05/18/03 FireAnts Press Release

The Tupelo FireAnts (1-7) almost overcame a 30-point deficit against the Houma Bayou Bucks (6-3) at the BancorpSouth Center in Tupelo on Saturday, May 17. Tupelo went up 6-0 early in the first quarter on a four-yard Allen Copeland scamper. Houma then scored 28 unanswered points on a Kenny Causey kickoff return and a touchdown reception in addition to 2 touchdowns scored by Bayou Bucks halfback Cedric Allen as the FireAnts trailed the contest 28-6 at halftime. Houma scored another Cedric Allen touchdown to pull to a 35-6 lead before brand-new FireAnts wideout Chris Edwards hauled in a 17-yard pass from Amp Dunn to pull the contest to 35-12. Houma’s Damien Chestnut answered with a 32-yard reception from Bucks quarterback Herb Tyler to give Houma a 42-12 lead. Tupelo’s Bobby “The Ant” Hill then ran back the ensuing kickoff 50 yards for a touchdown, followed by a 34-yard Darian Chestnut reception to make the game 49-18. The FireAnts scored the last 35 points of the night on two more Allen Copeland touchdown runs and a 24-yard touchdown pass to Bobby Hill. In one of the most unusual aspects of the game of indoor football, Tupelo scored one point Bayou Bucks kick-returner Kenney Causey could not return the ball out of the end-zone on a kickoff to bring the final score to 49-43.

Tupelo quarterback Anthony Dunn completed 8 of 24 attempts for 103 yards with two interceptions and a touchdown. Running back Allen Copeland ran the ball nine times for 25 yards and three touchdowns. Newcomer Chris Edwards hauled in 4 receptions for 56 yards and a touchdown. The FireAnts player of the game was the multi-faceted Bobby “The Ant” Hill, who caught one pass for a touchdown, returned a kick for a touchdown, and almost returned an interception for another touchdown. Linebacker Ricky Franklin totaled 11 tackles, with one sack and a pass deflection. Tupelo totaled 43 yards rushing and 102 yards passing for 145 yards on 43 plays from scrimmage, with 11 first downs and seven penalties for 24 yards.

Houma quarterback Herb Tyler completed 13 of 24 passes for 197 yards with three touchdowns and two interceptions. Wide receiver Darian Chestnut snagged 4 receptions for 89 yards and two touchdowns. Running back Cedric Allen ran the ball 18 times for 56 yards and three touchdowns. Defensive back Timothy Betts stole two interceptions with five tackles and one for a loss. Houma totaled 56 yards on the ground with 192 through the air for a total of 248 yards of offense on 48 plays from scrimmage, with 16 first downs and nine penalties for 53 yards.

The FireAnts hit the road this week as they travel to Enid, Oklahoma to battle the Crude on Friday.  You can listen to all of the action of FireAnts football live on WBIP 99.3FM.