NO. 2 DRAGONS ROLL TO SEASON-OPENING VICTORY

Hutchinson CC Sports Information

CORSICANA, Texas – Tre Richardson scored three touchdowns three different ways as the No. 2-ranked Hutchinson Community College football team made a big Opening Night statement on Saturday night.

Richardson accounted for 268 all-purpose yards – the second highest total by a Blue Dragon in his debut in team history – to lead the Blue Dragons to a 42-6 victory over No. 11 Navarro College at Tiger Stadium.

The 1-0 Blue Dragons play at Gowans Stadium for the first time this season at 11 a.m. next Saturday when the Ellsworth Panthers come to Hutchinson for First Responders Day with the Blue Dragons. The Game will be the 900th played in program history.

Richardson's huge debut started with a 57-yard touchdown reception from Samari Collier with 1:36 to play in the second quarter. After a Navarro field goal midway through the third quarter, Richardson returned the ensuing kickoff 92 yards for a touchdown. He then had a 32-yard rushing touchdown early in the fourth quarter.

Richardson finished with three receptions for 93 yards and one rush for 32 yards. He added 113 kickoff-return yards and 30 punt-return yards to close with 268 all-purpose yards in his Blue Dragon debut. Only Roger Frazier, who had 370 all-purpose yards against Dodge City in his debut in 2005, had a better debut than Richardson.

The Blue Dragons out-gained Navarro 398-236. The Dragons rushed for 223 yards and passes for 175.

Collier, in his Blue Dragon debut, completed 12 of 16 passes for 160 yards and two touchdown. He added 55 rushing yards on eight carries.

Ed Williams III was Hutchinson's top rusher with 58 yards on 12 carries. Zeriah Beason caught five passes for 34 yards.

Blue Dragon All-American kicker Cole Segraves kicked six extra points to become just the 20th Blue Dragon player to score 100 or more career points. Segraves now has 101 career points scored.

Defensively, the Blue Dragons limited Navarro to 90 rushing yards and 146 passing yards. The Blue Dragons had 12 tackles for loss, four quarterback sacks and a 52-yard interception return for a touchdown by Jordan Scruggs in the fourth quarter. Malik McConico had six tackles to lead the Dragons.

After a scoreless opening quarter, the Bulldogs drove deep into Hutchinson territory all the way to the 4-yard line at the end of the quarter. After a false-start penalty against Navarro, Eric Acosta kicked a 31-yard field goal to give Navarro a 3-0 lead with 14:54 to play in the second quarter.

The Dragons to started to click offensively in the second quarter. After the Navarro field, goal, the Dragons went on a 14-play, 74-yard scoring drive which was capped off by Brandon Epton's 5-yard touchdown run. The Dragons led 7-3 with 9:17 to play in the second period. Richardson's 57-yard touchdown reception with 1:36 left in the half gave the Blue Dragons a 14-3 lead.

Navarro opened the third quarter on a 15-play drive that stalled at the Hutchinson 14 and Acosta kicked his second 31-yard field goal of the night and the Dragon lead was trimmed to 14-6. The Blue Dragons immediately answered with Richardson's 92-yard kickoff return for a touchdown and the Dragons led 21-6 with 7 minutes to play in the period.

That was the first kickoff return for a touchdown since Emmanuel Mann had an 83-yard kickoff return against Dodge City on May 16, 2021.

The Blue Dragons caught a break late in the third. Driving to the Navarro 15, Tristan Smith caught a Collier pass and fumbled at the 1. Oran Singleton recovered the ball in the end zone for a touchdown and a 28-6 lead.

The Blue Dragons scored two fourth-quarter touchdowns – Richardson's 32-yard rushing touchdown with 10:56 left and Scruggs' 52-yard interception return with 8:31 to play in the game.

GAME NOTES – The Blue Dragons are now 55-35-2 on Opening Night. … This was Hutchinson's third-straight win over Navarro. The Dragons now lead the all-time series with the Bulldogs, 3-2. … Head coach Drew Dallas is now 13-2 vs. nationally ranked teams, 26-0 when leading at halftime and 17-0 when holding an opponent to 10 points or less. … The 42 points scored tied a series high. … Tre Richardson is the first Blue Dragons with 200 or more all-purpose yards on a season opener since Jatavius Stewart had 230 yards against Coffeyville in 2012. … Jordan Scruggs' interception return for a touchdown was the first since Ja'Maric Morris had a 65-yard pick-six against Garden City last season.