SCOOBA, Miss. – The Hinds Community College football team battled No. 9 East Mississippi Community College on Thursday night, but the Eagles came up short, falling 28-20 on the road. The Eagles move to 0-2 overall.
Hinds opened the scoring with a 27-yard field goal from Braylenn Spann with 9:59 remaining in the first quarter, cutting the EMCC lead to 7-3. After East Mississippi opened the game with a touchdown, the Eagles took their first lead of the night early in the second quarter.
Quarterback Jaylon Ruffin connected with Dj Miller on a 28-yard touchdown pass with 12:57 remaining in the first half, putting Hinds ahead 10-7.
The Lions responded with a touchdown run from Marcus Flowers Jr. with 48 seconds remaining in the half to regain the lead, 14-10. Hinds answered before halftime as Spann drilled a 47-yard field goal as time expired, sending the Eagles into the locker room trailing 14-13.
East Mississippi extended its lead to 21-13 with a Flowers touchdown run early in the third quarter, but Hinds responded immediately. Ruffin found Briashun Forbes for a 65-yard touchdown pass with 10:39 remaining in the quarter, cutting the deficit to 21-20.
Forbes led the Eagles' receiving attack with six catches for 113 yards and a touchdown, while Miller added eight receptions for 90 yards and a touchdown. Ruffin finished the night 26-of-38 passing for 285 yards and two touchdowns.
The Eagles had opportunities to regain the lead in the second half, including after the defense forced a turnover at the EMCC 16-yard line. Hinds reached the four-yard line before a fumble ended the scoring opportunity.
East Mississippi ultimately regained control late in the fourth quarter, putting together a 14-play, 68-yard drive that took 6:19 off the clock. Flowers capped the drive with his third rushing touchdown of the night, a one-yard score with 4:02 remaining, giving the Lions a 28-20 advantage.
Hinds continued to battle until the final seconds. The Eagles put together an 11-play, 56-yard drive and reached the EMCC 8-yard line, but the clock expired before Hinds could run another play.
The Eagles finished with 358 yards of total offense, including 285 through the air. Hinds recorded 19 first downs and held the ball for 30:55. EMCC totaled 397 yards, with 232 coming on the ground.
Ruffin also carried the ball 20 times for 22 rushing yards, while Makari Bodiford led Hinds in rushing with 52 yards on six attempts, including a 30-yard run.
Defensively, Hayes Dickens led the Eagles with seven tackles. Floyd Harris recorded six tackles, including a sack and three tackles for loss. Raymon McNeely added four tackles, an interception and a forced fumble, while Jermiah Campbell recorded four tackles, an interception, a forced fumble and a fumble recovery.
Jordan Randle added three tackles, two tackles for loss and two sacks. As a team, Hinds recorded three sacks, six tackles for loss, two interceptions, two forced fumbles and one fumble recovery.
Hinds will return to action on September 10th against Holmes Community College at Gene Murphy Field at Joe Renfroe Stadium for the annual Salute to Service game. Kickoff is set for 6:30 PM.
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