No. 1-ranked East Mississippi will attempt to win its fourth national championship in seven seasons when its faces No. 2-ranked Arizona Western College (9-0) Sunday at Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College.

After a two-year absence, Lions’ players and coaches are relishing the opportunity to not only compete for another national title, but to do so in the Magnolia State. 

“To play for any type of championship, especially a national championship in your home state and play in a bowl game in your home state is huge,” East Mississippi coach Buddy Stephens said. “For our kids’ families, to be able to come watch them play in a game like this is always very special.”

East Mississippi rolls into Sunday’s national championship sporting a 10-1 record and most recently defeated Northwest Mississippi Community College 67-66 in a double-overtime thriller on Nov. 11. 

The Rangers defeated the Lions 61-38 during the regular season, and defeat, players said, was the catalyst for East Mississippi’s late-season surge.

“With the loss to Northwest, I think it just showed that we weren’t unbeatable,” Lions defensive tackle Cole Baker said. “So I think we have approached everything with a different attitude after that — that we didn’t want to get beat like that again. We get after it a little better, and we pay better attention. I think we’re determined not to have that feeling again.”

East Mississippi and Arizona Western are familiar foes, as both schools last played in the 2011 El Toro Bowl in Yuma, Ariz., where the Lions earned a 55-47 win. 

Baker, who has compiled 37 tackles and four sacks this year, said the Lions’ expectations for Sunday’s high-stakes matchup haven’t changed just because their opponent has.

“Now, more than ever, it seems like an expectation for us,” he said. “The regular season is not our regular season. Playoffs, and when we go to bowl games, that becomes our season. It’s more of an expectation than a reward for us.”

Quarterback Lindsey Scott Jr. shared Baker’s sentiment, as he commented about his team’s resiliency as it battled adversity on the field and tragedy off of it. Scott Jr. this season has thrown for an NJCAA third-best 3,311 yards to go along with 27 touchdowns. He’s tallied another 689 rushing yards and six rushing scores. 

“Our biggest strength is that we can look adversity in the face and combat it well,” Scott Jr. said. “When things don’t go well, a team that has the ability to do that has the traits of a championship team. I think that’s one of our biggest strengths.”

When the Lions take the field Sunday, they’ll do so without fallen teammate Tyone Clemons. Clemons, a defensive lineman who played in 11 games this season, died in a car crash earlier this month. Scott said while the Lions plan to play for their fallen brother Sunday, they’ve honored his memory in other ways since his tragic passing.

“Not only are we doing that, but it’s in his honor (by) the way we practice, the way we watch film and the way we’ve gone about the last couple weeks,” Scott Jr. said. “We’re doing it a way to honor him, and we always try to keep that in mind. We break practice on the phrase ’99 strong.’ We really keep him in mind.”