(Little Rock, AR) – Iowa Western won the NJCAA Championship Game against East Mississippi on Wednesday night 61-14. This is the third National Championship win for the Reivers and the first team to repeat as National Champions since 2017-18.
Looking at the stat leaders in the game, Iowa Western was led by Hunter Watson in the passing game as he went 17-26 for 205 yards. Watson also rushed for 108 yards on 14 carries for five total touchdowns. The Texas native was named the National Championship MVP in the game for his performance. Also rushing for 108 yards was Jonathan Humpal on 16 carries. LJ Fitzpatrick had six receptions for 91 yards alongside Latrell Bonner with five receptions for 65 yards. Bryant Williams also came in to add three receptions for 42 yards. The Reiver’s success was on the defensive side, as they shut out East Mississippi in the second and fourth quarters.
Leading in the game on the defensive side for Iowa Western in tackles was Ahmad Johnson with seven tackles and half a tackle for loss. Jaylen Pettus added on two sacks for a loss of 22 yards while Joe Hjelle and Capri Wilson both earned a sack each. Clev Lubin and Joshua Pierre-Louis each had five tackles while Lubin added on 1.5 tackles for loss. East Mississippi was halted to just 56 rushing yards on 30 carries in the game while passing for just 261 total yards in the game.
At halftime, the Reivers led by as much as 27-7, and the touchdown was given up on a 91-yard kickoff return by Jaylon York of East Mississippi. Head coach Scott Strohmeier has now won three National Championships as head coach of the Reivers. Iowa Western finishes the year with just one loss as they went 12-1 overall and outscored their opponents in the playoffs 108-21.