ELLISVILLE – It will be an early season division showdown at Bobcat Stadium/Sim Cooley Field this week.
 
Jones College hosts No. 6 Mississippi Gulf Coast at 7 p.m. Thursday in the MACCC South Division opener for both teams. The game will air on jcbobcats.com/watch with Mark Easley and Chuck Robertson on the call.

Tickets are $10 online through jcbobcats.com/tickets or $15 cash only at the gate. Fans are encouraged to purchase in advance.
 
The Bobcats (2-0) own wins over Mississippi Delta, 33-0, and Coahoma, 51-20. The Bulldogs (2-0) have knocked off East Mississippi, 41-21, and Mississippi Delta, 58-7.
 
MGCCC leads the conference in scoring with 49.5 points per game and Jones is second with 42.0 points per game.
 
Bobcat head coach Lytrel Pollard knows his team faces a major challenge this week.
 
"They are very talented," he said. "Coach (Jack Wright) always does a good job of recruiting and getting the right guys to fit their system. They are very explosive at the receiver position and are very athletic in the offensive line. They are usually pretty big, but this year they are pretty athletic all across the board.
 
"Defensively, Coach (Rod) Smith goes a good job of making their defensive line get after you. They will be sound, no question. It's going to take us doing everything right for the majority of the game. We need to try and get it into the fourth quarter and see what happens."
 
Pollard has been pleased with the Bobcats' performance in the first two games. Jones has taken its two longest road trips of the season and performed well.
 
"The biggest thing I like about our team right now is that we are playing as a team," he said. "We have guys high-fiving each other and getting on each other when we mess up, but they are able to let it go. It's positive criticism and they are not degrading one another. 
 
"As far as we've driven the last two weeks and to get off the bus and be able to go out and play at a high level in the first quarter you know that speaks of maturity and guys that prepare and are ready to go play."
 
Pollard said the Bobcats have been able to play a lot of players in the first two games. He's been pleased with that as well as the team's play along the line of scrimmage.
 
"We have some depth and the guys we are calling upon to make plays are making plays," he said. "But up front is where it all starts with the offensive and defensive line. I think we have been pretty doing a pretty consistent job and as long as they continue to do that, we have a chance."
 
Through two games, Jones quarterback Cannon Crowder (Presbyterian Christian School) has completed 14-of-21 passes for 368 yards and two touchdowns. Running back Ky'Yon Harris (Union) has 21 carries for 133 yards and five scores, which tops the MACCC. Wide receiver TK Keyes (Taylorsville) has eight receptions for 215 yards, including a 62-yard catch last week, and a score. He is third in the MACCC in receiving yards.
 
Defensively, Jones has been very balanced with linebacker Delarrius Hayes (Magee) leading the way with 12 tackles, four tackles for loss and two sacks. Linebacker Ny'zavion McClendon (Lake) has 10 tackles, an interception and a forced fumble. Linebacker Dalyn Pierce (Bay Springs) has eight tackles and 2.5 tackles for loss. Jeremiah Tatum (Columbia) and Cam Toney (West Jones) each have eight tackles and Isaiah Lindsey (West Jones) has seven tackles and two tackles for loss.
 
Christian Baglione (Northwest Rankin) is 5-for-5 on field goals.
 
MGCCC is led by sophomore quarterback Landon Varnes, who has completed 35-of-51 passes for 713 yards and five touchdowns. He leads the NJCAA and MACCC in passing with 356.5 yards per game. Running back Alan Woods has rushed 15 times for 131 yards and three scores. 
 
"He is the one who gets them going," Pollard said of Varnes. "People take it for granted that he is a good passer, but when he's able to run the ball, he has big, explosive plays. As their team goes, he goes. He is their best player on offense, they look for him to be a leader and he does a good job."
 
Defensively, Taurean Davis, 6-foot-1, 230-pound linebacker, leads MGCCC in tackles with 16. Bryant Ausmer, a 6-foot-3, 235-pound defensive lineman, has 11 tackles, four tackles for loss and two sacks.
 
Pollard is excited about finally getting a chance to play at home.

"I think we are going to have a good crowd," he said. "Everybody seems to be excited about it in the city and the county and I look forward to them coming out and cheering my guys on. Hopefully, we can give them a good showing."
 
The Bobcats will go on the road to face another ranked opponent next week when they travel to Wesson to face No. 7 Copiah-Lincoln on Sept. 18.
 
MGCCC hosts Southwest at 7 p.m. on Sept. 20.

HALL OF FAME
Seven people will be inducted into the Jones College Athletics Hall of Fame on Thursday.
 
Jerred Clark (men's soccer), Paul Culliver (football, track), Tonya Jones (softball), Sharon Pendarvis Murray (women's basketball), Anna Kathryn Howard Ozmint (women's soccer), Andrew Pierce (baseball) and Bruce Strickland (football) will be recognized at halftime.
 
The group will be honored with a banquet prior to the football game.
 
The Hall of Fame, which began in 2007, now includes 79 members.