MACON — Jeffery Simmons lingered at midfield a little longer than usual.
After a game like this one, it’s natural to want to soak every last drop of excitement in and remember all of the things that led you to victory.
As a senior, Simmons realized a loss to Lafayette County in the second round of the Mississippi High School Activities Association Class 4A playoff could have been the end, so he stood at midfield and looked toward the press box at Tiger Stadium and smiled, knowing the Noxubee County High School football team’s season would last at least one more week.
Noxubee County lived to play another week thanks to a 20-13 victory against Lafayette County on Friday. Dispatching one of Class 4A’s toughest teams in the North earned Noxubee County (9-4) a second game against Region 4 rival Houston (9-4) at 7 p.m. Friday.
Noxubee County defeated Houston 35-10 on Oct. 30 for its 21st-straight region victory. The streak dates back to a 14-12 loss to Louisville on Oct. 20, 2011. In that stretch, Noxubee County has won two state championships. The victory against the Commodores helped the Tigers stay on track to make history and become back-to-back state champions for the first time.
Noxubee County likely wouldn’t have remained on that path if not for Simmons and his defensive teammates, who held serve for the better part of three quarters until the offense found its rhythm.
Simmons had one of the biggest plays of the game when he blocked an extra point that apparently energized the Tigers.
Simmons said he merely did a move and the person blocking him went for it, so he broke through the line and put his hands up. He felt success when the side of the ball hit the side of his arm.
“They had just scored and the momentum was down,” Simmons said. “The block helped the momentum come back up.”
If you remember, Simmons also delivered a clutch play on special teams in a 26-20 double-overtime victory against Starkville in the team’s season opener. In that game, Simmons pushed through the middle and blocked an extra point with 5 minutes, 42 seconds remaining in regulation that kept the game tied at 20.
Against Lafayette County, Simmons also played a key role on offense in the second half. Unable to get a running game going in the first half, Noxubee County coach Tyrone Shorter inserted Simmons as a blocker on the right side of the line. His presence was another important piece to a 14-play drive that he capped with a 1-yard touchdown plunge.
“We just kept believing in these kids and they made a play, Shorter said. “We blew a coverage early (that led to a touchdown) and then they blew one (on the game-winning play). That is the way the game goes. You have to play every snap.”
Noxubee County played until the final seconds of regulation. It needed to because senior quarterback Timorrius Conner found junior wide receiver Kymbotric Mason in the right corner in front of the pylon for a 37-yard touchdown strike that sent the Tigers on to the next round.
As bumpy as a road as Noxubee County traveled to get to that point, Shorter said it was a matter of believing someone was going to make a play. Mason was another player to emerge and accept that responsibility.
“He was underneath and then he turned it up,” Shorter said of the route Mason took to the ball. “He did a great job of making the adjustment when he saw the quarterback scrambling.”
Shorter said he didn’t raise his voice at halftime to try to spark his team. He told the Tigers he expected a knock-down, drag-out affair, which is what he and his players faced. While surprised by Lafayette County’s ability to throw the ball, Shorter anticipates having to do a shut-down job on Houston’s run game this week. The Hilltoppers have failed to rush for 100 or more yards in two games this season. One was against Kosciusko. The other was against Noxubee County, when Houston gained 94 yards.
At this time of the season, though, you can throw all of the statistics and numbers out the window. Instead, Shorter prefers to stress the importance of execution and belief to his players.
If the Lafayette County game is any indication, Noxubee County showed it just might have the perseverance to get back to Oxford for a chance to make history.
“I just kept believin’. We just kept believin’,” Shorter said. “We just kept prayin’. I felt like we were going to make a play here or there. We made the plays when we had to.”
Follow Dispatch sports editor Adam Minichino on Twitter @ctsportseditor
Adam Minichino is the former Sports Editor for The Commercial Dispatch.
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