WEEK 2
NAVARRO (1-0/0-0) at TYLER (0-1/0-0)
7 pm Saturday, Sept. 11
Earl Campbell Field at CHRISTUS Trinity Mother Frances Rose Stadium, Tyler
MEETING: 87th
SERIES: Navarro leads, 46-40. The Bulldogs have won the last two meetings in Corsicana (53-50 and 42-37) and three of the last four. NC last won in Tyler 37-26 on Oct. 7, 2017 -- a day the Bulldogs rallied from a 24-0 deficit against an unbeaten Apache squad ranked No. 2 in the NJCAA.
REMEMBERING 9-11: Military and first responders will be honored on the 20th anniversary of the 9-11 attacks as part of the game Saturday. All current and former military and first responders will be admitted free of charge with proper identification. Men and women of the armed forces and first responders will serve as honorary captains, and there will be a special halftime performance featuring bands from Navarro and Tyler and the Apache Belles.
COACHES: Navarro's Scott Parr (10-9) and Tyler's Thomas Rocco (7-11) are in their third years at their respective schools. Parr returned to Navarro after a stint as offensive coordinator at Eastern Illinois University. Rocco arrived at TJC in 2017 where he served as defensive coordinator. Rocco had been a DC at West Texas A&M, Blinn, New Mexico Highlands, Fort Lewis and Midwestern State.
THE SPRING GAME: Navarro won the 2021 spring opener 53-50 at Tiger Stadium in Corsicana – the Bulldogs' first game since its 2019 SWJCFC Championship win over NMMI, or a span of 504 days. Dodge Delozier completed 38-of-53 for 340 yards and four touchdowns. Cornerback Tyrecus Davis' 42-yard interception return with 6:23 left expanded Navarro's 46-43 lead and accounted for the game's only defensive score. The Bulldogs and Apaches combined for 162 plays, 1,153 yards offense and 1,424 total yards in the scorefest.
ANOTHER VIDEO GAME: Since 2014, Navarro and Tyler have combined to score more than 100 points in an SWJCFC game five times.
(POINTS) – GAME – OPPONENTS, VENUE
(124) -- 2015 Regular Season – Tyler 69, Navarro 55 at Rose Stadium
(122) -- 2014 SWJCFC Semifinal – Tyler 70, Navarro 52 at Tiger Stadium
(103) – 2021 Spring Opener – Navarro 53, Tyler 50 at Tiger Stadium
(103) – 2014 Regular Season – Navarro 58, Tyler 45 at Rose Stadium
(100) – 2018 Regular Season – Tyler 59, Navarro 41 at Rose Stadium
LAST WEEK: Navarro defeated reigning conference champion Cisco 35-14 at Chesley Field as Isaiah Robinson ran for three touchdowns, Qua Gray passed for two more, and a vastly improved defense forced four turnovers and denied CJC points on four of five trips into the red zone. The Bulldogs scored after their first three possessions of the game. Tyler dropped a 49-28 non-conference decision to sixth-ranked Kilgore as Ranger QB Malcolm Mays (22-29-327-1) threw for four touchdowns and ran for another. KC, in spite of 16 penalties, got 440 yards offense using eight rushers and nine receivers.
LAST STATS: Navarro totaled 454 yards from 73 plays against the Wranglers, 319 on the ground and 135 through the air. The Bulldogs ran for 70.2 percent of their yardage, averaging 7.6 yards. Tyler amassed 369 yards from 78 plays against Kilgore, 281 via the pass and 88 via rush. On the other hand, the Apaches gained 76.2 percent of their yards through the air.
KEY PLAYERS: NC – QB Qua Gray (15-31-135-2-2); RB Isaiah Robinson (22-162-3); WR Jeremiah Aaron, WR Quentin Lee, OG Kamon Bradford, C Jawuan Singletary, DE Kenneth Ellison (5 T, 2 AT, 1.5 SAC); LB Nate Maulsby (3 T, 2 AT); LB Nickalous McGrew (3 T, 3 AT, 2 QBP, 1 CF, 1TFL); Ethan Harris (2 T, 1 AT, 4 SAC); CB Tyrecus Davis (3 T); DB Layne O'Dell (3 T, 1 AT, 1 FR); S Skylon Johnson (3 T, 1AT, 1 SAC, 1 CF, 1 FR, 1 PBU) . TJC – QB General Booty (36-48-321-4-1); WR Jeremiah Cooley (8-96-3); WR Kelly Akharaiyi (8-91-1); WR Jordan Wallace (10-47-0), WR Nick Rempert (5-70-0); RB Azhuan Dingle (16-71-0); MLB Xavier Benson (13 tackles); SS Ronnie Caldwell (6 tackles); LLB Darryl Minor (6 tackles); FS Jayden Shelton (6 tackles, 1 INT).
