By Will Brown
Sports Editor
On Saturday October 13, Millsaps’ football team lost on the road in Sherman, Texas to the Austin College Roos 33-19, ending their winning streak at two games and putting the Majors at 3-3 at that point in the season.
Millsaps jumped out to a 3-0 lead at the end of the first quarter, but endured a rough second quarter in which they got outscored 19-0 and trailed by 16 points going into the half. The Majors cut away at the deficit in the third quarter, getting briefly within three points before trailing 26-16 going into the fourth. However, a late fourth quarter touchdown by the Roos put the game out of reach.
A week later, Millsaps lost at home to the undefeated Berry College Vikings by a final score of 37-22. Millsaps trailed by ten at the end of the first quarter, but pulled within one possession in the early fourth quarter. However, Berry was able to hold on and get a late score to secure a 15 point victory.
Prior to the consecutive losses to Austin College and Berry College, the Majors were on a two game winning streak, with both wins coming against conference rivals. On Sept. 23, Millsaps defeated the University of Sewanee 17-13 and on Sept. 30, Millsaps won a 20-19 thriller on the road against Rhodes College in Memphis, Tenn. The Majors came back from a 19-7 fourth quarter deficit to rally past the Rhodes Lynx, snatching three fourth-quarter interceptions and completing an eight-yard pass play on fourth down to keep their final drive alive. Two plays later, quarterback Chance Clowers threw the game-winning touchdown pass to wide receiver Patrick McRaney. Rhodes had one last chance to win the game, but Millsaps’ defense came up with an interception to secure a thrilling victory against a key conference rival.
Millsaps is now 3-4 overall and 2-3 against other schools from the Southern Athletic Association with three more games still remaining, all against conference teams. The Majors are home again this weekend to host Centre College in what is both the final home game of the season and the Homecoming Game. Millsaps only plays four home games this season and has six games on the road. In addition to the four road games they have already played, the Majors end their season with back to back road trips to Birmingham Southern College in Birmingham, Ala. and Hendrix College in Conway, Ark.
In order for Millsaps to qualify for the playoffs, they would have to win their conference. The Majors currently rank fifth out of nine teams in the Southern Athletic Association, but they would have to win their final three games and have Berry College lose their remaining games to potentially have a shot at representing the SAA in the Playoffs.