The Newton Record - Newton, Mississippi

Southeast wins 5-3A title at Newton County

Every year, I look at the schedules before the season starts and see what the good games might be.
When I looked at this year's schedule, I certainly didn't think the Newton County-Southeast Lauderdale game would be one worth watching.
But Friday night's game between the two schools was a classic.
On one hand, Newton County has been struggling to find its offense all season and rolled up almost 300 yards and 18 first downs. They got inside the 20 four times and didn't score. It was their entire season rolled up into one game.
On the other hand, there was Southeast Lauderdale, the state's biggest mystery. It's been so long since the Tigers won a division championship that the last time they did it, it was called the Sam Dale Conference and Mississippi didn't have a playoff system. This team started the season 0-3 and beat the then No. 1 3A team in the state but lost to Choctaw Central, who only has one division win.
But the Tigers rose time after time to find a way to keep Newton County out of the end zone. They got lucky with a pair of missed field goals and eventually forced overtime. Once in overtime, the Tigers scored first and held on for the win.
Believe me that this Southeast team is the real deal and plays extremely hard. I don't know how far they can go in the playoffs but will be a tough team for somebody to beat.
Meanwhile, Newton County is stuggling to its first losing season in the Jeff Breland era. I'm sure there are some people who aren't happy with Breland but those people don't know what they are talking about. Breland is probably only two players from being 7-2 instead of 2-7. It's like he says, sometimes you have the players and sometimes you don't. When you don't, you have to work as hard as you can get the best out of what you got.
Unfortunatley, there are times when hard work can't beat talent.
- Robbie Robertson

October 21, 2006 01:48 am

County wins again

Don't look now but Newton County has won two in a row. Although I doubted it at one time, make no mistake that the Divsion 5-3A championship runs through Decatur, every year as long as Jeff Breland is on the sidelines.
The Cougars got another big victory by taking care of Forest this week.
But the next three weeks will certainly determine Newton County's fate. First up is Morton, followed by Carthage and Southeast Lauderdale.
Southeast is in the driver's seat after beating Carthage last week and Velma Jackson this week. Southeast is 3-0 in the division and the surprise team of the league. Carthage was previously ranked No. 1 in Class 3A by the Clarion-Ledger and Pete Lucovich has his best team in decades with 24 seniors on the squad. Meanwhile, Morton is the defending league champions but their only division loss last year was to Newton County.
These next three games will determine where Newton County plays when the playoffs roll around. With four games left, I figure they have to win two to finish third. If they win the next three, they probably win the division with Choctaw Central in the season-opener
Up to the last two years, this division belonged to Newton County and I guarentee that every division coach hates to see the Cougars getting things together.
The thing about it is the Cougars are probably a season away from a serious run at the a 3A title and it appears as if Breland and his staff are laying the foundation for that.

September 30, 2006 10:50 am

Union wins again

I'll have to be the first to admit that I underestimated the Union Yellowjackets. I saw Union play in their pre-season jamboree and was pretty sure that the Yellowjackets would struggle this season.
Well, I guess I was wrong about that one. With a host of sophomores, Brad Breland has the Yellowjackets playing inspired football. After losing three-year starter Jacob Casey last year and several linemen, I didn't know how good Union could be this season. After the slow start, I thought I was right. But the one thing I haven't seemed to figure out is that Brad Breland is a heck of a football coach. He doesn't do anything fancy but his kids play hard and will hit you in the mouth. It seems like every year the Yellowjackets start out slow and get better every week, finding a way to compete for the division title. This year, the Yellowjackets are atop Region 5-2A, tied with Enterprise and Clarkdale. Enterprise is playing pretty good football right now and seems to be the favorite at this point. But don't count out Union in this one. Defensive coordinator Hershel Smith has had a good history of stopping wing-T teams.
Against Newton Friday night, the Yellowjackets got their option attack going. Senior quarterback Jacob Massey, who's father played at Mississippi State, is starting to figure things out for the Yellowjackets after struggling in the first few games. Massey made good decisions and ran the option at will against Newton. Roderick Hawkins adds a speed threat on the outside and Massey isn't afraid to pitch him the football on the option, making it a very dangerous play for Union.
One area of concern should be the young Union defense that missed several tackles and allowed Newton quarterback Steve Edwards to throw for a season-high 250 yards.
Speaking of Edwards, I dare to say that if Edwards had been on the football team for the last two season, the junior might be a Division I prospect next season because he can play. He still makes too many negative plays but believe me, when he finds time, he can throw and complete the football.
I think there is a good chance that Newton could move down to Class 1A next year. If the Tigers do that, watch out. Newton will return about 25 players who have two or more years of playing experience. The Tigers could do the same thing that Lake has done the last two seasons. If they stay in 2A, they could win a few more games and will be close to getting back in the playoffs.
– Robbie Robertson

