Skip To Main Content

Southwest Mississippi Community College

Scoreboard

Shuntez (Ed) Smith
Ricky Styron/Jucoweekly.org

Football Michael D. Gunnell, Southwest Sports Information

Late touchdown propels Bears to win at Mississippi Delta

It was not a pretty win, but it was a win the Southwest Bears will gladly take. A 38-yard pass from Tyler Shell to
Shuntez Smith with only 0:26 to play, and Reed James ' extra point kick, gave the Bears a come-from-behind 20-13 road win over the Mississippi Delta Trojans Thursday night in Moorhead.
 
The win put the Bears at 1-1 on the young campaign while the Trojans fell to 0-2.
 
James' 25-yard field goal with 9:33 on the clock proved to be the only points scored in the opening quarter. The boot ended a short six play, 31-yard drive set up when Jamarian Roberts intercepted a Devin Adams pass.
 
For the rest of the quarter and most of the second, it appeared that neither team wanted to score and that the Bears would take their 3-0 lead into the half. However, with only 0:08 to play, Simeon Kimble took a punt and raced 62 yards into the end zone and Marc Grace added the extra point to give the host Trojans a 7-3 lead at intermission.
 
After forcing a punt to open the second half, the Bears began their first possession of the final 30:00 at their own 30-yard line. Three running plays from LaDarion Peterson put them at the Trojans' 26-yard line and Justin Blue did the rest, ending the five-play march with a seven-yard scamper to paydirt. James knocked the extra point through the uprights to put the Bears back on top, 10-7, with 9:26 to play in the third quarter.
 
The lead was short-lived, however, as the Trojans put together an 87-yard, five-play drive, capped by a one-yard Quadre Butler run to the end zone with 1:12 on the clock. Grace added the PAT to give the Trojans a 13-10 advantage headed into the fourth quarter.
 
A Czachovaski "CJ" Johnson interception set up the Bears' next points. Taking over at the Trojans' 25-yard line following the pick, the Bears were able to move only to the 16-yard line before James entered the game and knotted the score at 13-13 with a 30-yard field goal with 5:36 left in the game.
 
After forcing another punt, the Bears regained possession of the ball at their own 27-yard line with 2:36 left in the contest. Seven plays then saw them at the Trojans' 38 with time winding down. Just as it appeared the game might be headed into overtime, Shell connected with Smith for the game-winner.
 
"Obviously, you're glad to win," Bears' head coach Tucker Peavey said after the game. "They (the Bears) didn't quit and I guess there were times when we could have laid down, but we didn't."
 
"We made too many mistakes, offensively, that were unforced," Peavey continued, "penalties, the fumbles, those kinds of things that are drive-killers. It takes your momentum away and it gives the other team a lift. Until we can stop doing that, we're not going to be a good football team. We played better on defense and (that) kept us in the game." The Bears fumbled the ball twice, losing one, and were penalized 13 times for 118 yards.
 
Closing out his post-game comments and referring to the Trojans' punt return for a touchdown to end the first half, Peavey said, "Quite honestly, we've got to find guys on special teams that want to run down the field and make a tackle. That's two weeks in a row we've given up touchdowns on returns (East Mississippi returned a kickoff for a score in last week's win over the Bears). Good teams don't do that kind of stuff and our players just have to rise to the challenge."
 
The Bears picked up 157 yards rushing on the night. Peterson led the way with 78 yards on 16 carries. Blue had 54 yards, and a touchdown, on 11 carries while Shell toted the ball six times for 27 yards. Sidney Davis, Jr. , also carried the ball.
 
Shell completed 15 of 26 passes for 170 yards and a touchdown. Ravian Pierce hauled in eight passes for 38 yards while Clifford Fernandez caught four passes for 51 yards and Davis had two catches for 43 yards. Smith had a 38-yard scoring reception.
 
The Bears registered 10 first downs in the game. Brandon Mancuso punted seven times for 37 yards.
 
The Trojans rushed for 105 yards in the game. Butler led the way with 57 yards and a touchdown on 13 carries. Gregory Conley and Adams combined to complete 16 of 28 passes for 200 yards. Both were intercepted once.
 
The Trojans totaled 14 first downs in the game and were penalized five times for 27 yards. Graced punted seven times for 29.9 yards and Heath Brundege punted twice for 43 yards.
 
The Bears make their home debut on September 10 when they host the Jones County Bobcats in John I. Hurst Stadium (Jones County fell to 0-2 with a 21-20 loss at Itawamba). Kickoff is set for 7:00.
 
           
 
Print Friendly Version

Players Mentioned

Sidney Davis, Jr.

#2 Sidney Davis, Jr.

5' 11"
Freshman
LaDarion Peterson

#3 LaDarion Peterson

5' 10"
Sophomore
Shuntez Smith

#4 Shuntez Smith

5' 10"
Sophomore
Ravian Pierce

#6 Ravian Pierce

6' 3"
Freshman
Tyler Shell

#12 Tyler Shell

6' 2"
Sophomore
Clifford Fernandez

#14 Clifford Fernandez

6' 5"
Sophomore
Justin Blue

#22 Justin Blue

5' 8"
Sophomore
Jamarian Roberts

#23 Jamarian Roberts

5' 10"
Sophomore
Czachovaski "CJ" Johnson

#29 Czachovaski "CJ" Johnson

6' 0"
Sophomore
Brandon Mancuso

#34 Brandon Mancuso

5' 10"
Sophomore

Players Mentioned

Sidney Davis, Jr.

#2 Sidney Davis, Jr.

5' 11"
Freshman
LaDarion Peterson

#3 LaDarion Peterson

5' 10"
Sophomore
Shuntez Smith

#4 Shuntez Smith

5' 10"
Sophomore
Ravian Pierce

#6 Ravian Pierce

6' 3"
Freshman
Tyler Shell

#12 Tyler Shell

6' 2"
Sophomore
Clifford Fernandez

#14 Clifford Fernandez

6' 5"
Sophomore
Justin Blue

#22 Justin Blue

5' 8"
Sophomore
Jamarian Roberts

#23 Jamarian Roberts

5' 10"
Sophomore
Czachovaski "CJ" Johnson

#29 Czachovaski "CJ" Johnson

6' 0"
Sophomore
Brandon Mancuso

#34 Brandon Mancuso

5' 10"
Sophomore