Canton found out that to come to Meridian and play the Wildcats would take more of an effort than it did in the Tigers’ first two wins.

    Meridian improved to 3-0 on the season and handed the Tigers their first loss at Ray Stadium with a convincing 41-6 win that was highlighted by offensive, defensive and special teams scores. Despite the solid win, Meridian coach Larry Weems saw things that he knows his players need to improve on before a showdown with Quitman next week.

    “Quitman always comes in and plays hard and motivated,” Weems said after talking to his squad. “We have to play better than this or they will beat us.”

    Weems said even though his team scored a lot of points, he said he and the players both know they didn’t play a complete, well-managed game.

    “They know they didn’t execute at times,” he said. “We couldn’t even get into the right formation at times. For the third game of the season that isn’t good.”

    The ‘Cats defense stopped Canton after the Tigers tried to launch a drive to open the game. On their first possession, Meridian put together a six-play, 80-yard drive that began with ‘Cat quarterback J-Mar Smith slinging the ball around to his receivers. Smith, who finished the game 15 of 24 for 169 yards with one interception, then tripped up the Tiger defense with an option pitch to junior running back Richard L. McQuarle,y who raced in from 42 yards for the games first score. Kyle Boykin hit the PAT and Meridian led 7-0 with 5:13 left in the first quarter.

    Midway through the second quarter the Canton running back was stood up and then popped at his own 10-yard line which made the ball squirt out toward the goal line. ‘Cat defensive end Jakari Houston pounced on the bouncing pigskin in the end zone for a score for the defense. Again the PAT by Boykin was good and Meridian held a 14-0 lead.

    Meridian’s defense, despite Canton boasting 6-6, 313-pound Dandy Dozen offensive lineman Daronte Bouldin, could not get untracked. For the game the Tigers could only muster 146 yards of offense.

    Late in the first half Canton tried to surprise Meridian with a fake punt but Jarmarion Moffite was able to sniff out the play and set the ‘Cat offense up at the Tiger 44. Just four plays later, McQuarley crossed the goal line for the second time in the half from 7 yards out. The Boykin PAT was good and going into the locker room the Cats enjoyed a 21-0 lead.

    In beating Wingfield and Velma Jackson in their first two games, Canton scored 88 points and allowed only 6. With the Cats getting the ball to start the second half, the Tigers were looking at a big hole to crawl out of. As Issac Johnson pulled in the kickoff, Canton saw the hole get bigger.

    Johnson, starting from his 20-yard line, swept left and then cut up through a huge hole and easily outraced the defenders 80 yards to the end zone. The PAT again was good and Meridian had a 28-0 lead.

    Smith’s lone miscue of the night, an interception midway through the third quarter, led to the Tigers only score. Jones dropped back and found his tightend, Justin Brown for a 29-yard score. The two-point conversion was stuffed but the Tigers had gotten on the board.

    Desmond Grayson started the fourth quarter for the Cats by capping a six-play, 71-yard drive with a nifty run around right end from 25 yards. Boykin added the PAT for a 35-6 lead. McQuarley, working from the quarterback spot for the second half, slashed in from 5 yards out late in the game for the last TD. Boykin missed the last PAT but the Cats had made their point.

    “We need to come back next week and begin working harder,” Weems said. “We dropped too many passes and missed too many tackles. I’m pleased with the win but we still have work to do. I may change my mind about our play tonight when I look at the film but right now I don’t think we played that well.”

    Next up is a battle against the Quitman Panthers.