By Steve Carpenter
Hutchinson CC Sports Information Director

The past two seasons have been extraordinary for the Hutchinson Community College Blue Dragon football team.

Within a nine-month span, the Blue Dragons captured three championships - the 2020-21 KJCCC and NJCAA national championship and 2021 Jayhawk Conference playoff championship.

Over that time, the Blue Dragons won 17 of 19 games and enter the 2022 season riding a six-game winning streak.

For third-year Blue Dragon head coach Drew Dallas, that high level of success has turned into a benchmark for his program.

"The returners have been through a successful season and they know what the expectation is," Dallas said. "Now what we do is not just an expectation, but it's a standard. This is what we do and how we do it. This is now the baseline of what we do."

The preseason No. 3-ranked Blue Dragons open the 2022 season on Saturday against No. 13 Navarro at 1 p.m. at Gowans Stadium.

The 2021 Blue Dragons had a slow start, going just 3-2. Hutchinson then caught fire with six-straight wins, including outscoring three KJCCC playoff opponents 168-19 and rolling up 707 total yards on a 66-34 Salt City Bowl win over No. 8 Hinds last December.

For the first time in Dallas' three seasons at the helm, the Blue Dragons had a normal off-season.

Remember, from the time Hutchinson captured the 2020-21 national championship to the opening night of the 2021 season, the returning Blue Dragon players and the coaches had only six weeks in between seasons.

"From a mental refresher standpoint, getting back to what we know is normal is a big thing," Dallas said of having a full spring and summer routine of rest, spring ball and summer workouts.

"Getting a full off-season was big for us. There were a lot of big strides made in the weight room and summer conditioning and the skill-set development we got there has been big, too."

Looking forward to the 2022, the Blue Dragons have 11 total starters (5 offense, 4 defense, 2 special teams) returning from last year's 9-2 team that tied for third in the Jayhawk Conference, but impressively swept through the KJCCC playoffs and Salt City Bowl.

Offensively, all eyes will be on what became a dynamic duo in quarterback Dylan Laible and big-play receiver Malik Benson.

"Malik and Dylan know each other well," Dallas said. "They work well together and the connection they had continued to grow throughout the course of the season. Having a player like Malik on the edge, there is always a chance for an explosive play. Dylan is a strong-armed quarterback. Those two things go hand-in-hand."

Last season, Laible threw for the third-best single season in Blue Dragon history with 2,861 yards and tied for the second-most touchdown passes with 32.

Benson, a University of Alabama commit, had a single-season record 1,229 receiving yards with nine touchdowns.

Laible and Benson linked up for the fifth-longest (87) and ninth-longest (82) passes from scrimmage in single-game history last season.

2021 OFFENSE
Despite some sluggish moments early in the 2021 season, the Blue Dragons still averaged 40.3 points and 461.3 total yards per game last season.

Led by 2021 KJCCC Offensive Player of the Year Anwar Lewis, the Blue Dragons averaged 182.9 rushing yards per game with 23 touchdowns. Hutchinson passed for 278.4 yards per contest, the second-highest average in team history.

The 2021 Dragons were lethal inside the red zone, scoring 77.6 percent of the time. That number climbed to 88.9 percent (24 of 27) during the six-game win streak.

2021 DEFENSE
With back-to-back shutouts in the playoffs, the 2021 Blue Dragon defense allowed just 17.5 points per game.

The Dragons allowed 292.7 total yards - 104.5 yards on the ground and 188.3 yards through the air.

The Blue Dragons did force 21 takeaways and produced 48 quarterback sacks last season.

The Dragons were solid in the red zone, allowing scores 53 percent of the time and only nine touchdowns were relinquished in 30 red zone situations.

QUARTERBACKS
With two seasons experience, Laible (6-5, 190, Little Elm, TX) will pull the trigger on the Blue Dragon offense.

Laible completed 158 of 282 passes for 2,861 yards with 32 touchdowns last season. Laible has 15 starts in his Blue Dragon career.

"Dylan has a lot of starts under his belt and he has played in some big games for us," Dallas said. "He's had his ups and downs, too. He's made tremendous strides and he's come a long way since he's been here."

Collin Shields (6-1, 200, Maize South) also returns. Shields, in limited duty, completed 7 of 10 passes for 72 yards with a touchdown.

RUNNING BACKS
The Blue Dragons will have to replace a 1,000-yard rusher in Lewis and Tye Edwards – he was the MVP of both the NJCAA Championship Game and the 2021 Salt City Bowl. Those two players combined for 1,536 yards and 15 touchdowns last season.

Still, the Blue Dragons return four running backs and all have seen solid playing time.

Dylan Kedzior (6-0, 207, Claremore, OK), like Laible is a third-year sophomore who played on the national championship team. Kedzior has 18 games played as a Blue Dragons with 353 career yards and three touchdowns.

Jaheim Simmons (5-9, 192, Pensacola, FL) played in 10 games, but saw significant duty late in the season. Simmons racked up 197 yards on 47 carries and scored five touchdowns.

"Fortunately we have four guys coming back who have playing time," Dallas said. "That's going to help us."

RECEIVERS/TIGHT END
Three starters and five letter winners return to this position group.

With the likelihood that Benson will see a lot of blanket coverage, there is an opportunity for another Blue Dragon receiver to have a breakout season.

Micah Woods (6-0, 182, Pinson, AL) started last season and had 17 receptions for 238 yards and three touchdowns.

Marcello Bussey (6-2, 230, Junction City) had six catches for 69 yards and two touchdowns.

