Texas Bound Again! Blue Dragons Blank Northwest Mississippi in NJCAA Semifinal

By Chris Lachenmaier
Sports Editor
IG: @chrissylach

The Hutchinson Community College Blue Dragons are headed back to the NJCAA National Championship for a second year in a row. 

The Blue Dragons beat Northwest Mississippi 27-0 on Saturday at Gowans Stadium in the NJCAA semifinals. They are set to play at 6 p.m. Dec. 17 in Canyon, Texas.  

The Blue Dragons held another opponent to zero points with their defense. Kevin Moorer, a sophomore defensive lineman, led the defense with two quarterback sacks.

“Both sides of the ball, we came out, and our coach kept preaching, ‘knock back, knock back,’” Moorer said. “You practice hard, you play hard, as simple as that.”

The chilly evening did not faze the Blue Dragons.

“It’s football, it’s gonna be hot, it’s gonna be cold, but stuff like that can’t faze you,” Moorer said. “This is the best team to come through here. Not the best defense, the best offense, this is the best team.”

Sophomore quarterback Christian Johnson looks to return to Texas for another national championship. Last season, he came off the bench and delivered the go-ahead touchdown pass.

Saturday, Johnson ran for 103 yards and a touchdown, and threw for 223 yards and one touchdown. Yet, Johnson credited the defense.

“Defense played one hell of a game. Receivers were there and made plays when they needed to,” Johnson said. “ I’m just there to deliver and do what my coach tells me. I’m just out there having fun, man.”

The cold week did not stop Johnson from putting in the work during the week.

“This week it’s been freezing. I’m not a real big talker, so this week I was running, jumping around as hard as I can, to try and bring the energy to practice and get everybody focused,” Johnson said. “I do believe it helped this week. It made everybody geeked up on gameday and we just tuned into everything we needed to this week. Coach Dallas was hounding us a little bit because it was cold. It can deter people’s mindsets and how they attack each rep, but you know, he kept everybody going.”

Blue Dragons coach Drew Dallas is on to another championship game with the Blue Dragons. He led the Blue Dragons to their only national championships, in the Covid-delayed spring season of 2021, and in 2025. The Blue Dragons also lost in the 2022 championship game.

“We took each drive as its own separate life, and we just kept making sure that we were going out and executing at a high level,” Dallas said. “These guys, they work very hard, and they play for one another. They have good communication on the back and in the front, they are prepared, and they work throughout the week.”

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