WEEK 3
NEW MEXICO MILITARY INSTITUTE (2-0 / 0-0) at NAVARRO (1-1 / 0-1)
7 pm Saturday, Sept. 18 | Tiger Stadium, Corsicana
MEETING: 13th since the series began in 1967; 7th since NMMI left the Western States Football League and joined the SWJCFC in 2016.
SERIES: Navarro leads overall, 9-3. The NMMI series is Navarro's youngest, ongoing matchup, but it has been played in seven different venues: Tiger Field and Tiger Stadium in Corsicana, Colt Field and The Wool Bowl in Roswell; plus neutral-site matchups at Midlothian ISD Stadium (2007), Bulldawg Stadium in Copperas Cove (2011) and Wigwam Stadium at Seminole, Tx., (Spring, 2021). During the teams' last meeting in Corsicana, the Bulldogs won 56-49 in overtime after lengthy delays from lightning-accompanied storms and tornadic weather. The teams split post-season bowls – NMMI, taking the 1980 Wool Bowl, 14-12, and Navarro, winning the 2011 Heart Of Texas Bowl at Copperas Cove, 40-24. Since NMMI's arrival in the SWJCFC, NC holds a 5-1 advantage.
BULLDOG HALL OF FAME WEEKEND: A star-studded Bulldog Hall of Fame Class of 2021 will be introduced at halftime of Saturday's home opener. The Bulldog HOF expands to 22 with the induction of football's Nick Bobeck, Harold Hern, Kelvin Russell, Ray Jacobs, basketball's Johnny Estelle, Buzz Williams, David Burns, baseball's Chris Davis, Brock Holt, Derwood 'Pop' Penney, the 2000 Navarro Cheer team, and community boosters Johnny and Faye Sirman.
WEATHER: Thursday forecasts indicate Saturday will be sunny with temperatures near 83 degrees at the 7 pm kickoff. Northeast winds will be about 7 mph.
STREAMING: Saturday's NMMI-Navarro game will be streamed live and free on the Navarro Sports You Tube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8CFpO3-W34g Audio streaming broadcast with Steve Petty and Ronnie Greer airs live and free on KAND-1340 AM and 104.9 FM kandradio.com
COACHES: Scott Parr is in his third season at Navarro (10-10). Kurt Taufa'asau is the interim head coach at NMMI. The native of American Samoa was a first-team All-Western States Football League defensive lineman for NMMI in 2009 under coach Jeff Lynn. Taufa'asau played at The University of Wyoming, but returned to his alma mater in 2016 as defensive line coach after stints in NFL camps with the Oakland Raiders, Tennessee and Indianapolis. Taufa'asau replaced 16-year coach Joe Forchtner, who became an assistant athletic director at NMMI.
THE 'SPRING GAME': The Broncos defeated a seventh-ranked Navarro club, 56-38, at Wigwam Stadium in Seminole, Tx, as NJCAA Second-Team All-America Anthony Grant earned Player of The Week honors for a 21-carry, 263-yard, four-touchdown effort and led a 572-yard offensive. NMMI's Jaylin Smith and Jimmy Harrison each blocked first-half punts that led to touchdowns. NC's Dodge Delozier completed 31-of-56 for 425 yards and five touchdowns – two to Jeremiah Aaron and one to Quentin Lee.
LAST WEEK: Tyler's General Booty completed 38-of-51 passes for 507 yards and eight touchdowns as the Apaches outscored Navarro, 69-57. Booty threw two touchdown passes to four different receivers – Jordan Wallace, Jeremiah Cooley, Kelly Aharaiyi and Nic Rempert, plus running back Ashuan Dingle gained 169 yards from 14 carries and scored twice….. NMMI won its second straight home game against a non-member school from the fledgling Hohokam Junior College Athletic Conference – a 66-0 decision over the Maricopa Mustangs as Jordan Bolden rushed for 111 yards and two touchdowns from 14 carries.
MADDEN 2021: Navarro and Tyler set a single-game aggregate scoring record in their series. The 126 points Saturday marked the sixth time that the two teams scored 100 points or more points in a game since 2014.
STILL COUNTING… Nine-function calculators hum and remain warm. The teams combined for 1,326 yards offense from 156 plays. Touchdowns? 12 passing, 4 rushing and 2 via interception returns. Don't forget Navarro's first points came on Tyrecus Davis' return of a blocked conversion for a safety. With 7:41 left in the second period, Navarro trailed 41-9. The teams combined for 41 points during the third period, 69 for the final half. NC tallied 41 during the second half. Tyler's last eight scores occurred on pass plays; Navarro's last three on rushes.