Also look for redshirts Darby Roper (5-10, 172, Haven) and Tariq Logan (5-11, 174, Coffeyville) to be in the mix this season.

"People are going to know who Malik Benson is when we step on the field each Saturday," Dallas said. "We will have to find ways to keep him involved, but he should be able to open things up for others.

"We have a good group of guys in the receivers' room who are capable to making big plays."

As for the tight end/H-back position, two players return.

Jamauri Chislom (6-1, 283, Jackson Gap, AL) has just one reception in two years, but does the dirty work that made him a two-time first-team all-KJCCC selection.

Sloan Hayden (6-4, 240, Eudora, KS) had one reception for seven yards in seven games last season.

"I'm really excited to see what Jamauri will bring to us. He's a big, physical presence and continues to work hard in the weight room," Dallas said. "Sloan played a lot of reps last fall, but in the off-season, he's made one of the biggest improvements overall."

OFFENSIVE LINE
Last season, the Blue Dragons had six starters returning from the national championship team on the offensive line.

For the 2022 season, only all-conference selection Brandon Hall (6-3, 332, Ellenwood, GA) is the lone returning starter.

Hunter Barlow (6-3, 356, Haven HS) also played in 10 games on a deep offensive line last season.

Troy Porter (6-6, 300, Baton Rouge, LA) and Izaya Vimahi (6-5, 396, Kahuku, HI) also saw playing time last season.

Redshirts J'onre Reed (6-2, 315, Houston, TX) and Dez'Mond Schuster (6-5, 313, Gonzales, LA) will also be in the mix.

Over the last two seasons, the Blue Dragon offensive line has produced eight all-conference players, four All-Americans and 11 four-year linemen.

"I would like to use the term 'reload' because I think this group will pick right up where the last group left off," Dallas said. "Brandon Hall has played a ton of reps for up and we expect him to be a leader.

"I think the O-line could be a position of strength. We have a lot of good kids. We just have to find the right mix."

DEFENSIVE LINE
This position group was hit hardest by graduation from last season. No starters and only three letter winners return from a dominant group that constantly put pressure on opposing quarterbacks.

Third-year defensive tackle JaKobe Schofield (6-3, 284, Wagener, SC) has played in 16 games in his career and has shown flashes of being a dominant defensive tackle. He has 15 total tackles and 3.5 tackles for loss in his career.

"Losing Jalen Bass and Demeco Roland up there are big losses for us," Dallas said. "JaKobe needs to find the consistency. He has the skill set to be great, but he was still coming into his own physically. He's made big strides in the weight room and that's transitioned to the practice field."

Also returning on the interior is Stephen Matina (6-0, 354, Lansing, KS), who played in nine games last season and had four tackles with one sack.

Adam Lamar (6-3, 287, Macon, GA) and Xavier Stillman (6-3, 266, St. Joseph, MO) are redshirts returning who will battle for playing time.

Nikko Taylor (6-6, 237, Overland Park) is the only defensive end returning from last year. He played in all 11 games and had 17 tackles, 3.5 tackles for loss, one quarterback sack and one blocked kick.

"We have a lot of guys who will battle. Nikko saw a lot of reps last year. Again, we have to find the right combination."

Redshirts back for 2022 are Emmanuel Cannon (6-4, 230, Snellville, GA), Jaden Jones (6-6, 45, Montgomery, AL) and James Yelbert (6-5, 246, Wilmington, DE).

LINEBACKERS
The linebacker position group has the most returning starters with three starters and one other letter winner back.

Both Ja'Mez Drummer (6-2, 210, Stanford, FL) and R.J. Evans (6-2, 220, Hanceville, AL) had impactful seasons for the Blue Dragons in 2021, especially during the six-game winning streak. Both were all-KJCCC honorable mention selections.

Evans is a fourth-year sophomore who had 57 total tackles with 10 tackles for loss and three quarterback sacks, an interception and blocked kick. he also had eight quarterback hurries.

Drummer had 43 tackles with 6.5 tackles for loss and 5.0 quarterback sacks.

Terry Kirksey (6-3, 233, Theodore, AL) is the third returning starter. He had 22 tackles with an interception and two passes broken up.

"R.J. Evans is back for a fourth season after a redshirt year and covid year," Dallas said. "He was a tight end/H-back when he got here, but made the transition over. Last year was the first season, R.J. really felt comfortable at linebacker.

"We have good depth at linebacker."

DEFENSIVE BACKS
Dasheen Jackson (6-2, 197, Columbus, GA) is the lone returning starter in the secondary at safety. A third-year sophomore, Jackson has 31 tackles and three passes broken up.

Jalik Thomas (5-11, 195, Macon, GA) played a lot as a backup. The third-year sophomore had 27 tackles and six passes broken up at safety last season.

Terrente Hinton (6-3, 197, Saraland, AL), Philippe Manga (6-0, 197, Nickerson), Jaden Mosley (6-2, 2-7, Eightmile, AL), Monterio Smith (6-0, 186, Irondale, AL) and Will Wunderly (6-2, 172, Fort Scott) are all redshirts who are back.

"We have some really good depth back there. It's just going to take some time who it will be."

SPECIAL TEAMS
Ashton Ngo (6-0, 226, Andover) is already a highly sought long snapper who returns for the Blue Dragons.

Jalik Thomas has returned 14 kickoffs in his two-year Blue Dragon career. He averaged 24.9 yards per return and has a school-record 100-yard kickoff return to his credit.

Trevor Whiteman (6-2, 186, Udall, KS) was a backup punter last season. He averaged 34.3 yards per punt on 11 punts last season.

Placekickers will all be new in 2022.