Published: November 15, 2008 01:56 am      

MHS drops George County 55-24

Because of his tiny stature, Meridian High School receiver Marcus McQuarley isn't likely to be confused with future NFL Hall-of-Famer Cris Carter anytime soon.

But as Chris Berman might put it, McQuarley has one big thing in common with Carter: "All he does is catch touchdowns."

On a night in which all-state quarterback Tyler Russell and the MHS offense was crazy-good, the diminutive McQuarley hauled in three touchdown passes in helping the No. 2 Wildcats rout George County 55-24 in the opening round of the MHSAA Class 5A state playoffs.

McQuarley's line read like this Friday: Four catches, 155 yards, three touchdowns. For the season, he's averaging better than 24 yards per catch and nearly half of his 35 catches — 17 to be exact — have gone for TDs.

"He can run and he can catch it," Meridian coach Larry Weems said with a grin when asked about McQuarley. And on this night — despite a wet Charles Armstrong Field at Ray Stadium — Weems had plenty to grin about.

Russell's numbers were nothing short of remarkable, as the Mississippi State commitment threw for 415 yards and six touchdowns on 20-of-26 passing. For good measure, the recent Mississippi/Alabama All-Star selection ran for 78 yards and two more touchdowns.

"We had some thoughts on what we could do, but it still comes down to guys getting up there and executing," Weems said. "They have to recognize which guys we have leverage on and then make that play. Tonight, we did that."

Meridian rolled up a season-high 605 yards of total offense and 24 first downs — despite somewhat stumbling out of the gate. A pair of early fumbles helped George County take a 10-6 lead after one period.

"We turned it over those first couple of possessions, but our kids didn't panic," Weems said. "We didn't lose our poise or our composure. We came back and did what we needed to do and the defense got a little breathing room. It all works together."

It doesn't hurt when Russell totals eight touchdowns and 493 yards of offense, or when McQuarley, Chris Smith (seven catches for 143 yards and two scores) or J.J. Harbin (five catches, 108 total yards, one TD) all have monster nights.

"I can't ever determine how a defense will line up," Weems said. "But we've got a lot of guys that have matchups we try to take advantage of. We have to protect and the quarterback has to be able to make reads. Tonight, we got the ball to the right people."

George County lost a fumble on the opening kickoff and Meridian scored six plays later, with Russell running it in from 3 yards out. The point-after kick was wide left, but the Cats were up 6-0.

The Rebels answered with a 61-yard touchdown run from Billey Joe Johnson, then took advantage of a Meridian fumble to get a 44-yard field goal from Will Scott to take a 10-6 lead.

After the second MHS lost fumble, Scott had plenty of distance but was wide right on a 42-yard field goal attempt on the first play of the second period — and the Wildcats quickly went to work.

Meridian scored on its final four possessions of the first half, with Russell hitting McQuarley on a 45-yard TD pass at the 10:15 mark of the second quarter for a 13-10 advantage.

Russell stretched across the goal line for a 4-yard touchdown run with 7:25 on the clock, then he hit Smith a beautiful 33-yard touchdown pass at the 4:45 mark. Jett Miller hit both PATs to make it 27-10.

Adrian Bradley broke a 30-yard touchdown run for George County at the 2:47 mark, but 34 seconds later, Russell hit McQuarley — who made a miraculous, acrobatic one-handed catch and raced 65 yards for a touchdown and a 34-17 lead.

Russell hit Smith on a 20-yard touchdown pass on the opening drive of the third quarter to make it 41-17, then he found McQuarley on a 19-yard TD across the middle for a 48-17 bulge.

Russell's final touchdown pass of the night came on a 6-yarder to a wide-open Hamp Glover, and George County tacked on a late, 31-yard touchdown pass from R.J. Spivery to Fallon Bunker midway through the final period.

The Rebels managed 335 yards, with Johnson rushing for 160 on 21 carries.

Russell's 78 yards rushing were a team-high, but MHS also got 62 on nine carries from James Barnett.

Meridian, which improved to 11-1 with its ninth straight win, goes to Hattiesburg for South State semifinal action next week.

George County, the defending state runnerup, finished 6-6.