ABOUT NMMI: Believe it or not, the Broncos have recorded shutouts in three of their last four regular-season football games, allowing only a passing touchdown in those last 16 quarters. Grant, the SWJCFC's MVP last spring, has returned. The first-team all-conference back led the NJCAA in all-purpose yardage last season (1,213 yards) ranked fifth among NJCAA rushers (1116 yards / 102.4 per) and second with 10 rushing touchdowns. As NJCAA First-Team Offensive Lineman Tyrone Webber Grant clears passage, Grant and Jordan Bolden lead the way through two games. NMMI's used 13 different rushers to gain 460 yards, or, about 77 percent of its offensive showing so far. Three sophomore dual-threat quarterbacks have combined to complete a modest 15-of-25 passes for 140 yards. Diego Pavia, with experience from 8 starts, accounted for 18 touchdowns from 916 passing and 449 rushing yards in spring. Fall's second-leading rusher, Mason Myers, accounted 75 on the ground last week against Maricopa. NMMI's third-leading rusher in spring, Tyrique Thompson, gained 280.
BOWLING TEAM: Betcha didn't know NMMI had a post-season bowl game last spring. Thompson was the Offensive MVP at The Graphics Edge Bowl on May 30 when the 10th ranked Iowa Central Tritons edged the No. 9 Broncos 23-21 in Fort Dodge, Ia. Thompson gained 66 yards on the ground and caught three passes for 26 yards. Pavia completed 15-of-23 for 190 yards and added 29 rushing yards.
WORLDWIDE RECRUITING: NMMI's roster includes players from 16 states (New Mexico, Texas, Michigan, Idaho, Florida, Georgia, Arizona, Washington, Hawaii, Kansas, Nebraska, Tennessee, New Jersey, Utah and Alabama) plus four players from the unincorporated US territory of American Samoa, as well as representation from eight countries (Austria, Australia, Canada, England, Germany, Italy, New Zealand and Norway). The state most represented on NMMI's roster? New Mexico with 21; Texas, with 13.
KEY TEAM STATS: NC is fourth in rushing (497 yards), and seventh in passing (518), third in total offense (1015) and first downs (46) and fourth in per-game yardage (507.5). The Bulldogs are tied for fifth in touchdowns scored (13) and conversion kicks (120), sixth in scoring (92), eighth in per-game scoring (46).
KEY PLAYERS: NC – QB Qua Gray, RB Isaiah Robinson, WR Louis Moore, WR Quentin Lee, WR-KR Jeremiah Aaron, G Kamon Bradford, C Jawuan Singletary, DE Khalil White, DE Kenneth Ellison, DT Mike Sandjo-Nijiki, LB Nickalous McGrew, CB Tyrecus Davis, CB C.J. Bosket, FS Skylon Johnson, K Alexis Lopez. NMMI – QB Diego Pavia, QB Mason Myers, RB Anthony Grant, RB Jordan Bolden, RB Tyrique Thompson, WR-PR Terrance Moore, WR Jaylin Smith, KR Malik Phillips, PK William Testa
KEY NJCAA STATISTICS: NC – Isaiah Robinson ranks first in carries (47), second in rushing touchdowns (4), third in rush yardage per game (141), fourth in scoring (24 points) and sixth in all-purpose (144.5)….Qua Gray is tied for third in touchdown passes (6) and ninth in pass yardage per game (242)….Louis Moore is tied for fourth in touchdown receptions (3)….Ethan Harris is second in sacks (4)….Jeremiah Aaron is 10th in all-purpose yardage (137)….Kenneth Ellison is tied for 13th in tackles (11)….CJ Bosket shares the NJCAA lead in interceptions (2)….Layne O'Dell shares the NJCAA lead in fumble recoveries (2).
SWJCFC THIS WEEK: Northeastern Oklahoma A&M at Kilgore, 11 a.m.; NMMI at Navarro, 7 pm; Blinn at Cisco, 7 pm. (Non-Conference) TVCC at Southern-Shreveport, 7 pm; Rezolution Prep Academy at Tyler, 7 pm.
SWJCFC NEXT WEEK: Navarro at Northeastern Oklahoma A&M, 6 pm; Tyler at TVCC, 6 pm; Kilgore at NMMI, 6 pm. Blinn and Cisco have open dates.
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PROJECTED STARTING LINEUP
NAVARRO OFFENSE
54 OT – Phillip Houston
70 OG – Kamon Bradford
65 C -- Juwaun Singletary
72 OG – Donovan Ford
79 OT -- Elliott 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
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
37 SAM – Chatavies 'C.J.' Johnson
19 ROV – Tyrone Wilson
6 CB – Tyrecus Davis
15 CB – CJ Bosket
7 FS – Brandon Davis
-- SWJCFC Preview By Mike Montfort
