NJCAA Football Championship Game Back at Citizen's Bank Bowl in Pittsburg

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Dec. 2, 2010
Contact: Mark Krug, NJCAA Director of Media Relations &
Assistant Executive Director
p: 719-590-9788
f: 719-590-7324
e: mkrug@njcaa.org
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NJCAA Football Championship Game Back at Citizen's Bank Bowl in Pittsburg

No. 1 Butler Faces No. 2 Navarro Sunday, Dec. 5^th - Watch Live on NJCAA TV and PSB LIVE; Listen Live on ESPN Radio 99.1

Story by Fort Scott Community College Sports Information/ Citizen's Bank Bowl Committee
Additional info courtesy of Navarro College, Butler Community College and NJCAA National Office

PITTSBURG, Kan. -- The 11-0 and No.1-ranked Grizzlies from Butler Community College (Kan.) will square off against No. 2 and once-beaten Navarro College (Texas) Bulldogs in the 2010 Citizen's Bank Bowl Sunday at Carnie Smith Stadium on Sunday, Dec. 5^th. The game has been sanctioned as the NJCAA Football Championship and is set for a 1 p.m. kickoff. 

Ticket and other information can be found at www.citizensbankbowl.com. The game can be seen live on Sunday at www.njcaa.org/tv or www.psblive.com. Live audio of the contest can be heard at www.991espn.com.

In only its second year of existence, the Citizen's Bank Bowl will again be the main focus when it comes to deciding the NJCAA National Champion. In 2009, the inaugural Citizen's Bank Bowl pitted then-No. 1 Fort Scott Community College (Kan.) against No. 2 Blinn College (Kan.), Blinn came away with a 31-26 come from behind victory on a last-second punt return for the go-ahead touchdown.

In the 2009 championship game, Blinn was led by quarterback Cameron Newton, who is now the quarterback for Auburn, which is the No. 1 team in this week's BCS standings. Newton is considered the Heisman Trophy frontrunner this year, but he is not the only stand-out in last year's game who is making an impact at the next level.

Fort Scott linebacker LaVonte David, who was named Defensive Player of the Game in last year's Citizens Bank Bowl, is the leading tackler at Nebraska, this year's Big 12 Conference North Division champion. He was recently named the Big 12 Newcomer of the Year.

Using the Citizen's Bank Bowl as their springboard, more than 50 players from both Fort Scott and Blinn went on to pursue their athletic and academic careers at four-year institutions. Eight of those players are making impacts for Division I top-25 schools.

Butler and Navarro are not strangers to each other. The Grizzlies (11-0) gave the Bulldogs (10-1) their lone loss of the 2010 season, beating Navarro in week one in Wichita, 16-10.

Navarro won 10 straight since then, climbing back to the second spot in the NJCAA Football Top 20 three weeks ago. Butler has held the top spot in the rankings for the last seven weeks.

Butler will be playing for its third national championship in four seasons, capturing titles in 2007 and 2008. Navarro will be playing for its first national title since its 1989 championship season.

Butler has put up 444 points as a team while only allowing 105. Navarro has put 391 points on the board while giving up 153.

Butler is ranked ninth in the country in rush defense while Navarro is ranked tenth. Both teams are giving up just around 81 yards to their opponents on the ground per game.

Quarterback Zach Mettenberger (6' 5", 245, Soph.) leads a Grizzly passing attack that is eleventh in the country with 230 yards per game. Mettenberger, the Jayhawk Conference Offensive Player of the Year, completed 59 percent of his passes for 2,512 yards and 31 touchdowns. Mettenberger is being recruited by several BCS schools.

Mettenberger's main weapon is wide-out Marcus Kennard. Kennard (6' 4", 185, Soph.) is the second-highest rated junior college wide receiver and has already committed to Kansas State.

Defensively, the Grizzlies are led by defensive end Cornellius Carradine (6' 5", 245), who is a force to be reckoned with on the defensive side of the ball. Carradine, recruited heavily by several Southeastern Conference and Big 12 schools, has tallied 109 tackles and 16 sacks during the 2010 campaign.

Butler ranks eighth in the country defensively giving up 207 yards to their opponents.

Navarro leans on an offensive line that has already had four members commit with Division I programs to lead the way for an offensive attack that averages 360 yards per game. The Bulldogs have averaged 187 yards on the ground and 173 through the air.

Bulldog quarterback Roddy Green is a dual threat having passed for 1,405 yards and 14 touchdowns while also scoring seven rushing touchdowns. DePaul Garrett is Navarro's leading rusher with 819 yards and nine TD's.

