Wolves Dominate Bears for Homecoming Win

WESSON – The Co-Lin Football team continued MACCC South Division play by hosting Southwest Mississippi on Thursday, September 26 for Homecoming. The No. 15 Wolves never trailed against the Bears in a dominant show of force en route to a 42-16 victory.

The Wolves got on the board early as Zyrian Jackson (Hazlehurst) seized the early momentum by returning the opening kickoff 79 yards and setting up the offense on the Bears 15-yard line. Three plays later, Will Loy (Wesson) connected with Que Tillman (West Point) on a one-yard touchdown pass for the opening score of the game. The point after attempt by Humberto Rosales (McCalla, AL) was successful giving the Wolves a 7-0 lead with 13:21 left in the first quarter.

The Bears then tied the game after a Wolves miscue on special teams led to the Bears getting the ball on the Wolves 39-yard line while the resulting drive ended in a touchdown rush. A successful PAT for the Bears tied the game at 7-7 with 7:37 remaining in the first quarter. The Wolves responded on their ensuing drive as they marched the ball down the field on an 11 play, 83-yard scoring drive capped off with Loy's second touchdown pass of the game from ten yards out to Kannon Cato (New Hebron). A successful PAT gave the Wolves a 14-7 lead with 1:04 left to play in the first quarter and the Wolves never relinquished the lead.

After the Wolves defense forced a three-and-out by the Bears to start the second quarter, the Wolves offense added another touchdown on a nine play, 71-yard drive capped off by Loy's third touchdown of the game, a two-yard rush. Another PAT by Rosales pushed the lead to 21-10 with 14:30 left in the second quarter.

The Wolves looked to add to their lead late in the quarter, but Loy's pass was picked off in the endzone giving the Bears the ball on their own 20-yard line. The ensuing possession ended in a 24-yard field goal cutting the lead down to 21-10 with 39 seconds remaining in the first half. That score held as the teams entered the locker rooms at halftime.

The Bears looked to score on their opening possession of the second half, but the Wolves defense ultimately forced a punt giving the Wolves offense the ball on their own six-yard line. The ensuing drive for the Wolves offense was halted after just three plays when the Bears picked off a pass by Loy for the second time in the game giving their offense the ball on the Wolves 18-yard line. The Wolves defense stood up to the challenge though and forced a field goal attempt after allowing only five yards on the drive. The Wolves special teams unit then got involved with the playmaking as Rakeem Davis (Port Gibson) blocked the 30-yard attempt while Fernando Washington (Macon, GA) returned the ball to the Wolves 21-yard line.

The ensuing drive for the Wolves stalled out resulting in a punt to the Bears own 14-yard line, while the Wolves defense then got involved in the scoring next as DJ Hill-Smith (Reed, AR) picked off a pass and returned the ball 44 yards for a touchdown. The PAT increased the lead to 28-10 with 6:04 left in the third quarter.

The next touchdown for the Wolves came from the passing game as Will Prichard (West Palm Beach, FL) connected with Matt Mayfield (Sunset, LA) on a 72-yard catch and run late in the third quarter. Another PAT increased the lead to 35-10. The final touchdown of the game for the Wolves came in the middle of the fourth quarter as Tray Minor (Natchez) powered the ball in from one-yard out to cap off an eight play, 83-yard drive. The final PAT by Rosales gave the Wolves a 42-10 lead.

The Bears then added a late touchdown in the fourth quarter but came up short on two-point conversion making the score, 42-16, with 2:18 left. The Bears then recovered an onside kick, but the ensuing drive was stalled out by the Wolves defense turning the ball over on downs and allowing the team to run out the clock to seal the 42-16 victory.

Will Loy went 7-for-14 for 86 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions along with one two-yard touchdown rush. Will Prichard completed both of his pass attempts for 81 yards with one touchdown. Tray Minor led the rushing attack with 121 yards on 21 carries with one touchdown while Deantre Jackson, Jr., (Marrero, LA) narrowly missed the 100-yard mark for the second time in the last three games with 97 yards on 16 carries.

Matt Mayfield led the receiving corps with three receptions for 100 yards with one touchdown. Elijah Lagg (Mountain Home, AR) had one 27-yard reception, while Jordan Richardson (Gainesville, FL) had two receptions for 17 yards.

The Wolves defensive unit was a force to be reckoned with once again allowing the Bears just 280 yards of offense including 35 rushing yards. Tennerean Jackson (Cleveland) led the unit with six total tackles while Lakendrick James (Shelby), Malachi Williams (Brookhaven), Martavian Sanders (Summit), and Deaundre Washington (Brandon) had five tackles each with Kenneth Andrews (Clinton) adding four tackles. The Wolves defense had seven sacks and nine tackles for loss on the game as Washington and Andrews led the unit with two sacks and two tackles for loss apiece while Lonnie Smith, Ladainian Davis, and Joe Doston had one sack and one tackle for loss each with Tre Webb (New Orleans, LA) and Malachi Williams adding one tackle for loss each to their nights.

Humberto Rosales went 6-for-6 on point after attempts during the game while averaging 39 yards on three punt attempts and 61.3 yards on seven kickoffs with two touchbacks.

Co-Lin is now 3-2 overall, 2-1 in MACCC South Division play, and will have next week off as part of the MACCC wide bye week and will return to action on the road against Pearl River on Thursday, October 10. Kickoff between the Wolves and Wildcats is set for 7 p.m., at Dobie Holden Stadium in Poplarville.