NJCAA STAT LEADERS: NC – Early returns, yes, but the Bulldogs led the NJCAA in sacks and rank second in team rushing. RB Isaiah Robinson leads NJCAA D-I in rushing touchdowns and is second in per-game average. TJC – QB General Booty leads NJCAA D-I in passing yards per game and touchdown passes; WR Jeremiah Cooley leads in TD receptions; MLB Xavier Benson is a co-leader in total tackles (13).
FAMILY TIES: Booty, a 6-foot-3 freshman from Allen, edged out Landry Kinne for the TJC starting quarterback position. Booty's mother is the sister of former Arkansas Razorback and longtime NFL quarterback Joe Ferguson. Booty's grandfather, a highly touted quarterback at Shreveport (Woodlawn), played at Arkansas and Mississippi State. Booty's father, Abram, holds some LSU receiving records and played with the NFL's Cleveland Browns. Booty's uncle, John David Booty, quarterbacked USC to two Rose Bowls and was drafted by the NFL's Minnesota Vikings. Yet another uncle, Josh Booty, was the 1994 MLB Draft's No. 5 selection by the Florida Marlins, but he quit after five seasons, returned to quarterback LSU two years (1999-2000) and became a sixth-round draft pick of the Seattle Seahawks in 2001.
MORE ANCESTRY.COM: Kinne was TJC's starting quarterback the final two games of spring and led the Apaches to a win over Blinn. Kinne is the younger brother of former Tulsa star and current UCF offensive coordinator, G.J. Kinne III. Landry's father, Gary Joe Kinne, was a standout linebacker at Baylor during the 1980s who later became a high school football coach at Canton, Kaufman, Mesquite and Allen ISDs.
AND, AS A RESULT…: Former Tyler starting quarterback Brendon Strickland transferred to Navarro and is on the Bulldogs' 2021 fall roster. Strickland was 94-of-204 for 1331 yards and 14 scores during spring.
GAMEDAY
WEATHER: Clear skies with temperatures near 96 degrees are expected Saturday in Tyler. South winds at 7 mph may gust as high as 18 mph. No precipitation is expected.
STREAMING: Fans unable to attend have three (3) live and free options again to monitor Saturday's Navarro-Tyler football game. Navarro's audio broadcast, with Steve Petty and Ronnie Greer, airs on KAND-1340 AM and 104.9 FM Corsicana kandradio.com Tyler's audio broadcast, with Bill Coates and Kevin Simon, airs on 92.1 FM The Team Tyler. The live video stream appears on The Apache Athletics YouTube Channel with 92.1 FM The Team's play-by-play. (**Beware of Scam Links! Do not give up personal or credit card information.**)
SWJCFC SATURDAY: (Conference) Northeastern Oklahoma A&M at Trinity Valley, 11 am; Navarro at Tyler, 7 pm; Blinn at Kilgore, 7 pm. (Non-Conference) – Rezolution Prep Academy at Cisco, 7 pm; Maricopa Mustangs at NMMI, 7 pm
NEXT WEEK'S GAMES: (Conference) NMMI at Navarro, 7 pm (Bulldog Hall Of Fame Weekend); Northeastern Oklahoma A&M at Kilgore, 1 pm; Blinn at Cisco, 7 pm. (Non-Conference) – Trinity Valley at Southern-Shreveport, 7 pm; Rezolution Prep Academy at Tyler. 7 pm.
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PROJECTED STARTING LINEUP
NAVARRO OFFENSE
No. Pos - Player
54 OT – Phillip Houston
70 OG – Kamon Bradford
65 C -- Jawuan Singletary
72 OG – Donovan Ford
79 OT -- Elijah Bowser
18 QB -- Qua Gray
4 RB -- Isaiah Robinson
1 WR – Jeremiah Aaron
2 WR – Quentin Lee
8 WR – Louis Moore
10 WR – Karl Reynolds
41 PK -- Alexis Lopez
NAVARRO DEFENSE
No. Pos - Player
34 DE – Khalil White
55 DT -- RJ Evans
9 DT -- Mike Sandjo-Nijiki
27 DE – Kenneth Ellison
49 MLB – Nate Maulsby
30 WLB – Nickalous McGrew
24 SAM – Preston Hodge
6 CB – Tyrecus Davis
15 CB – CJ Bosket
7 FS – Skylon Johnson
49 P -- Ryan Shamburger
-- Weekly Previews By Mike Montfort
