ELLISVILLE – No. 11 Jones College defeated Mississippi Delta 41-9 in its season opener last week.
 
Bobcat head coach Steve Buckley said it was a typical first game in most aspects.
 
"There were a lot of unknowns going into the game and just to get out of there with a win was the main objective," he said in his office Tuesday morning. "I think we ended up dominating the football game on the scoreboard, but I don't know if we dominated it on the field like we are capable of doing. But we are judged by what the score is on the scoreboard and the scoreboard was true for the Bobcats at the end."
 
Jones returns to Bobcat Stadium/Sim Cooley Field this week for another matchup with an MACCC North Division foe.
 
Coahoma (0-1) visits the Bobcats for a 7 p.m. Thursday game. The game will air only on jcbobcats.com/watch with Mark Easley and Chuck Robertson on the call.

Tickets are $10 online through jcbobcats.com/tickets and go up to $15 at the gate cash only.
 
The Tigers are coming off a tough season opener. 
 
Coahoma lost a 47-0 decision to No. 9 Copiah-Lincoln in Clarksdale. Coahoma ran 36 plays and only had 25 yards of total offense and four first downs.
 
The game featured a two-hour weather delay and Buckley said it was hard to get a read on the Tigers.
 
"You had a rainstorm in that game and Co-Lin only ran 40-something plays and Coahoma only ran 30-something plays," he said "There is not a lot of film to evaluate, so you are going into this game with a lot of unknowns, too. It was a running clock in the second half. Usually, you could be looking at close to 200 snaps in a game and I think there were only 108 snaps in this one in all three phases.
 
"We have to prepare and take care of us this week. There are things we need to clean up. There is an old saying in football that your greatest improvement is from week one to week two. So, we must have a good practice today and get ready to play on Thursday."
 
Buckley was pleased with the Bobcats' performance last week, considering it was the opener and they knew little about Mississippi Delta.
 
"There were so many unknowns to prepare for in that game," he said. "To be honest with you, this week is going to be very similar."
 
Offensively, Jones rushed for 151 yards last week. The freshmen trio of Gerald Modest Jr. (Miami, Fla.), Ky'Yon Harris (Union) and Cobey Craft (Taylorsville) were solid. Modest had 16 rushes for 64 yards, Harris had seven carries for 37 yards and Craft had six rushes for 19 yards.
 
"I thought all three running backs ran really hard," Buckley said. "They were impressive to me."
 
Quarterback Brax Garrison (Tuscaloosa, Ala.) was 11-of-23 for 135 yards and a touchdown. Quarterback Blake Murphy (Plantation, Fla.) was 4-of-10 for 49 yards and two touchdowns.
 
"Both quarterbacks had their moments, but I think we missed too many throws and we dropped too many balls," Buckley said. "That's something we've got to clean up."
 
On defense, the Bobcats limited MDCC to 13 first downs, 274 yards and forced two turnovers. Chase Pinkston (Oak Grove) had a 47-yard pass interception return for a touchdown.
 
"Defensively, we were very sound," he said. "We gave up a big play when we had them backed up one time and we can't do that, especially after a time out when they are pressing and having to get a first down."
 
The Bobcats were sound in special teams play, except for giving up a blocked punt. Jones did get a blocked kick of its own.
 
"The kicking game was solid except for the blocked punt and that was on me," Buckley said. "We had the right call for it and I changed the call right when the kids were on the field. They were in safe punt, they came after us and they got us. That was totally my fault. But I thought special teams was solid. We had a big kickoff return."
 
It will be Hall of Fame Night for Thursday's game as nine people will be inducted into the Jones College Athletics Hall of Fame and will be recognized at halftime.
 
Sidney S. "Buck" Anderson, Fred Cooley, Janet Eaton-Smith, Bonnie Lee "Country" Graham (posthumously), Mason Irby, Tristan Jackson, Madison Manning (posthumously), Damon Mason and Mary Kate Skelton will comprise the 2024 record class. 
 
Jones begins MACCC South Division play next week when they visit No. 6 Mississippi Gulf Coast for a 7 p.m. kickoff on Sept. 12.
 
Coahoma visits Holmes on Sept. 12.