Defensively, Blake Cavil leads the Bulldog offense with 70 tackles while Toby Jackson has a team-best 7.5 sacks. The Bulldog secondary is highlighted by DJ Hayden who has four of the team's 20 interceptions on the season.

Check out the pregame notes further below for more on Butler and Navarro.  

FIVE OTHER NJCAA BOWL GAMES TAKE PLACE DEC. 4TH-5TH

The 2010 NJCAA footballs season comes to a close with five other bowl games taking place this weekend across the country.

Four bowl games will take place on Saturday, Dec. 4^th. In Sandy, Utah No. 6 Iowa Western Community College (9-1) will take on No. 13 Snow College, Utah (9-2) in the seventh edition of the ZIONS Bank Top of the Mountains Bowl. For the third straight season the game will be held at Rio Tinto Stadium, which is home to the Real Salt Lake Soccer Club of Major League Soccer (MLS). The Reivers of Iowa Western had an unbelievable showing in just their second season of NJCAA football. IWCC captured the Midwest Football Conference - West Division regular season championship and was ranked in the top five of the NJCAA poll for eight weeks. The Snow Badgers will be playing in their eighth consecutive bowl game and their seventh in the Top of the Mountains Bowl. Snow claimed a share of the Western States Football League crown with a 7-1 mark in the league, marking the fifth straight season the Badgers have won or shared the league title. The game can be heard live at www.snowbadgers.com.

In the second edition of the Central Bank Salt City Bowl No. 10 Hutchinson Community College, Kan. (9-2) will host No. 17Eastern Arizona College (8-3) at Gowans Stadium in Hutchinson. The Blue Dragons were runner-up in both the Kansas Jayhawk CC Conference regular season and the Region 6 playoffs. Both of their losses came against top-ranked Butler. Hutchinson will be making its fourth bowl appearance since 2003. The Gila Monsters finished third in the Western States Football League behind No. 4 Arizona Western and No. 13 Snow. EAC has won eight or more games the past four seasons and will be appearing in their first bowl game since representing the United States in 2007 at the Chihuahua Bowl in Chihuahua, Mexico. For additional information and live webcast of the Salt City Bowl visit www.saltcitybowl.com.

Copperas Cove, Texas will host No. 4 Arizona Western College (10-1) and defending national champion No. 16 Blinn College, Texas (7-3) in the 10^th edition of the C.H.A.M.P.S. Heart of Texas Bowl. AWC won the Western States Football League for the second straight year and has been ranked in the top 10 nearly the entire season. The Matadors have one of the best offensive players in the NJCAA in running back Reggie Bullock. He leads all rushers with 1,707 yards and 19 touchdowns. Blinn looks to end 2010 on a high note after coming up short in defense of their 2009 national championship. The Bucs finished second in the regular season standings of the Southwest JC Football Conference. 

The oldest continuous NJCAA football bowl game, The Valley of the Sun Bowl, will feature the Gauchos of Glendale Community College, Ariz. (6-4) for the second consecutive year. The No. 19 Gauchos will take on No. 15 Central Lakes College, Minn. (10-1) at Matt O. Hanhila Stadium in Glendale in the 30^th edition of the event. The Raiders of Central Lakes won the Minnesota College Athletic Conference South Division title but then fell to rival Rochester (Minn.) in the league's championship game. Glendale got off to a 5-0 start and was ranked as high as No. 6 during the season. They clinched a berth in the Valley of the Sun Bowl with a fourth place finish in the Western States Football League, which was the highest finish among conference members from Maricopa County (Phoenix).  

Along with the Citizen's Bank Bowl, the Mississippi Bowl will take place Sunday, Dec. 5^th at Indian Stadium in Biloxi, Miss. The third annual event will feature No. 3 Grand Rapids Community College, Mich. (10-1) and No. 7 Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College (9-2). Over the past two seasons the Raiders of GRCC have twice won Midwest Football Conference - East Division championship and finished at No. 3 in the final NJCAA regular season rankings. Mississippi Gulf Coast clinched their third Mississippi Assn. of Community & Jr. Colleges Championship in the last four seasons with a decisive 31-17 win over Copiah-Lincoln (Miss.). The Bulldogs will be making their fifth straight bowl appearance and their second in the Mississippi Bowl (2008). Visit www.mississippibowl.com for more information. Fans can watch game online at www.psblive.com.

Results will be posted on the NJCAA Football Scoreboard when they become available. Scores are also updated on the scoreboard section of the JC Football.com Scoreboard Forum and www.jucoweekly.com. You will also be able to track down scores throughout the weekend the NJCAA's Facebook page.  

NJCAA FOOTBALL CHAMPIONSHIP PREGAME NOTES...

