No. 16 Indians rally from 20-point deficit to stun Pearl River

POPLARVILLE, Miss. – After a 45-minute lightning delay before the game, the No. 16 Indians (1-0) erased a 20-point deficit to storm back for a 34-30 win at Pear River on Thursday. 

De'Sean Dinkins (Warner Robins, Ga.) led the rally with 103 yards rushing and a pair of touchdowns on 13 carries, including the game-winning score on a 4-yard run with 3:24 left in the game. The sophomore running back sealed the victory by picking up a first down with less than a minute remaining, allowing the Indians to kneel their way to the come-from-behind victory. 

Trailing 27-7 midway through the third quarter, Hiram Wadlington (Oxford) scored on a 2-yard run and 45-yard pass from Spencer Unruh (Caledonia) to make it a 27-21 contest at the 2:56 mark of the third quarter. 

Wadlington rushed for 76 yards and a touchdown on 13 carries and caught three passes for a team-high 84 yards and another score in his collegiate debut. Unruh completed 10 of 24 passing for 146 yards with a touchdown and an interception. 

Jaquan Williams (Kosiusko) picked off a pass that lead to a 32-yard touchdown run by Dinkins that tied the game, 27-27, after a blocked extra point attempt with 13:51 left in the fourth quarter. Both teams traded fumbles before Pearl River (0-1) bounced a 29-yard field goal off the right upright and through to take a three-point advantage at the 9:52 mark. 

Laderrick Bell (Anniston, Ala.) scored the game's first touchdown on a 7-yard run on the Indians' second drive of the night. 

Defensively, the Indians were led by Tay Carothers' (Aberdeen) 14 tackles (12 solo; 2 assists), including a game-saving fourth down stop on the Wildcats' final drive of the game. Carothers had four tackles for a loss of 14 yards, a sack for a loss of eight yards and a fumble recovery.

Nick Smith (Cleveland) had an interception and LaKendrick Jones (Independence) added a forced fumble.

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ICC will host East Central (0-1) for their first home game of the season on Thursday, September 6 at Eaton Field. The Warriors saw No. 6 Northwest (1-0) score 14 points in the final three minutes of their season opener to pick up a 28-24 victory in Senatobia. 

The First American National Bank Kickoff is scheduled for 6:30 and the Davis Ford Pregame Show will start at 6:00 on LetsGoICCTV.com/RED and ESPN Mississippi 95.1 FM.

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