Matadors marching to Mississippi

Jason Weaver is a better offensive lineman than a tour guide, but few if any on the Arizona Western College football team know about the team's bowl destination of Biloxi, Miss., better than him.   

"I've been there several times. They got lots of resorts with Jet Skis, so it's going to be nice," the New Orleans native said. "It's like 45 minutes away, so all my family will be there, so I have to get my team right so we get a 'W.' I don't want to go to Mississippi and not win."

The Western States Football League champion Matadors accepted an invitation Tuesday to play in the 2009 Mississippi Bowl on Dec. 6 against East Mississippi Community College in an East-West matchup of two top-6 ranked teams.

"We think we have a terrific matchup this season between East Mississippi and Arizona Western," Mississippi Bowl Committee chairman Ladd Taylor said in a statement on the bowl's Web site. "East Mississippi is our state champion and Arizona Western comes in as a worthy opponent. The tradition of great matchups started last year between Gulf Coast and Georgia Military and continues this season."

No. 5 East Mississippi and No. 6 AWC will play at Biloxi Indian Stadium, home of the Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College football team, with kickoff slated for 1 p.m. Mountain Standard Time. It is AWC's first bowl appearance since the 1998 Nassau Bowl in Long Island, N.Y.

"This being our first experience we're just excited for the players and the coaches to have this opportunity," AWC athletic director Jerry Smith said. "I was talking on the phone all day yesterday with everybody from the different bowls trying to position themselves, but when we got a call and they asked if we'd like to come to Mississippi I said we wanted to come, and it was exciting for me to tell coach Minnick."

Not only is the Mississippi Bowl one of the better destinations in terms of weather and tourism, it also offered AWC the best incentive package. The school will receive $10,000 for participating.

"I think they'll see the coast is building back after (Hurricane) Katrina," said MGCCC sports information director Bill Synder, a lifelong resident of the state. "We have a lot of good seafood. There are nice golf courses here, though I don't know how they compare to Arizona. We have casinos for folks that want to gamble. New Orleans is an hour east, Mobile (Ala.) is an hour east, and there are lots of festivals and outdoor things this time of year, so there's something for everybody."

East Mississippi (10-1), located in Scooba, Miss., brings a seven-game winning streak to the bowl. Its most recent victory was a 75-71 upset over then No. 3 Mississippi Gulf Coast CC on Nov. 7 in the Mississippi Association of Community & Junior Colleges (MACJC) state football championship.

"I watched them already a bit on film and they got speed," AWC coach Tom Minnick said. "A lot of people think Mississippi is the No. 1 conference, so we'll get a lot of respect if we beat this team. I guarantee it."

The state title and bowl appearance are both firsts in the program's history. EMCC's lone loss of the season came earlier in the year to Mississippi Gulf Coast, a 43-26 decision at home.

The Lions are coached by Buddy Stephens and led by sophomore quarterback Randall Mackey, named the NJCAA Region 23 Most Valuable Player for the second straight year. Mackey has thrown for more than 2,800 yards and 29 touchdowns, completing more than 68 percent of his passes as EMCC has averaged 48.5 points per game.

Additional information regarding the bowl game, tickets or travel accommodations can be found online at www.
mississippibowl.com.

While the Matadors were able to achieve a conference championship and bowl invitation, a national championship is not likely in the cards anymore. No. 1 Fort Scott (Kan.) will face No. 2 Blinn (Texas) in the Citizen's Bank Bowl on Dec. 6 in Pittsburg, Kan. The NJCAA is completing the final details to officially sanction the matchup as the 2009 NJCAA Football Championship Game.

Three other WSFL teams officially accepted bowl invitations on Tuesday for Dec. 5 games. No. 8 Snow (Utah) will play No. 3 Grand Rapids (Mich.) in the Zions Bank Top of the Mountain Bowl in Salt Lake City, Glendale will host No. 11 Dean College (Mass.) in The Valley of the Sun Bowl, and No. 16 New Mexico Military will travel to Hutchinson, Kan., to face No. 20 Hutchinson in the first-ever Central Bank Salt City Bowl.