East Marion cruised to a 33-2 win versus Amite County Friday night behind big plays from quarterback Devin Daniels and wide receiver Flenard McLin.
The duo combined for four touchdowns and an interception, getting the Eagles’ season off to a solid start at home.
Daniels threw for 195 yards on 9-15 passing for two touchdowns and also ran for 69 yards and two scores. McLin caught three balls for 84 yards and two touchdowns, along with a pick and some nice returns on special teams.
“(Daniels) took care of the football, had a couple of good runs, distributed the ball to a few receivers offensively,” head coach Kevin Jackson said. “Devin really did what we expected him to do because this is his third year to be a starter. He played well, and we’re going to expect that out of him the rest of the year.”
Jackson said they played well overall defensively, just avoiding a shutout based on a fourth-quarter safety.
“Everybody’s running to the ball, everybody’s getting to the ball. We’ve just got to make sure we tackle when we get there,” he said.
The Eagles (1-0) take the short trip to play crosstown rival Columbia (1-0) Friday.
Against the visitors from Amite County, the Eagles struck first with 8:16 to go in the first when Daniels found McLin in the back of the end zone on 4th and long from 21 yards out.
On the next possession, Daniels set up a score with a juke that left a defender in the dust and put the Eagles at the 5 yard line. Keithshon Johnson ran it in on a sweep to put the Eagles up 12-0.
In the second quarter, McLin took center stage with a 25-yard punt return, followed by a 40-yard catch-and-run where he flew past a defender. Daniels then dove over the pileon from 3 yards out for the touchdown. Latrel Waller ran in the PAT to put his team up 20-0.
East Marion put its hurry-up offense to the test when it got the ball back with 1:30 to go before halftime at its own 41. After a quick drive, Daniels hit a wide open McLin on a 23-yard hitch-and-run. The kick was good, and the game was secure at 27-0 at half.
McLin intercepted a deep ball in the third quarter, and then Daniels found a streaking Darrin Haines for a 58-yard gain. After that Daniels sprinted in from 25 yards out after rolling out, not finding much room near the sideline, but somehow darting through a hole.
Amite County’s lone points came off an intentional grounding call against Daniels from his own end zone.
Latrel Waller rushed for 50 yards on two carries, and Wanya Cook ran four times for 36 yards. Cook, a senior expected to be one of the Eagles’ top players, was hobbled by a knee injury in the first quarter and only played sparingly for the rest of the contest.
Jacob Johnson caught four passes for 41 yards and also recovered a fumble at East Marion’s 6-yard-line to stop Amite County’s best offensive scoring opportunity.
Pictured Above: East Marion quarterback Devin Daniels scans the Amite County secondary. | Photo by Charlie Smith
