Marion County celebrated the opening night of MHSAA football in style, with three in-county wins and a classic rivalry game that was still up for grabs until the final minutes of the fourth quarter. West Marion overcame an early deficit to defeat East Marion 19-6, Columbia held strong for a 21-16 win over Mendenhall and Columbia Academy defeated East Rankin 28-24 to claim its first victory of the 2022 season.
WEST MARION 19, EAST MARION 6
The 52nd clash between East and West Marion was ultimately a tale of two halves. The Eagles flew out of the gate, scoring on a 25-yard run by Jadarrius "Koolaid" Mallard to claim a 6-0 lead on the opening drive of the ball game. But the success of that first drive was somewhat deceiving, as red zone trips came few and far in between for both offenses for the rest of the contest.
The Trojans had their opportunities to reach the end zone in the first half but were unable to capatilize on good field position. Deep in Eagles territory with under 30 seconds remaining in the half, East Marion's Kyler "Smoky" Collins caught an interception to end the drive and allow the Eagles to carry a 6-0 advantage into the locker room.
Nevertheless, the Trojans stayed patient, believing the depth of their roster would work to their advantage down the stretch. West Marion head coach Brandon Thornhill said his players never allowed their lack of success in the first half to get them down, and that ultimately made all the difference as they pulled away in the final 30 minutes of action.
"We were pretty level-headed. There weren't any hoo-rah speeches or anything like that," Thornhill said. "We broke down some film and found a few looks that we liked. We felt we would be able to wear them down in the second half, and fortunately that's what we were able to do."
West Marion set a new tone early in the second half, marching 70 yards on its opening drive and scoring on a 45-yard run by Jakaden Mark. A successful point after attempt gave the Trojans a 7-6 lead, which they continued to build on in the fourth.
After a series of injury timeouts seemed to wear down both rosters, West Marion's Qua Ward found a gap and broke loose for a 55-yard touchdown run, extending the Trojans' lead to 13-6 with under eight minutes remaining in the fourth.
The Eagles' final comeback attempt was cut short near mid field with just over three minutes on the clock. Moments after connecting with Ka'Ron Weary for a 25-yard pass, senior quarterback LJ Andrews had the ball stripped from his hands by a host of Trojan defenders. West Marion dove onto the loose ball, and Mark put the game away six plays later with a dive into the end zone for his second touchdown of the night.
The Trojans (1-0) will look to carry the momentum from Friday's win into next week's matchup against Tylertown, while East Marion (0-1) will prepare for a chance to bounce back in yet another rivalry game against Columbia.
COLUMBIA 21, MENDENHALL 16
The defending Class 4A state champ Columbia Wildcats, who came into the season ranked No. 3 according to Capital Sports, pulled off the “upset” Friday night by beating preseason No. 1 Mendenhall 21-16 at Walter Payton Field.
Columbia got off to a tremendous start on its opening drive as AJ Lewis took a jet sweep 48 yards to the house, flying through an open hole and showcasing impressive speed to put the Wildcats up 7-0 on their second play from scrimmage.
Early in the second quarter, quarterback Collin Haney tossed a beautiful fade to Kendale Johnson in the end zone for a 29-yard touchdown. Haney placed the ball to the outside to keep Mendenhall’s free safety from ranging over to make a play on it.
Mendenhall was then forced to punt following a three-and-out, and its punter had to drop to a knee to catch a low snap, which gave the Wildcats the ball right on the edge of the red zone. Three plays later, Jalon Anderson bulled his way into the end zone for an 8-yard touchdown to put Columbia up 21-0 going into halftime.
To open the second half, Haney was sacked on back-to-back plays with the latter resulting in a safety for Mendenhall’s first points of the night. Early in the fourth quarter, Mendenhall cut the deficit to 21-10 with a 95-yard drive that ended with a 12-yard touchdown pass.
Midway through the fourth quarter, Haney fumbled after picking up four yards and Mendenhall recovered the loose ball at the Columbia 10-yard line. Two plays later, the Tigers cut the lead to just 21-16 with a 10-yard touchdown pass.
Mendenhall would get the ball back with just under two minutes to play with an opportunity to win the game, but Mac McDaniel put the game on ice for the Wildcats, intercepting a deflected pass.
Jeremiah Foxworth, Jeremiah Tatum and Naji Cain joined McDaniel with interceptions to lead a Columbia defense that played lights out.
The Wildcats will remain at home next week as they play host to rival East Marion (0-1).
