NJCAA Alumni set to play in Super Bowl LVIII
Charlotte, NC – Eight NJCAA football alumni will be a part of the action of Super Bowl LVIII in Las Vegas, NV, this Sunday, February 11, at 3:30 PM PST. The list of alumni consists of 7 players and one coach between the Kansas City Chiefs and the San Francisco 49ers.
| Name | Pos. | NJCAA Program | NCAA Program | NFL Team |
| Jody Fortson | TE | Erie (NY) | Valdosta State (GA) | Kansas City Chiefs |
| Andy Hill | Ast. Special Teams Coach | Hutchinson (KS) (OC and HC) | University of Missouri | Kansas City Chiefs |
| Randy Gregory | LB | Arizona Western | Univeristy of Nebraska-Lincoln | San Francisco 49ers |
| Danny Gray | WR | Blinn (TX) | Southern Methodist (TX) | San Francisco 49ers |
| Charvarius Ward | CB | Hinds (MS) | Middle Tennessee State | San Francisco 49ers |
| Javon Kinlaw | DT | Jones (MS) | University of South Carolina | San Francisco 49ers |
| Ji'Ayir Brown | S | Lackawanna (PA) | Penn State (PA) | San Francisco 49ers |
| Darrell Luter Jr. | CB | Pearl River (MS) | South Alabama | San Francisco 49ers |
After one season at Erie Community College (NY), Jody Fortson went on to continue his football career at Valdosta State where he won an NCAA Division II National Championship. During his time at Valdosta, he garnered 37 receptions for 477 yards and seven touchdowns in a total of 19 games played. In his senior season, Fortson endured an injury that led to his season being cut short but was later chosen to play in both the Tropical Bowl and the College Gridiron Showcase. Fortson is a two-time Super Bowl Champion with the Chiefs.
Coaching on the sidelines for the Chiefs is former Hutchinson Community College (KS) head coach, Andy Hill. In his first head coaching position, Hill led the Blue Dragons to win the 1995 conference title. This was Hutchinson's first title win since 1969. After Hutchinson, he went on to coach at the University of Missouri for 18 seasons. With a coaching career spanning 30 years, Hill enters his fourth season as the assistant special teams coach for the Kansas City Chiefs.
Former Arizona Western student-athlete, Randy Gregory is currently in his first season with the 49ers. In his lone season with the Matadors, Gregory had 82 tackles, 21 tackles for loss, nine sacks, three forced fumbles, and two fumble recoveries and helped lead the Matadors to the 2011 National Championship game. After Arizona Western, he went on to continue his collegiate career at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln where he played for two seasons and was named first-team All-Big Ten and Defensive MVP his sophomore season. Gregory is in his sixth season overall in the NFL.
Danny Gray, 49ers wide receiver, began his collegiate career at Blinn College (TX). During his time at Blinn, Gray had 34 receptions for 699 yards, 13 touchdowns, and rushed for 159 yards. He also received first-team All-Southwest Junior College Football Conference honors. Gray continued his collegiate career at SMU from 2020-2021 where he was named first-team All-AAC before being selected in the 2022 NFL Draft by the 49ers.
Charvarius Ward played two seasons at Hinds Community College (MS) before transferring to Middle Tennessee State University. During his time with the Warriors, he collected 32 tackles, three interceptions, and one forced fumble. Ward was a Super Bowl Champion with the Kansas City Chiefs in 2020. He was named to the second-team All-pro in 2023 and is a 2023 Pro Bowler.
In his lone season at Jones College (MS), Javon Kinlaw was an NJCAA Second Team All-American with 25 tackles and three point five sacks on the season. Following his time at Jones, he went on to play for the University of South Carolina where he was first-team All-SEC. In 2020, Kinlaw was a first-round draft pick for the 49ers where is was a member of the PFWA All-Rookie team and is now in his fourth season with the team.
Ji'Ayir Brown played for two seasons at Lackawanna College (PA). He was first-team All-Conference and was the Northeast JC Football Conference Defensive Player of the Year. Brown concluded his collegiate career at Penn State where in his second season he had 73 tackles, six interceptions, and one touchdown. He was a two-time third-team All-Big Ten and the defensive MVP of the 2023 Rose Bowl. Brown is currently in his first season with the 49ers with a recorded 35 tackles, four passes defended, and two interceptions and was selected PFWA All-Rookie Team.
Darrell Luter Jr. played at Pearl River (MS) for two seasons where he recorded eight tackles his first season and had 19 tackles, broke up eight passes, and one interception. He received second-team All-Conference honors during his time at Pearl River. Transferring to South Alabama, Luter was named first-team All-Sun Belt and third-team All-Sun Belt in back-to-back seasons. In 2023, Luter was drafted by the 49ers and currently has a recorded seven tackles on the season.
