BRENHAM, Texas — Sparked by sophomore quarterback Daveon Boyd and a strong defensive performance, No. 6 Blinn College football (3-0, 2-0) remains undefeated after taking down Navarro College, 38-17, at Cub Stadium on Saturday night.
"Our team was prepared and everybody executed tonight at a high level," said Ryan Mahon, Blinn head coach. "Boyd delivered the ball well across the board and our defense was exceptional. This win was a complete team effort."
Boyd completed 26-of-39 passes for 339 yards and three touchdowns, while rushing the ball for 67 yards and one touchdown. Sophomore Carlos Grace led the running backs with 74 yards on 17 carries, while Devin McAdoo rushed for 72 yards on five carries. Sophomore Corey Smith led the receivers with 164 yards on seven receptions and sophomore Keric Wheatfall recorded 133 yards on 11 receptions. Tuciano Pope, Mike Garrett Jr., and Darius Milton each came up with interceptions to help put the ball back into the offense's hands.
On defense, Pope totaled 10 tackles to lead Blinn, while Djuan Matthews led the Buccaneers with 1.5 sacks for a loss of 11 yards and recorded three quarterback hurries.
"We knew it was going to be a touch match-up, but we practiced hard and it all paid off tonight," Wheatfall said.
The Buccaneers jumped out to a 7-0 lead after Boyd rushed the ball in from the 13-yard-line for the only touchdown scored in the opening quarter. After securing the lead with 3:19 left in the first quarter, Blinn managed to hold onto it for the remainder of the game.
With 10:57 left until the half, the Buccaneers extended their lead to 14-0 after Boyd connected with Rhett Read with a nine-yard pass into the end zone.
Navarro scored its first points in the half with a field goal with 7:41 showing on the clock in the second quarter to trail 14-3.
Devin McAdoo scampered in a touchdown from 57-yards out for the Buccaneers to secure a 21-3 lead with 6:44 left until the half.
The Bulldogs scored their first touchdown in the final two minutes of the first half, but the Buccaneers managed to answer back with 2.6 seconds left as Boyd threw a two-yard pass to Corey Henderson for a 28-10 halftime score.
Navarro came into the third quarter with momentum and scored the first touchdown of the second half with 8:04 on the clock to gain on Blinn 28-17. However, within two minutes Boyd threw a 72-yard pass to Smith into the end zone for the Buccaneers to lead 35-17.
Blinn's Emerson Garcia scored the only points in the final quarter with a 24-yard field goal with 13:54 left. Defense held down Navarro for the remainder of the game for a 38-17 final.
"It feels good to see our defense play so well against Navarro's powerhouse offense," sophomore defensive tackle Matthews said. "We are just planning on getting better on defense each week."
Blinn has competed in intercollegiate athletics since 1903 and captured 38 NJCAA national championships since 1987.
