Booneville, Miss. - Northeast Mississippi Community College will salute some of the bravest men and women in the entire country as it christens a new campaign on the gridiron.

Northeast hosts Pearl River Community College in the season opener for both programs on Thursday, September 1. Kickoff is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. inside Tiger Stadium.

The game also serves as the annual Military Appreciation Night for the Tigers. Current or retired soldiers and officers from any branch of service may show their military identification to gain free admission to Northeast's matchup with the Wildcats.

Those that cannot attend the first athletic event of the 2016-17 academic year at Northeast can watch it live and in high definition on NEMCCTV. Tune in starting at 6 p.m. for the pregame show by visiting www.nemcctv.com on any computer, smartphone or tablet.

The Northeast Broadcasting Network also includes Booneville based radio station WBIP. An audio simulcast featuring Jody Presley and Carter Smith, the Voices of the Tigers, can be heard on 99.7 FM and AM 1400 on your digital dial.

Search and follow @NEMCCTigers on Twitter for live in-game updates and interact during the contests by using the hashtag #TigerPower across all social media platforms.

Northeast aims to defeat the Wildcats in back-to-back meetings for just the second time in school history. The only other instance in which the Tigers bested Pearl River twice in a row was during the 1988-89 campaigns under former headman Johnny Plummer.

A 26-23 decision on a Saturday afternoon in October one year ago was just the second win ever for Northeast on the road against the Wildcats. Pearl River is ahead in the all-time series by a 31-5 margin.

"We're really excited about the game, but there's an unknown because they have a new coaching staff," said Northeast head coach Greg Davis. "We've tried to prepare for everything. We're going to kinda feel our way through a little bit and see how it all turns out."

The Tigers return several standout players from last season that should guide a solid batch of newcomers. Among those sophomores is dual threat athlete Bailey Walker from Lake Cormorant.

Walker accounted for 649 yards between passing and rushing with six touchdowns from behind center as a freshman. He also starred on special teams with 24 punts for an average of 33.8 yards with a long of 59 yards.

L.J. Hawkins of Water Valley and Shannon's Cameron Montgomery are a pair of stellar wideouts for Northeast. The duo combined for 28 receptions, 351 yards and five touchdowns during the 2015 campaign.

Tupelo High School graduate Demarcus Rogers produced a team-high 59 tackles last year and was placed on the Mississippi Association of Community and Junior Colleges (MACJC) All-State lineup.

The Tigers should be outstanding on both lines as well. Back on the offensive front is two-star left tackle Jo'Quarius Savage of Monroe, La., DeSoto Central High School alumnus Ethan Smart at right tackle and center Ryan Baysinger from Union.

Three defensive linemen hold offers from NCAA Division I power-five conferences entering the season. They are out-of-state standouts Blake McClain, Colton Meadows and Anthony Rush.

Austin Holloway of Booneville will once again handle place kicking for Northeast. He had a 79 percent success rate as a frosh between extra point and field goal opportunities with a total of 27 points.

"We feel pretty confident about where we're at," Davis said. "The coaching staff and the players are praying that we have a great season. They're all buying in and we have a good group of kids. I'm really happy for each one of these young men that are on this team."

The Wildcats feature several new faces this fall. Perhaps most notably among them are University of Wisconsin transfers D.J. Gillins at quarterback and Caleb Kinlaw at defensive back.

Darious Leggett headlines the list of upperclassmen for Pearl River after leading his squad in all-purpose yards during the previous campaign. Joronnie Hinton provides the Wildcats with another experienced athlete at wide receiver.

Randy Hogan, Jr., guides Pearl River's defense from the linebacker spot. Keyshaun Simmons and Cornelius Dortch both return to bolster the line and backfield, respectively, for the Wildcats.