Booneville, Miss. - Northeast Mississippi Community College's football team is set to take up a great cause on Thursday night in its last game outside of the Mississippi Association of Community and Junior Colleges (MACJC) North Division.
The Tigers welcome Pearl River Community College at 6:30 p.m. for its annual Pink Out Game. Everybody is encouraged to wear pink items of clothing in support of October's Breast Cancer Awareness Month.
Those that cannot attend the matchup can watch it live on NEMCCTV, which is the new broadcast home of all nine Northeast intercollegiate athletic programs. Join Jeremy Kennedy, the Voice of the Tigers, at 6:15 p.m. for the pregame show by visiting www.nemcctv.com.
Fans can also keep up during the contest with live in-game updates on Twitter by searching and following @NEMCCTigers.
A full evening of events begins at 5:30 p.m. with a special breast cancer walk around the Booneville campus. A small registration fee of $5 is applicable and those that participate will receive a free pink pompon to use at Tiger Stadium.
In addition, the Air Evac Lifeteam base in Corinth will make a special pregame presentation at approximately 6:10 p.m. to members of the Northeast staff that have survived their fight against breast cancer.
"We're proud to be able to show our support to breast cancer awareness by wearing pink during the game," said Tigers head coach Ricky Smither. "I hope that it's gonna be a big deal for everybody that's coming to watch us."
Northeast and the Wildcats both rely heavily on their defenses to carry them in difficult situations. Pearl River held Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College, who is ranked No. 3 by the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA), to only one touchdown in a 7-0 loss last weekend.
The Tigers boast one of the top units in the country at forcing turnovers. They are tied for first in the country with defending NJCAA runner-up Georgia Military College and Kilgore (Texas) College with 13 fumble recoveries.
Northeast is also third in the league behind division foes East Mississippi Community College and Itawamba community College with 20 total takeaways. Jamel Dennis, who is the Tigers' leading tackler as well with 48, guides that effort with four while Johnny Smith and Jacoby Smith have grabbed three mistakes by opponents apiece.
"We've got to continue to get some turnovers and turn them into points," Smither said. "That's going to be key. It all goes back to executing."
LaVontis Smith continues to excel for Northeast at wide receiver. The Maben native leads a dangerous group of athletes with 32 catches, which is the most by any Tiger since current Arkansas State University standout Tres Houston caught 45 passes during the 2011 season.
Donta Armstrong continues to be Northeast's most productive wideout. The Bruce High School graduate has three touchdowns and also holds team-bests with 456 yards and 65.1 yards per outing.
The Tigers (2-5) are encouraged by the recent play of running back Chester Lewis as well. The Gluckstadt product rushed for a career-high 108 yards on 22 touches during Northeast's rivalry matchup at Itawamba one week ago.
Trace Lee was strong during his inaugural collegiate start at quarterback. Columbus's Lee notched 312 yards and a pair of touchdowns versus the Indians on 25 completions.
The Wildcats take to the air often and are guided by quarterback Kaylon Cooper. The sophomore was 13 of 23 for 235 yards against Mississippi Gulf Coast.
Bryant Magee was Cooper's top target with 95 yards on only two catches, but Austin Watts and Charles Ducksworth each had multiple receptions for over 50 yards as well.
Pearl River (3-4) fields a steady unit defensively. The trio of Stacy Warren, Richard Thomas and Antron Watts each tallied eight tackles versus the Bulldogs.
"They have a very physical team," Smither said. "This game is going to mean a lot to us because we want to see how we've grown and how hard we can play. We're going to do our best to make some things happen."
The Tigers and Wildcats have not met on the gridiron since the 2009 campaign. Pearl River, which has the advantage in the overall series 30-4, claimed the latest matchup between the two institutions by a score of 42-23 in Poplarville.