By MIKE MONTFORT

A total of 13 Navarro Bulldogs earned All-Southwest Junior College Football Conference post-season honors when the mythical squad was revealed after Saturday's league championship game.

Navarro landed five players each on the first- and second-teams, plus three honorable-mention selections, chosen by the league's head coaches.  Heading into Week 12, the five first-teamers ranked at or near the top of many NJCAA individual statistical categories. 

Quarterback Qua Gray, the NJCAA pass yardage (2812) and yards per game (312.4) leader, completed 56.5 percent of his passes (177-of-313) with 19 touchdowns.  Gray threw for 521 yards against NMMI -- NC's third-highest, single-game pass yardage total.  The 6-2, 216-pound sophomore threw two or more touchdown passes in six Navarro games this season, including 4-TD games against Tyler and Trinity Valley. With only a 15-game Navarro career, Gray finishes fourth all-time in completions (249), attempts (437), pass yards (3612) and eighth in TD passes (24).  Gray wrapped up his Texas high school career 12th all-time in pass yardage (10,683) and 10th in 125 touchdown passes for Lubbock Coronado High School, playing under coach Seth Parr, the brother of Navarro's Scott Parr.  Gray's uncle is former NFL player Jerry Gray, now defensive backs coach and passing game coordinator for the Green Bay Packers.

Wide receiver Jeremiah Aaron, the NJCAA leader in all-purpose yardage (1667) and per-game reception (94.0) yardage, claimed All-SWJCFC honors with 45 catches, 846 yards and seven scores.  Averaging 18.8 yards per catch, Aaron set a Navarro single-game record with 276 yards from 10 catches against league champion NMMI.  Aaron had four scoring pass plays of 60 yards or more this season, topped by 96-yarders from Gray against NMMI and Trinity Valley.   Aaron developed into a double-edged weapon for NC, accounting for 821 yards in returns.  The 6-1, 176-pounder earned second-team all-conference honors as a returner with 677 yards from 26 kickoffs (26.0 per) and 144 yards from seven punts (20.6). He joined freshman Adonis Scott in creating a lethal kick-return tandem that amassed an NJCAA-best 1175 yards.

Fellow sophomore Karl Reynolds, one of five Navarro receivers with 24 or more catches, shared the NJCAA leadership for touchdown receptions (10) in 2021. Finishing strong, Reynolds (32-617-10) caught eight TD passes among his final 20 receptions of the regular season.  The Houston Nimitz product caught four touchdown passes against Blinn. 

NJCAA First-Team All-American placekicker Alexis Lopez produced 75 kick-scoring points with 13-of-16 field goals and a perfect 36 conversions.  Lopez, with 126 points over his two-year career, is 20-of-23 on field goals (Long: 46), with 66-of-67 conversions. 

Saluda, SC, cornerback C.J. Bosket shared fourth place nationally among interceptors this season with five, plus128 return yards for the Bulldogs. Returns of 41 yards against Tyler and 87 against TVCC went for touchdowns. 

Second-team All-SWJCFC accolades went to two offensive linemen -- left guard Kamon Bradford and center Juwaun Singletary -- perhaps the heart and soul of Navarro's steamrolling line success, paving the way to 40.8 points, 504 yards offense, 174 yards rushing and 330 passing yards per game.  Joining them were two sophomores who made deep cuts into Navarro football records,  wide receiver Quentin Lee and running back Isaiah Robinson.

Lee finishes his career as one of four Bulldogs receivers to catch more than 100 passes here.  Robinson, meanwhile became Navarro's career leader in carries, currently ranks second in rushing yardage, and stands third in rushing touchdowns.

Three other Bulldogs -- offensive lineman Elijah Bowser, linebacker Nate Maulsby and freshman deep snapper Jayden Nicholls -- received honorable mention all-conference plaudits. 

The Bulldogs missed the SWJCFC playoffs for a second straight season, but closed the 2021 campaign on a three-game winning streak.