BUTLER COMMUNITY COLLEGE; Eldorado, Kan.
Mascot: Grizzlies
Record: 11-0
National Ranking: 1^st
2010 Kansas Jayhawk Community College Conference Champions
2010 Region 6 Playoff Champions
Won NJCAA Football Championships recently in 2007 and 2008.

2010 All-KJCCC/Region 6 honorees
Zach Mettenberger, Quarterback; KJCCC Offensive Player of the Year
Cornellius Carradine, Linebacker; KJCCC Defensive Player of the Year
First Team: Conner Combes, TE; Marcus Kennard, WR; Ryan Schraeder, T; Spencer Hilley, T; Lamar Mady G; Ben Fulghum, C; Dennell Wesley, DT; Victor Daniels, CB; Angelo Hadley, S
Second Team: Brett Soft, WR; Cody Mills, FB; Teyon Reese, S

Troy Morrell, Butler Head Coach

Morrell is currently 115-14 in 11 seasons at Butler, which ranks him third in wins among active NJCAA football coaches. He has led Butler to three national championships (2003, 2007, 2008). Here is some more info on Morrell http://grizzlies.butlercc.edu/football/morrell.cfm

Most Wins Among Active Football Coaches in the NJCAA
1. Gene Murphy, Hinds CC, Miss.                          18 years               141-51-5
2. Mark Duda, Lackawanna College, Pa.                17 years               121-60
3. Troy Morrell, Butler CC, Kan.                                      11 years                    115-14
4. Kevin Twait, Iowa Central CC                            15 years               114-44
5. Bert Williams, Georgia Military                          11 years               88-28

Postseason History
National Champions: 1981, 1998, 1999, 2003, 2007, 2008
2008: Zion Top of The Mountain Bowl
2007: Zion Top of The Mountain Bowl
2006: Dalton Defenders Bowl
2005: Zion Top of The Mountain Bowl
2004: Dalton Defenders Bowl
2003: Dixie Rotary Bowl
2002: Dixie Rotary Bowl
2001: Sea Island Co. Golden Isles Bowl
2000: Canon Empire State Bowl
1999: Dixie Rotary Bowl
1998: Real Dairy Bowl
1996: Valley of the Sun Bowl
1993: Mineral Water Bowl
1990: East Bowl
1989: Royal Crown Cola Bowl
1987: Texas Jr. College Bowl
1986: Dixie Rotary Bowl
1985: Valley of the Sun Bowl
1984: Garland Shrine Bowl
1983: Roaring Ranger Bowl
1981: Rodeo Bowl
1951: Coffey Bowl

Former Butler Players in the NFL since 1980
* currently active in NFL

Ryan Torain, Running Back, Washington Redskins
Torain has started four games for the Redskins and has 391 yards and four touchdowns this year.

Shaun Smith, Defensive End, Kansas City Chiefs
Smith has started five games for the Chiefs and has tallied 38 tackles and a sack this season.

Jeremy Mincey, Defensive End, Jacksonville Jaguars
Mincey has started three games and played in 10 for Jacksonville this year. He has 12 tackles on the season.

Elbert Mack, Defensive Back, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Mack has played in seven games with the Bucs in 2010 and 10 tackles this year.

NAVARRO COLLEGE; Corsicana, Texas
Mascot: Bulldogs
Record: 10-1
National Ranking: 2^nd
2010 Southwest JC Football Conference Champions

2010 All-Southwest JC Football Conference honorees
First Team: Nick Johnson, OL; Toby Jackson, DL
Second Team: Roddy Green, QB; Chase Harper, TE; Cameron Henderson, DL; Blake Cavil, LB; D.J. Hayden, CB; Juve Sanchez, K

Nick Bobeck, Navarro Head Coach

In just three seasons, Bobeck has led Navarro to a 31-3 record and three consecutive Southwest JC Football Conference regular season championships.  In his first season, he was named the 2008 NJCAA Football Coach of the Year after leading the Bulldogs to a 10-1 season mark.  In 2009, the Bulldogs finished the season 11-1 and were champions of the Heart of Texas Bowl.  In his first two years, Bobeck has coached five All-Americans and 16 All Conference performers. Here is more on Bobeck: http://www.navarrocollege.edu/athletics.php?sport=Football&id=55

Postseason History
National Champions: 1989
1999: Red River Bowl
2001: Heart of Texas Bowl
2007: Pilgrim's Pride Bowl Champions
2009: Heart of Texas Bowl Champions

Former Navarro Players in the NFL since 1980
* currently active in NFL

J'Marcus Webb, Offensive Lineman, Chicago Bears
Webb has started 7 games this season for the Bears.

Pat Williams, Defensive Tackle, Minnesota Vikings
Has started all 11 games for the Vikings and has 22 tackles and a forced fumble.