FERRIDAY — DeVante Scott’s plans to play for Mississippi State will have to be put on hold for the time being.

But once he’s done with community college, Scott said he still plans to make it to Starkville eventually.

After committing to the Bulldogs last summer, Scott signed a National Letter of Intent with Copiah-Lincoln Community College Wednesday on National Signing Day.

“His grades fell a little short, but this is going to be a good situation for him,” Trojans football coach Chad Harkins said. “He’ll be able to get everything on track and adjust to the college life.”

Scott said it feels good getting the decision to go the communitycollege route out of the way.

“It feels good knowing I can keep playing football,” Scott said. “That means a lot to me. Playing at the next level is something I’ve always wanted to do.”

Co-Lin being less than two hours away also played into Scott’s decision, he said.

“It’s close to home, and Coach (James) Davis went there, and he was telling me about it,” Scott said. “I talked to a couple of the coaches (on Co-Lin’s staff), and they seemed pretty cool.”

Although he only got to coach Scott for one season, Harkins said the impact Scott had on the field for the Trojans has been significant.

“He’s been a great athlete for the last several years,” Harkins said “There have been a lot of people involved with him other than me. If he can get the academics part down, he can do big things at big places.”

Scott battled through nicks and bruises with the Trojans last fall, but Harkins said Scott was effective even if he wasn’t 100 percent health-wise.

“He was a huge asset for us. He made us better every snap he was out there,” Harkins said. “It was a pleasure to coach him.”

Even if he wasn’t able to attend Mississippi State straight out of high school, Scott said he wasn’t disappointed.

“Junior college can help me even more,” he said. “I still plan to go to Mississippi State. The atmosphere and coaches there are great, and they’re an up-and-coming program. I liked how they dominated in the Gator Bowl.”