense the ball on the Northwest 45-yard line. After a Ranger three-and-out, the defense would strike again for the home team, forcing a second fumble at the 19-yard line.
"We finished," Flowers said after the Rangers finished the game with four forced fumbles and four fumble recoveries. "Every play we finished, and Coach Anders emphasized that every single day, and it paid off."
The end result would be a 25-yard field goal from Will Uselton to extend the lead to 10-0 with just over five minutes to play in the opening quarter.
Hinds would get their offense going after a strong return set them up at midfield on the ensuing kickoff, and several plays later, a pass to the back of the end zone would trim the Northwest lead to 10-7.
Sophomore TyAnthony Elmore said that was the moment they all knew they had to buckle down to keep momentum.
"After the first drive when Noah got hurt, we knew things weren't going right, and we were getting complacent. We needed to trust in our play callers, and we overcame that, trusted in one another, and started making the plays when our names were called."
Good news would come for the Rangers on the next drive when Gillon would return to the field after the injury scare, but the offense would still end up with a punt on the possession as the quarter closed and the Eagles would take over to start the second quarter.
After another strong defensive possession forced a punt, which was shanked to the 50, the Northwest offense was given another chance in great field position.
Flowers added that seeing Gillon toughing through an injury added a bit more motivation to an already driven defense.
"It let you know that he was ready to die for us, and we needed to be ready to die for him," he said. "That's what you have to do on the field. You have to give 100 percent, and that's exactly what Noah did."
A pair of big passing plays to Damon Sisa and Quincy Phillips Jr. would move the Rangers inside the red zone, resulting in a five-yard plunge to the end zone from Macaleb Taylor to push the lead back to 10 with 9:21 remaining, and the Rangers up 17-7.
It looked like the Eagles would be marching back the other way to answer, but for the third time in the game, the Rangers' defense would force a fumble, this time inside their own 20-yard line, to deny the Eagles a chance to score, setting themselves up with a chance to score going into the half with less than five minutes to play.
Northwest wouldn't be able to turn it into points, but as the clock wound down to under two minutes, the defense would stand tall again, this time on an interception by Jackson to deny the Eagles' offense any momentum, with the fourth turnover forced in the game by the Rangers to that point.
"Coach had been preaching all week, when the quarterback runs out of the pocket, we had to try and stay with our guy," Jackson said. "It was nothing other than what Coach put in the game plan for us. He ran out of the pocket, I stayed with my man, and the ball came right to me, so thank you, Coach Anders is all I have to say."
"I know we got to their quarterback, and the pressure got to him a little bit early," Anders said. "Everything was on track, and that's what we talked about at halftime."
Northwest started the third quarter with the ball and proceeded to march down the field, chewing up the clock on the way to a short field goal from Uselton to extend the lead to 20-7.
Hinds couldn't manage more than a three-and-out in their next drive, and the Northwest offense went right back to work, milking the clock down to inside of one minute to go, but an interception looked like it was going to keep Northwest off the board.
That was when the Ranger defense struck again for a turnover of their own, with Linkin Sanders coming out of the scrum on the first play of the Eagles' drive, with the fourth fumble forced by the Northwest defense and the fifth turnover of the game from Hinds.
Six seconds into the fourth quarter, Northwest made that pay off, using a reverse to freshman wideout Clydarrien Peters for his first rushing score of the season, and a 26-7 lead after the missed PAT.
"Coach said we needed to make a play and get a score," Peters said. "It was third and long, and the plan was to throw the ball, but I saw it open so I just ran it in."
Hinds quickly answered back on a touchdown pass to close it back to a 26-14 game with 13:04 remaining on the second passing score of the game from Jaylon Ruffin. One drive later, after another empty possession from Northwest, Ruffin would add a third to his tally on a pass to the corner of the end zone to Kelton Young to make it a 26-21 game with over 8:32 left in the contest.
A second interception in the half would end the next Northwest drive in Hinds territory, setting up the Eagles with a chance to take the lead with over six minutes to go. The drive ended with a sprint to the end zone by DJ Miller to push the lead to 27-26, stunning the home crowd with 22 unanswered points after a two-point conversion was completed.
"He's the best player we've seen, so far, in a couple of years, and he made play after play, after play, in the fourth quarter. He became Superman," Anders said. "We told them the burst was coming, and props to him, because he did a really good job, and their coaches let him make plays, and he's a really good player."
Going into the next offensive possession, Offensive Coordinator Stan Hill said it was all about executing and not giving up.
"We had to make plays," he said. "We had gotten behind the chains with penalties, but we told them to keep playing, and we knew we could score at any time, so we never got down on ourselves, and at the end they came through and made plays."
Needing an answer and at least a field goal, the Rangers opened their next possession with a big completion to midfield to Elmore, moving them into plus territory at the two-minute timeout. A pass interference penalty would add another 15 to the drive's progress.
