WESSON — Defensive tackle Jesse Bowman and his Copiah-LincolnCommunity College teammates face a must-win situation Thursdaynight. Locked in a 3-way tie for the South Division’s top rung, theWolfpack tackles the Jones County Junior College Bobcats atEllisville. Kickoff is 7 p.m.

Co-Lin (6-2, 4-1), Gulf Coast (7-1, 4-1) and Pearl River (7-1,4-1) each have one division loss. The top two teams will advance tothe state playoffs which begin next weekend.

Three-time defending state champion Pearl River is at Hinds(3-5, 1-4) tomorrow night. Gulf Coast invades Southwest (4-4, 2-3)for a Saturday night game.

Co-Lin head coach Glenn Davis said he knows his team has theirwork cut out against a strong Jones County squad. “We have totackle on defense and we have to score points on offense. We aregoing to go out there and give our best. We’ve had a short week toprepare for them.”

The Wolves came from behind to beat East Mississippi CommunityCollege 35-12 last Saturday at Scooba. Jones (6-2, 3-2) was leadingthe South race but lost back-to-back game to Pearl River, 28-24;and Gulf Coast, 24-3.

“Jones is very strong on defense,” said Davis. “They have a fewgreat athletes in safety Demorio Leverett, cornerback EllisLankser, plus two Mississippi State commitments in their frontseven, Archie Sims and Tim Holloway.”

Offensively, the Bobcats are steady. “They try not to do thingsthat beat themselves,” said Davis.

At quarterback, Caleb Callahan (6-2, 205, fr.) of Varnell, Ga.runs the offense.

“They have two quick backs in Jasper Ducksworth and Ray RayPickering,” said Davis. “You have to wrap up when you tacklethem.”

Ducksworth (5-6, 170, fr.) is from Mount Olive and Pickering(5-8, 182, fr.) is from Taylorsville.

Tebarius Gill (6-3, 187, fr.) of Prichard, Ala. is a primarytarget at wide receiver.

Eddie Pierce is in his first year as head coach at Jones. ASouthern Miss graduate, Pierce is a JCJC grad and former assistant.He replaced Parker Dykes who retired after 14 years at thehelm.

At East Mississippi, Co-Lin held a narrow 14-12 halftime leadbefore catching fire. Quarterback Cedric Johnson directed the surgewith 2 touchdown passes and 2 rushing TDs. Touchdown passes went toAnthony Chambliss for 15 yards and Bud Chatman for 13 yards.

“Our defense played pretty good the whole game,” said Davis.”Our offense didn’t get it going until the second half. We didn’tcapitalize on some opportunities.”

Interceptions by Johnny Sanders and Anthony Caffie helped turnback the EMCC Lions.

Bowman (6-1, 310), a sophomore from Brookhaven, lost 30 poundsprior to the season to help his mobility and endurance. He has made55 tackles this season, including 2 sacks and 10 hits on thequarterback.

Davis said the weight loss benefited Bowman. “It helped hisstamina and made him a better football player.

“Jesse has a good motor. He plays with his hands and he keepsbattling.” Defensive linemen have to be relentless and play hardall the time.”

Tray Hardaway (5-11, 205, fr.) from Olive Branch by way ofBastrop (La.) High School, tops the Co-Lin tackle charts with 62stops. Clarence Pendleton (5-10, 161, so.) of Crystal Springs has61 tackles. Sanders has 59 tackles and Blake Spiers 54.

Wolf Tails: Last year Jones County escapedWesson with a 17-14 win. The Bobcats beat Co-Lin 30-19 in 2004. ThePack got its last win over Jones in 2000, when the Wolves prevailed21-20 in the season finale, Coach Phil Broome’s last game as headcoach.