Player of the Week: East Marion senior RB Jadarrius “Kool-Aid” Mallard

COLUMBIA, Miss. (WDAM) - Each season East Marion seems to quietly sneak into the playoffs and make some noise.

Well, seniors like Jadarrius Mallard would like to finish their high school careers with a bang.

“It’s been filled with a lot of emotions because nobody expected us to be this far - especially around this time of the year,” Mallard said. “We’re always going to get counted out at the beginning of the season, that’s just how East Marion football’s going to always be about. So you just gotta come out here every day, put in the work and when it’s game time on Friday’s, you just gotta show ‘em.”

Nicknamed “Kool-Aid,” by his aunt, Mallard is the straw that stirs the drink for East Marion.

He leads the team with 1,117 yards rushing and 12 touchdowns, including a 96-yard run in the Eagles’ first round playoff win over North Forrest.

“I gotta give credit to the people up front because without them I probably wouldn’t even be right here right now,” Mallard said. “So every day I just thank them for allowing me to be in this position.” “He works hard every day, he has great vision,” said East Marion first-year head coach Jerry Fletcher. “But the surprising thing is he has great speed. So, he has been a plus to our offense.”

It’s an offense that took some time to learn with Fletcher joining the team in June.

After a 1-5 start, East Marion has found its stride, winners of six straight.

“I knew it was going to take a lot of work for me to get the kids to understand my offensive system,” Fletcher said. “But they grasp it pretty good and we’re taking off right now.”

“To keep it going we gotta just stay together, we gotta stay focused and we can’t just make no bad choices on and off the field,” Mallard said. “Just gotta come in every day prepared and just keep working.”

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