FLOWOOD — All night long, Tim Jones did the grunt work for Warren Central. When it mattered most, he got the glory.

Jones dove over the pile for a game-winning two-point conversion in overtime Friday night as Warren Central beat Northwest Rankin 27-26.

Jones carried the ball 28 times for 241 yards, but did not score a touchdown. He had one called back by a penalty and was tackled at the 1-yard line on another run. His big fullbacks John Gustavis and Austin Roberts punched in three short scoring runs. Getting the two-pointer more than made up for it.

“It was wide open. They all blocked for me and did a great job. It’s a dream,” said Jones, who had four runs of 20 yards or longer. “This is a huge win. This is the biggest game we’ve played since we were in junior high.”

The victory was WC’s first over Northwest Rankin (0-5, 0-1 Region 2-6A) since 2002, but marked a huge turning point for the program. The past four years, early-season losses to the Cougars ended up hurting WC’s playoff chances. By winning the region opener against a perennial, if struggling, contender that had given them fits, the Vikings earned a huge confidence boost and a leg up in the hunt for their first playoff berth since 2005.

“I hope that win puts your feet on the ground and gives you confidence,” WC coach Curtis Brewer said. “We played, got behind and came back. They didn’t give up and I hope it pulls us together as a group.”

The Vikings (3-2, 1-0) had to dig deep to win this one.

Trailing 19-7 late in the third quarter, they put together two long scoring drives of 80 and 97 yards to tie it. John Gustavis pushed his way in from 2 yards out with 54 seconds left in the third quarter to pull WC within a touchdown, and Austin Roberts capped a 13-play, 97-yard drive on a tying 1-yard TD run with 4:02 remaining in regulation.

A late interception gave Northwest one last chance in regulation, but kicker Taylor Walker missed a 46-yard field goal just short and wide right as time expired. That sent it to overtime, where Eddie Abraham scored on the first play from the 10-yard line to put Northwest ahead. Walker made the PAT to give the Cougars a 26-19 lead.

Abraham finished with 69 yards and two touchdowns on 13 carries.

On WC’s possession, Jones was stopped on two short runs before quarterback Beau Wallace hit Lebarron Lee on a quick slant for a 7-yard touchdown. The score made it 26-25, and the Vikings lined up for the extra point — despite three bad snaps that had nixed two previous PAT attempts and led to a missed field goal.

After a WC timeout, Northwest Rankin was called for an offsides penalty that moved the ball inside the 2-yard line. It also moved Brewer to change his call.

The coach answered the pleas of his team by pulling the kicking team off the field and sending out the offense. Jones got the handoff, took a step to his right and dove high over the pile. He landed a yard deep in the end zone for the winning conversion, setting off a wild celebration for the Vikings.

“It was a decision to make on the extra point. When they jumped offsides, it put the odds on the other side of the table,” Brewer said. “The kids wanted to go for two when we lined up for the extra point. But that’s not a decision the kids need to make.”

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Contact Ernest Bowker at ebowker@vicksburgpost.com