CLINTON, Miss. --- The Mississippi College football team will open the 2018 season on Thursday night when they host Clark Atlanta University. Kick-off at Robinson-Hale Stadium is scheduled for 7:00 p.m.

This will be just the 2nd all-time meeting between the two schools with the first coming in Atlanta in 2017. The Choctaws would grab a 29-22 lead with just over two minutes remaining, but the Panthers responded with a touchdown drive as time expired to send the game to overtime. CAU would hit a 44-yard field goal in the extra period to pick up the 32-29 victory.

Head coach John Bland leads the Choctaws in his fifth season at the helm, and MC was predicted to finish 8th in the GSC Preseason Poll. Kevin Ramsey is set to open his fourth season as the head coach at Clark Atlanta, while the Panthers were picked to finish 5th in the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference East Division.
 

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WHEN MISSISSIPPI COLLEGE HAS THE BALL

The Choctaws return seven starters on offense, led by 2017 leading rusher Tiberias Lampkin, who averaged 64.8 yards per game and 5.2 yards per carry in his junior season.

MC averaged 148.0 rushing yards per game last season will look to better that number with a new offensive attack under coordinator Tommy Laurendine.

The quarterback position has been a battle all spring and fall with red-shirt sophomore Aaron Feazelle and junior Detric Hawthorn emerging as the top options. Feazelle played 9-of-10 games in 2018, rushing for 145 yards and two scores, while Hawthorn is a talented transfer from Jones County Junior College.

Senior Chakel Gates was a Preseason All-GSC selection in 2018 as a return specialist. He is the team's leading returning receiver with 25 catches for 200 yards in 2017.

The offensive line comes back strong with senior Lawrence Guyot spearheading a unit with three returning starters in sophomores Jeremiah Campbell and Tahara Thornton.

The Panthers allowed 28.0 points per game last season and opponents rushed for 142 yards and 20 touchdowns in 2017.

Kenneth Morgan is the top returner on the defense with 50 tackles and 4.5 tackles for loss in 2017. Breante Glover comes back to a defensive line after tallying 6.0 TFL and 4.0 sacks last season.
 

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WHEN CLARK ATLANTA HAS THE BALL

The MC defense improved as the 2017 season progressed, dropping their defensive scoring average by nearly 10 points over the final three games, including allowing just 16 points to North Alabama.

Senior Colton Magee is the leading returning tackler for MC after putting up 45 stops with 4.5 tackles for loss. He also returned an interception for a touchdown in the season-opening loss to Clark Atlanta.

Senior Justin Stewart also comes back for MC after tallying 36 tackles, including 19 solo stops in 2017.

The Clark Atlanta offense will have to deal with the loss of quarterback Jonathan McCrary, who threw every pass last season and was the SIAC Preseason Offensive Player of the Year in 2017.

Roger Thomas comes back to the backfield after averaging 35.9 yards per game and 4.9 yards per carry in 2017. Johnathan Sanders caught 57 passes for 609 yards and five touchdowns last season.
 

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SPECIAL TEAMS

The Choctaws will have a new punter and placekicker in 2018 in the person of junior Drake McCarter, a transfer from Northwest Mississippi Community College. He will have to replace the services of Matthew Turcotte and Greg Nickles from 2017.

Gates returns as the leading kick return option, but senior Paul Anderson, a transfer from South Dakota, along with juniors Cole Rotenberry and Turner Rotenberry will see extended time as both punt and kick returners this season.

The Panthers return their punter and placekicker from a season ago. Carlos Saldana hit 11-of-14 field goals with a long of 46 yards, while Ty Woods averaged 39.3 yards over 44 punts in 2017.
 

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GAME NOTES

The Choctaws are 1-1 in their 106-year history when they play on August 30th. In 2007, MC erased a 20-point 4th quarter deficit to come back and get a 27-26 victory over cross-town rival Millsaps. Adam Shaffer passed for 245 yards and two touchdowns, while Corey Cooley clinched the win with an interception in the final minutes.

The Choctaws are 29-21-2 all-time against teams from the State of Georgia. The most common opponents are GSC foes Valdosta State and West Georgia, making up 34 of the 53 games facing teams from the Peach State.

For the first time since 1988, the Mississippi College football team will be scheduled to play 11 regular season games. That season, MC won their second of three Gulf South Conference championships (1979, 1990). That season saw the Choctaws open up with a 6-2 loss to McNeese State before winning 9-of-10 to close out the regular season. That was the third straight season MC played 11 regular season games, but it was by far the most successful. MC advanced to the Division II playoffs where they played at Texas A&I, falling 39-15. Future NFL standout Fred McAfee would tally over 1,000 all-purpose yards, including 771 rushing yards and a touchdown.

As the Choctaws face one of four teams they will play from the State of Georgia this season in Clark Atlanta, let's highlight the MC players from the Peach State. Alizee Chubbs (Atlanta) has made the move to linebacker for his senior season after years in the offensive backfield. Hurley (Tyrone) has also switched positions, moving to the defensive line after starting on offense in 2017.

Of the 11 regular season games for the Choctaws in 2018, six will come against teams that are at least receiving votes in the AFCA Preseason Top 25. West Florida (2), West Alabama (12) and West Georgia (19) are all in the Top 25, while Delta State, Florida Tech and Valdosta State received votes.

The Choctaws will be back at home for their first Saturday contest of the season, hosting Southwest Baptist at 6:00 p.m. Last season, the Bearcats took advantage of two turnovers that led directly to touchdowns and picked up a 32-9 victory. MC's touchdown came on a 32-yard strike from Ty Jobe to Ja'Moz Mark.
 

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Mississippi College is a private Christian university located in Clinton, Mississippi with an enrollment of over 5,000 students. MC is recently finished their transition process back to NCAA Division II and the Gulf South Conference and will be competing for conference and national championships in the 2016-17 academic year.
 
The athletic department sponsors 17 intercollegiate athletic programs: Baseball, Men's and Women's Basketball, Men's and Women's Cross Country, Football, Golf, Men's and Women's Soccer, Softball, Men's and Women's Tennis, Men's and Women's Indoor Track & Field, Men's and Women's Outdoor Track & Field and Volleyball.
 
For more information on Mississippi College athletics, please contact David Nichols at 601-925-3234 or nichols@mc.edu.