KC Rangers picked first, third in preseason polls

Published 4:37 pm Thursday, July 24, 2025

BULLARD – Southwest Junior College Football Conference coaches and the media that covers the conference were in agreement with the top four teams in the league on Thursday, but the order of finish was another story.

The league, with teams based in Kilgore (Kilgore College), Tyler (Tyler Junior College), Athens (Trinity Valley Community College), Corsicana (Navarro College), Brenham (Blinn College), Cisco (Cisco College), Miami, Oklahoma (Northeastern Oklahoma) and Roswell, New Mexico (New Mexico Military Institute) held its annual Media Day at Eagles Bluff on Thursday.

Kilgore was picked to win the conference by the media, and the Rangers were picked third by the coaches. Navarro was the top pick by the coaches, and the Bulldogs were the No. 2 selection by the media.

Tyler (second by coaches, fourth by media) and Trinity Valley (fourth by media and third by coaches) were the other top picks. The top four teams make the playoffs at the end of the regular season.

Kilgore College head coach Willie Gooden, who has carved out a 44-18 record since taking over the program in 2019, was flattered by the high rankings in both polls but said he would have been OK regardless of the preseason rankings.

“To be honest, I like it when we’re picked last,” Gooden said. “That gives you a little chip on your shoulder and a little extra motivation. Still, it feels good to be appreciated and valued when you’re going against the best of the best. Bottom line though, you still have to go out and play the games each week.”

Picked behind Kilgore, Navarro, Trinity Valley and Tyler in the media poll were Blinn, NMMI, Cisco and NEO. The predicted finish behind Navarro, Tyler, Kilgore and Trinity Valley in the coaches poll was Cisco, NMMI, Blinn and NEO.

Kilgore finished 6-4 overall and 4-4 in conference play last season.

“It didn’t go as well as we wanted last season,” Gooden said of the 2024 campaign. “It wasn’t terrible, but we failed to meet our expectations. We’re returning 29 guys who cut their teeth in 2024, and they will lead the charge in 2025. We have a nice mix of transfers, and we signed a high-quality freshman class that is going to push the envelope right away.”

Returning lettermen for KC on offense include tight ends Jordan Brown and Chris Bowman, linemen Jacoby Burns, Damian Martinez, Chris Sellers, Marcus Smith, Chayse Tapp and La’Rayvion Wright, quarterback Jahrik Jones, receiver Devontae Mozee, athlete Luke McMullen and kicker/punter Anthony Monsivais.

Jones completed 11 of 13 passes for 252 yards and four touchdowns in KC’s spring game back in April. In all, Jones and Brian Bachman threw TD passes for five different receivers covering 9, 80, 79, 11 and 55 yards.

McMullen rushed for 56 yards on nine carries, and Mozee had three catches for 31 yards.

Returning lettermen on defense are backs Elijah Blue, Trace Emola and Imauree Holmes, linemen Kareem Edmon, Marquice Hill, Hope Tita and Kivon Wright and linebackers Drew DeArmon, Scott Koumado, Deiontae Marry, Kevin Pierce, Remington Roberts, Chase Smith, John Walsh and Josh Williams.

In the spring game, the KC defense produced eight sacks, nine 3-and-outs and a turnover.

After opening the season at home on Aug. 30 against Community Christian and then opening SWJCFC play at NMMI on Sept. 13, the Rangers will host Navarro on Sept. 20, visit Cisco on Sept. 27, host Community Christian on Oct. 4 (Hall of Fame Game), host Trinity Valley on Oct. 18, host Tyler on Oct. 25, visit Blinn on Nov. 1 and host NEO on Nov. 8 (Homecoming).

NOTES

Former Longview Lobo Willie Nelson will suit up for Tyler Junior College this season. Nelson, who had more than 200 tackles and 19 interceptions in three seasons at Longview, signed with Oklahoma State out of high school. He redshirted with the Cowboys as a freshman, and never saw the field in Stillwater … With New Mexico Military Institute’s Oliver Soukup and Cisco’s Charlie Rizzo entering their second seasons at those schools, all eight of the teams in the conference have returning head coaches. Soukup and Rizzo are joined by Gooden at Kilgore College, Tanner Jacobson at Tyler, Zach Crissup at Northeastern Oklahoma, Ryan Mahon at Blinn, Sherard Poteet at Trinity Valley and Ryan Taylor at Navarro … The 2025 season will open for the conference on Saturday, Aug. 23 when Trinity Valley visits Independence, Kansas and Tyler hosts Dodge City. New Mexico Military Institute, Kilgore, Navarro and Blinn will all open the season at home on Aug. 30 with NMMI and Kilgore hosting Community Christian (that program has 3 teams), Navarro hosts Papago and Blinn hosts Transformation With Athletics … Cisco will not open its season until Sept. 6 at Coffeyville, Kansas … The first week of conference play is set for Sept. 13 when Kilgore visits New Mexico Military, Tyler visits Trinity Valley and Navarro travels to NEO.