In a contest that provided very few offensive sparks, the longest play of the night for the Pearl River Wildcats fell one yard short of the goal line as time expired, giving the Mississippi Gulf Coast Community Bulldogs a 17-10 victory, and preventing this rivalry for going into overtime for the second year in a row. With only three seconds left to play, Wildcat quarterback Melvin German (Fort Myers, Fl) completed a 38 yard pass to Jonathan Duncan (Oak Grove) who was ruled down at the one yard line as the clock fell to 0:00, much to the excitement of the Gulf Coast side and frustration from the Pearl River side.
To my great surprise this game was a defensive struggle and completely opposite of what I had predicted. After attending it last year and remebering the highlights provided by returning wide receivers Seth Roberts (Tallahassee) of Pearl River and Javon Bell (Jacksonville, FL) from Gulf Coast, I had anticipated much of the same. My assumption was wrong as the secondaries from both teams dominated with support from a strong pass rush. Cornerback Derrick Bourne and free safety Steve McNair, Jr had interceptions for the Wildcats while free safety Will Burrowes had a pick for the Bulldogs, in additions to the numerous breakups that both defensive backfields made.
The pass friendly offenses of both teams were also under harassment all night. Alabama transfer and former Destrehan, LA blue chip prospect defensive end Darrington Sentimore had a sack on German and was in his face all night. Sentimore definitely displayed alot of potential and it will be interesting to see where he ends up after his time at MGCC. Leading the pressure on Bulldog quarterback Raymond Cotton, a former Auburn signee and Mobile native, was defensive end Ketrick Wolfe (Sumrall) with constant blitz support from inside linebacker Quan Fletcher of Miami. Fellow inside linebacker Chris Bermond (Hancock County) also had his nose around the ball all night for Pearl River and provided strong run support.
In conclusion it was a more balanced offensive attack that was the game's decisive factor. With yards and first downs being at a premium, the modest rushing attack of Gulf Coast versus the non-existent one for Pearl River kept the pressure slightly more on German than on Cotton, and that is what defined the outcome. Providing this edge was a couple of former Moss Point Tigers. 5-10, 240 pound freshman Reginald Matthews gave the Bulldogs their first score when he came in from the sideline on the Jumbo Package and bullied into the end zone from the one yare line. Fellow Tiger alumnus 5'9, 175 pound Byron Nettles never reached the end zone, but he utilized his shiftiness well and picked up key yards keeping the Wildcats defense off balance in numerous carries he received from the slot position.
- Win
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