The Jones College football team has started their season 5-1 and risen to the national ranking of number seven. Three of the four wins the Bobcats have to their name have come in conference play to make them 4-0 in the conference.
The first game of the season entailed a long and arduous trip to Itawamba Community College in Fulton, Mississippi. The Bobcats walked away the victors with a 27-13 score. Starting quarterback DJ Smith ended the game with two rushing touchdowns and 77 yards on the ground. Smith passed for 193 yards on 14 completions. The Bobcats had 354 total yards on offense, while ICC only had 243 total yards.
Jones then traveled to East Mississippi Community College to take on the Lions. The last time the Bobcats had captured a win on the road against EMCC was September sixteenth of 2003 when Jones won 38-0. While the Bobcats put up a great fight, the Lions came out with a 23-47 win over JC. While the game’s final score was a 24-point spread, at the half Jones only trailed EMCC 20-28. The second half sunk the Bobcats. EMCC outscored Jones 19-3 in the second half. Even though JC lost, DJ Smith put together a great game. Smith passed for 183 yards and two touchdowns. Smith lead the Bobcats in rushing yards again with 51 yards and a touchdown on the ground.
In week three, the Bobcats brought a 1-1 record home to face the Co-Lin Wolves in Ellisville for Jones’ first home game of the season. The game ended in Jones’ favor. The Bobcats won 32-42. DJ Smith once again had a great game, passing for two touchdowns while rushing for another touchdown. However, the star of the game was Bobcat running back Trent Howell. Howell rushed for 126 yards while adding a touchdown to his stellar start.
The Bobcats continued their great play in week four as they defeated East Central Community College 38-7. Trent Howell once again had a monster game by rushing for 127 yards. Howell scored four rushing touchdowns and averaged 6 yards per carry.
Jones returned to Sim Cooley field to battle against Hinds Community College. The Bobcats did not disappoint the home crowd in Ellisville with a 21-3 win. Brax Garrison took the reigns as the starting quarterback for the game and performed extremely well. Garrison passed for 191 yards and threw a touchdown. Jones’ defense also played extremely well by not allowing a touchdown and only 112 yards of net offense.
Jones traveled to Poplarville to take on the Pearl River Wildcats for the 93rd edition of the “Cat Fight.” The Bobcats played high quality football, winning 29-15. Brax Garrison put together a solid performance as the starting quarterback. However, Bobcat running back Trent Davis stole the show with a 148-yard rushing game. Star linebacker Raymond Collins cashed in two sacks on the night to lead a stout performance by the Bobcat defense.
Jones has started the season very strong, and with a light schedule coming up, the Bobcats have a great chance to finish the season well.
by Ollie Hammonds