September 30, 2006 10:38 am

Newton falls to 2-2

After watching Newton come from behind and beat Madison St. Joseph the week before, I was shocked at what I saw when Enterprise came calling to E.L. Morgan Field Friday night.
I was concerned about Newton going into the contest. I knew Enterprise was pretty good after beating Mize the week before but I didn't know how good.
What I did know was that Enterprise would run the ball on almost every play. And I was right. Enterprise threw just one pass and didn't need to throw that one. I was very surprised at Enterprise. Enterprise was very physical up front and had a good set of running backs who ran the ball very hard.
Meanwhile, Newton was back up to its old tricks. After getting even at 7-7, the Tigers looked a lot like the Newton team last year that went 0-9.
There was something going on that I couldn't quite put my hands on but Enterprise wasn't that much better than Newton.
If the Tigers can hold things together, they can still finish third in the division and make the playoffs and finish with a winning record as Kemper, Scott Central and Clarkdale are all beatable. Union is a tossup but right now I would give the Yellowjackets the edge and forget about beating Philadelphia.
And after an 0-9 season, 5-4 would be a vast improvement.

September 19, 2006 10:21 pm

County loses heartbreaker

Generally, when I show up to cover a football game, it's like I'm the angel of death because I almost always see the home team lose. I don't know what it is but sometimes I have the death touch.
And it appeared that this was the case Friday night when I covered Newton County and Northeast Jones.
Northeast went up 20-0 and appeared to be on its way to a blowout victory.
But just seconds before halftime, Northeast fumbled and Newton County's Deshawn Harrison picked up the football and returned it for a touchdown.
Then County opened the second half with a long scoring drive and it was 20-13 with all the momentum on County's side.
At this point, I really thought Newton County was going to win the football game. After all, Northeast was 2-7 last year and playing a ton of sophomores.
With just over four minutes left in the game, County drove the ball to the Northeast 4 and faced a fourth and one but failed to convert.
Afterward, Coach Breland said his team fought hard but just wasn't very good right now. For the most part, he was right. The Cougars could have laid down in the second half but they didn't. They fought and fought and really should have won the game. Take away three plays from Northeast and County easily wins the football game.
But that's life with a young offense and a new starting quarterback. You're going to lose some close one and win some that you aren't supposed to.
– Robbie Robertson

August 26, 2006 12:24 am

Newton loses to Bay Springs

After talking with coach Tim Moore for the past few weeks, I have been convinced that Newton High would be better in football this season.
On Thursday night to open the season, I saw the Tigers take a 38-20 beating at the hands of Bay Springs.
In year's past, this has always been a close game. And it was for one quarter. But after that first quarter, the Bulldogs dominated on offense as they ran up almost 500 yards of total offense.
Now, don't get me wrong here. It's hard to tell how good Newton is going to be this year. I still stick by the statement that I think they are going to be better.
But for that to happen, other things have to happen. First of all, the Tigers have to get in shape. I was concerned in the fourth quarter when the Tigers appeared winded. Even the chain gang from Bay Springs commented that Newton wasn't in shape. In all fairness though, most teams would have appeared out of shape compared to Bay Springs.
The Bulldogs have a super running back in Shamus McCullum, who ran for 177 yards on 19 carries and scored four touchdowns. For those who where there, McCullum is a hidden gem in baseball as well. This past summer he was featured in the Clarion-Ledger after going to a tryout for a major league team. McCullum threw in the lower 90s as a 16-year-old junior.
I did see a couple things out of Newton that I hadn't seen in the last two years. First of all, after Bay Springs hit them with a bomb early, the came right back and scored.
Then after being down 26-6 at the half, the Tigers fought back and got back in the game with two tochdowns. At one point, they were down 12 and had the ball on Bay Springs' side of the 50 but weren't able to convert.
I think the Tigers did some things they can build on in the next few weeks.

