East Mississippi Community College freshman running back Isaiah Wright is pretty excited about showing what he has learned.
“The whole season has been a learning experience,” Wright said. “This is a totally different game. It has been exciting to learn it and to be able to see what I can do.”
For the sixth-ranked Lions, it all fell on Wright’s shoulders last Thursday.
With fellow running backs D.J. Law and Jacquez Horsley sidelined by injury, Wright got the bulk of the carries against Jones County Junior College.
His response — 73 rushing yards and his first three-touchdown night in junior college play.
Now, all hands look to be back on deck Thursday night when EMCC (5-0, 3-0 division) returns to Mississippi Association of Community and Junior Colleges North Division play at Holmes Community College (2-4, 1-2).
Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. at Ras Branch Field in Goodman.
“Pretty proud of Isaiah, he is a special back and a special person,” EMCC offensive coordinator Marcus Wood said. “He has a really great football IQ and just makes plays all over the field. Whether it is kick returns, receiving, rushing, you just want him to get touches. He is dynamic and can make any play special.”
Wood will again be serving as head coach Thursday night as Buddy Stephens completes a two-game suspension for an altercation with an official during EMCC’s 48-24 Homecoming win over North Division rival Itawamba Community College.
In the ground game, EMCC did not miss a beat, thanks to Wright. He was backed by linebacker Diamante Pounds, who came over and played some offense for the first time this season.
“All of the running backs are tight,” Wright said. “Sometimes, if you knew everybody else was out, you might get worried. Not me. I just need this was my chance to represent and I had to pick up the slack for the other boys.
“Each of us brings something different to the table. I just had to run hard and do my part when my number was called. You can’t change how you play. You just have to stay ready and know that your teammates are counting on your more than ever.”
Wright immediate made a splash early in the season with some kick return heroics.
Stephens quickly like what he saw and has since labeled his trio of running backs “the best in the state even including the senior colleges.”
Wright waited patiently for his playing time to increase. He also learned from Law, who had a similar career path, making his name first as a special teams superstar before becoming the team’s every-down running back this year.
“I learned everything that D.J. would share with me,” Wright said. “I think he is a team leader. I also think he is a great player. Since I play his position, I wanted to learn as much as I could as quickly I could. It’s like we are all one brotherhood. If one of us plays well, we all played well. With D.J. and Jacquez, we have a special thing going on. Quarterbacks have to have chemistry with wide receivers. You also need it with running backs, too. I think we do a great job of having chemistry with one another and our offensive teammates.”
Law learned from Preston Baker as a freshman. Now it is his job to mentor and lead.
“It’s really a challenge to play on this level,” Law said. “I know how often I went to Preston for advice. So I have tried to be there for (Wright) and (Horsley) in the same way. You never know when you will have your chance, so you have to work hard for that point. The coaches slowly had more confidence last year. I have seen more of the same this year with the new freshman backs.”
With so many young faces on the team, chemistry was a concern. However, EMCC has worked its way past some early struggles and appear to be hitting a stride at the right time.
EMCC has won four straight and has started North Division play 3-0 for a fifth straight season. The Lions will be looking to extend a 15-game in win streak in division play Thursday night.
Wyatt Roberts has settled in as the starter at quarterback, while John Franklin III has improved greatly in the past three weeks and adds a totally different dimension as the squad’s reserve.
“We are playing with a lot of confidence right,” Wright said. “You would like to have the Co-Lin game back (a 31-24 overtime loss on Sept. 3), but you can’t. All you can do is focus on the task at hand. We know when we play our best, nobody got beat us. We just have to make sure we keep playing our best.”
Follow Dispatch sports writer Scott Walters on Twitter @dispatchscott
Scott was sports editor for The Dispatch.
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