Community Christian (Detroit) Earns First NJCAA Win in Program History with Dominant Showing

In a season where nothing seemed certain for Community Christian College (1-2), one thing stood out on Saturday afternoon. These Lions won't go down easy. In fact, if you rile them up enough, they won't go down at all.

In a must-win situation for CCC against cross-state rival Hocking College (0-2), they showed up and showed out with a dominant 28-8 victory to earn their first official NJCAA win in program history.

Against ranked opponents the past two weeks, the Lions struggled to run the ball. They learned from their mistakes in those games, as they pushed the line of scrimmage consistently throughout the contest. Mekhi Hunt started at Quarterback and led the team in rushing, followed by Jo'Vaughn Smith who made his first start at Running Back. They managed to get into the red zone on their first two possessions, getting stalled on their first. On their second possession, they scored on 3rd & Goal on a screen pass to Trey West, who muscled his way through two defenders for the first touchdown of the day. Special Teams struggles kept the score at 6-0, but what followed is something that I'm not sure I'll ever see again in a football game.

On the following kickoff, Marcellus Hunt kicked it low, straight into the chest of a Hocking player that just happened to be directly in front of him. The ball bounced back towards the Lions, and since the Hawks already touched the ball, it was live for the Lions to fall on top of, and gain possession after scoring just seconds earlier. If there were ever a cheat code in JUCO football, this may be it.

The offense took advantage of the free possession, scoring just a minute later on a QB misdirection, in which Hunt was able to run on the near sideline for a 35-yard touchdown to take firm control of the game. The Lions led 12-0 going into the half.

At the start of the 3rd quarter, Community Christian was able to force a turnover on downs in the red zone, which gave them possession inside their own 20-yard line. A few plays later, Hocking College was able to force their own turnover with a strip sack by Robert Sanders, giving Hocking a huge momentum boost with 1st and Goal at the 8. After 3 unsuccessful runs, Hocking QB Issa Tchari elected to throw a screen pass on 4th down, which went straight through the receiver's hands and into the mitts of starting Safety, Ralph Gaston. Gaston used those bright green cleats to catch a burst of speed, taking that one back to the house for a 95-yard Pick Six. Gaston's been praised by many players and HC Jeff Reardon as the leader of the defense, and he got his due with the biggest play of the season for CCC. Xavier Smith took an end around handoff to get the 2-point conversion, Lions led 20-0 late into the 3rd quarter.

As Community Christian gained possession again early in the 4th quarter, they decided to unleash the 235-lb machine known as Sean Russaw. Every time he received a handoff, it took at least 3 Hawks to bring him down, and he had his fair share of yards after contact on most carries. As they pushed towards the goal line, it only made sense to give it to the bowling ball and let him roll into the endzone for another six. Hunt took a keeper in himself on the 2-point attempt to extend the lead to 28-0 with 12 left to go.

The Lions would hold onto the shutout until less than 2 minutes remaining, as a bobbled punt allowed Hocking to gain possession inside the 20. Jahnille Jones scored on a 2-yard rush just a few plays later, followed by a beautiful throw-and-catch from Tchari to their top wideout Zion McIntosh.

Several Lions had great defensive performances, including Davon Jackson, who blew up plays consistently and racked up the most tackles on Saturday. Ray Pritchett has solidified himself as the best edge rusher with 2 sacks on Tchari, and Treveyon Brown led the team in pass deflections. I could write about many other players on this defense, which goes to show the incredible work Defensive Coordinator Jerrell Allen has done to get his side ready for matchups like this.

Your Lions will take on the #1 team in Division III next week on the road at the College of DuPage, this Saturday at 4pm EST. Their next home game will be in Week 6, on September 28th vs Garden City, another nationally renowned JUCO program. We'll have full coverage of every game with a write up on ccclions.com, and home game broadcasts at youtube.com/@CCCLions, as they look to make this the first of many wins this season.