August 25, 2006 04:19 pm

Will Newton be better this year

I have been asked many times in the last few weeks if Newton will be any better in high school footbal this season.
Honestly, it's hard to tell but my gut instinct tells me they will be.
But there are a few things that have to happen first. Coach Tim Moore needs to catch a break, something they didn't get all last season. They need something good to happen to them early, something they can hang their hat on.
In taking team pictures on Tuesday, the Tigers are noticably bigger than they were last year and have several new faces. And the new faces seem to be people that can help them win football games. Take new offensive tackle Tony Jones. What a beast of a young man. The sophomore checks in at 6-foot-4 and 260 pounds. Add him to sophomore Daniel Locklier who is 6-foot and 295 pounds and that's a lot of beef. Then put 6-foot-7, 230-pound tight end Chucky Curry beside either one of them and the Tigers should be able to run at will.
Also look for senior Mitchell Hillie to run over some folks from his fullback position. What a block of muscle.
The Tigers also have several new faces out that should make an impact. Steve Edwards is firmly intrinched at quarterback which allows the Tigers to do more things with Kevin Harris who gets better and faster every time I see him. A warning to opposing coaches, don't kick him the ball because he can take it downtown.
Another Tiger that can make some noise is Corey Denham. Denham, who played basketball last year, could be one of the best athletes in the county and can jump out of the gym. Coach Moore expects him to start somewhere on the field.
Then there is defensive lineman Josh Richardson. Richardson doesn't have great dimensions but just appears to be football mean.
One of the few seniors out this year is Walter McDonald. McDonald, who is also a standout on the basketball court, played some last year before quitting the team. If Walter will stay out, he can help the Tigers on both sides of the football. I've been hearing for three years that Walter was possibly the best athlete in the school. I saw glimpes of that on the basketball court last year. I remember the division basketball tournament at Bay Springs where McDonald had one college scout in awe as he shreaded the Bay Springs defense.
So, will the Tigers be better? I don't see how they couldn't be. They've got the better athletes in the school out and it's hard not to be better than 0-9. I honestly think they will surprise some folks and could win five or six games.
Just like last year, I think a lot of their season depends on what they do against Bay Springs in the opener.

August 16, 2006 10:06 am

East Central appears to be improved

On Saturday afternoon, I caught a good portion of East Central's first scrimmage and was impressed with what I saw.
I remember seeing this same scrimmage last year and thinking that the Warriors were going to be in trouble and things only got worse from there.
But a year later and a recruiting class to fit their Mike Volarvich's offense, the Warriors looked like a totally different team. They know where they were going and what they were doing. And the three quarterbacks that took snaps in the scrimmage all looked good.
Watch out for Bethune-Cookman transfer Mike Dunn, he's a playmaker. But I suspect that Josh Lowery will start the season under center for the Warriors. Lowery, who wasn't even in camp when EC started camp last year, ended up taking the majority of the snaps last year. At times, he looked lost. But that wasn't the case Saturday. He looked sharp and accurate and made several big plays.
Then on Monday night in talking with coach Terry Underwood, he was excited about his transfers this year and with good reason.
It's been a long time since East Central had a winning football season but this could very well be a turnaround season for Underwood and the Warriors.

August 16, 2006 09:52 am

Cougar defense looking good

I went out to photograph Friday afternoon's scrimmage at Newton County for a couple of reasons. First, I had heard that coach Jeff Breland was toying with a new, wide-open offense and wanted to see for myself. But most importantly, I wanted to see who was taking the majority of the snaps, Cory Edwards or Patrick Ezelle.
Well, the two new quarterbacks split time under center and both struggled at times against the County defense. I have to say that I was impressed with the defensive effort I saw and this is without the services of their leading tackler from a year ago, Guy Holden.
Speaking of Guy, he was on the sideline watching the practice and it pained me to see the best tackler in the county standing on the sidelines while his teammates were having their way.
After talking with Coach Breland on Monday about the practice, he said he had a good talking with the offense about being competitive.
With Coach Breland running the offense, he's going to take it personally when they don't do well. But to his credit, he's trying to do some different things with an almost new offensive line and without an experienced running back. I feel like life without Duke Hudnall on offense is going to get tough at times.
But the Cougar defense could be good enough that one touchdown is all they will need.

August 16, 2006 09:45 am