"We really needed that," Peters said of the start to the drive. "We knew if we could get two first downs, we knew our offense was good enough to score."
That was all just a precursor to the biggest play of the year for Peters, who added a second touchdown to his day, this time through the air with 1:19 remaining to send the Rangers back in front 33-29.
"I was supposed to have an out route, and I just converted it to a fade," Peters said. "There was nobody there, and I knew my team needed a play."
"Clyde's one of the most talented players I've been on the field with," Gillon said. "He's smart, he's disciplined, he's got elite route running and elite hands, and to see him get his chance and make the most of it, it's huge."
Elmore echoed that, saying he was excited to see him make a difference in a big moment.
"A lot of freshmen don't get to do that in their first year. Clyde came out and made a huge impact for our offense, so I'm proud of my brother," he said.
Ruffin brought the Eagles down to the Rangers' 16-yard line, setting up a fourth down for the game, but the cleat would betray the Hinds quarterback, denying him the chance as he stumbled and fell, ending the game with Northwest holding on for the 33-29 win.
"We actually had Linkin as a spy on the quarterback, and when they motioned a guy across, he got him," Anders said. "We actually had put a defensive back on the field who hadn't played in that position so we could play man across the board, with two high safeties over the top, and it worked out for us."
"We were talking in the huddle, and we knew we were saying we were not going to lose," Jackson said. "Everybody was on the same page, and we made it happen. Offense was on the same page too. It's just what we do."
Northwest saw multiple big games, but the biggest performance was the tandem of Gillon and Elmore, with Gillon throwing for 295 yards on 26-of-40 attempts while adding in 10 yards rushing and a pair of touchdowns.
"Noah's a competitor," Hill said. "He took a helmet to the ribs, but he's a competitor. He did a heck of a job, blocked somebody on the reverse touchdown, and just did an outstanding job."
Elmore was his favorite target again, reeling in 10 receptions for 135 yards, setting a new Northwest record for receptions in a season along the way with 70 on the year, surpassing Eric Smith, who set the mark of 68 in 1992.
"I'm not going to lie, I expected it," Elmore said. "I knew what I could do with one-on-one and open space. I expected a big season for me this year, and with it as my last season, I had no choice but to."
He also became the first 1,000-yard receiver for the Rangers since DT Sheffield in 2021, totaling 1,082 yards on the year to this point. He is now fifth all time in single-season yards with at least one game remaining for the Rangers.
"He's been, my brother," Gillon said, praising the connection which they have been building since the summer. "We've been through this whole season together, and there is never a dull moment with Ty. He's one of a kind, and I love him like a brother."
Gillon spread the ball around all game long, finding nine different receivers through the game, the most all year, with Phillips and DJ Woods pulling in a pair, and five others with at least two receptions, including Peters, who finished with 27 yards through the air, with the majority on the 24-yard touchdown reception to give Northwest the lead.
Damon Sisa was the leading rusher, despite having several touchdowns called back after holding penalties, carrying the ball six times for 41 yards. Taylor, Peters, and Gillon all finished with rushing touchdowns. Woods would lead the team in carries with 13 in the game.
On the defensive side of the ball, the Rangers were paced by a familiar duo in double figures. Sanders finished with six solo tackles on his way to 11 in the game, adding in a fumble recovery and three tackles for loss. Clytravus Lewis also had a fumble recovery and finished with 10 tackles of his own.
Other fumble recoveries were made by Cameron Williams, who added a sack and three tackles, and Donalvin Wilson Jr.
Avery Jackson also wasn't to be denied, with his five tackles just behind Malachi Gilleylen's seven, and his first career interception to boot.
As a team, the Ranger defense finished with three sacks, 12 tackles for loss, and five turnovers forced, recovering all four of the fumbles that they were able to put on the grounds.
The special teams also came in clutch. Uselton was a perfect 2-of-2 on his field goal attempts with a pair of makes from 25 and 24 yards while also making three-of-four of his PAT attempts. The miss was his first of the season, as he is now 49-50 on his attempts this year. He also punted the ball five times for an average of 35.2 yards, pinning the Eagles inside the 20 three times.
The Rangers now wait to see where their fate will take them, and Gillon said there is a lot to look forward to, but most of all it's more time with a team he loves.
"Hopefully a ring," Gillon said. "Honestly, I get to spend more time with these guys, and that means everything to me."
Regardless of who they play, Jackson said if they play as they have during their current eight-game winning streak, which is the second longest at the NJCAA Division I level currently, they can beat anyone.
"We need to remember the fire we had, and the passion we had in this game, and we are going to keep intensifying it, Jackson said. "We are going to keep getting better, keep playing harder, and keep learning. The goal is to go all the way, so we are going to keep focused and keep going forward."
Follow along with Northwest football news as they prepare for a push to the postseason in the upcoming week, with the announcement of the NJCAA Division I Playoff coming up this week by visiting nwccrangers.com or by following along on Ranger social media accounts.
