SHANNON — Sirvalad Montgomery caught the first two touchdown passes. Braylen Deans took the next one down the sideline. Then Shannon recovered its own kickoff, and Danelius Conner made Yazoo City pay again.
That second-quarter sequence turned a 12-point lead into a 28-point advantage. By halftime, the Red Raiders had five touchdowns and control of a game they would win 40–8 Friday at “The Hole” at Mike Scott Field.
Dashaun Clifton threw three touchdown passes, Montgomery caught two, and Conner ran for two scores. Deans scored through the air and on the ground, while Braden Grove supplied a sack and an interception. Shannon improved to 9–2 with contributions from its passing game, running game, defense and kicking unit.
The touchdowns came in different ways. The effect was the same: Yazoo City kept having to start over against a Shannon team that could turn a short opening into a long gain.
Clifton finds Montgomery twice
Juan Perry helped Shannon get moving with a catch and run for a first down. Conner followed with a burst into Yazoo City territory, giving the Red Raiders a ground threat before Clifton went to the end zone.
Montgomery made the first scoring catch in traffic. Clifton delivered the pass, No. 4 secured it, and Shannon had its first six points. A missed extra point left the lead at 6–0.
After the defense forced a punt, Shannon returned to the same connection. Montgomery helped move the chains with another catch and run, then broke free for his second touchdown reception. Clifton put the ball in front of him, and Montgomery finished.
The two-point attempt came up short. With 5:07 left in the first quarter, Shannon led 12–0.
Yazoo City did keep that margin from growing before the quarter ended. Solomon Walker, No. 5, blocked the punt for Shannon. Yazoo City recovered the loose ball but was stopped short, giving the Red Raiders possession on downs. Shannon could not cash in the short field, failing to convert fourth down. The Indians had weathered that possession and still had time to answer.
Deans opens the gap, Conner widens it
Yazoo City picked up a first down early in the second quarter, but penalties backed the Indians into a long-yardage situation. Their eventual punt pushed Shannon back near midfield. Deans quickly erased that distance.
Deans took the ball down the far sideline for a touchdown. The legal lateral was initially flagged, but the official picked up the flag during the play. Yazoo City questioned the poor officiating mechanics. The touchdown stood, and a successful two-point conversion put Shannon ahead 20–0.
The Indians never got an offensive snap between that score and Shannon’s next possession. The Red Raiders recovered the ensuing kickoff, giving Conner another chance to work. He finished the drive with a touchdown run, and another two-point conversion made it 28–0 with 7:21 remaining before halftime.
Shannon still had to overcome a mistake of its own before the break. A touchdown pass was wiped out by holding. Deans answered with a catch across the middle, and Conner broke a tackle in the backfield before weaving through the defense toward the goal line.
That run stopped short. His next carry did not.
Conner punched in his second touchdown, and the failed conversion left Shannon ahead 34–0 with 50 seconds remaining in the half.
Grove gives Shannon another short field
Yazoo City began the second half needing a sustained drive. Grove made that difficult with a sack early in the third quarter, then ended the possession with an interception and return that put Shannon’s offense at the Indians’ 16-yard line.
It was another possession on which the Red Raiders’ defense did more than get off the field. It gave Clifton and the offense very little ground left to cover.
Montgomery took a short completion close to the goal line. Deans finished the possession with a touchdown run, adding a rushing score to his earlier touchdown catch. The extra-point attempt missed, leaving Shannon ahead 40–0 in the third quarter.
Yazoo City finishes a drive
The Indians kept working for their first points. In the fourth quarter, a pass-interference penalty moved them deeper into Shannon territory, and a quarterback keeper brought them near the goal line.
Yazoo City finished with a touchdown run. The quarterback then kept the ball around the right side for the two-point conversion, putting the Indians on the board and setting the final margin at 40–8.
Montgomery had given Shannon its early lead. Deans and Conner had stretched it before halftime. Grove’s takeaway helped finish the scoring after the break. By the time Yazoo City found the end zone, the Red Raiders had built their winning margin across all three phases.
More highlights and game photos
The videos above show all six Shannon touchdowns, Grove’s interception and Yazoo City’s touchdown. Watch the rest of NMSN’s 18-play collection here:
- Conner breaks loose on the opening drive
- Juan Perry turns a catch into a first down
- Montgomery keeps the chains moving
- Solomon Walker, No. 5, blocks the punt for Shannon
- Shannon recovers its own kickoff
- Conner breaks a tackle and weaves toward the goal line
- Grove closes in for the sack
- Montgomery takes the catch near the goal line
- Shannon’s defense finishes the tackle
- Deans makes the catch across the middle
View the complete 24-photo NMSN game gallery on Facebook.
Photography and highlight video: North Mississippi Sports Network. NMSN’s Friday Night Game of the Week coverage was presented by Impact Health Clinics.
