Courtesy of NJCAA
Little Rock, AR - No. 2 Iowa Western defeats No. 4 East Mississippi 61-14 to win the 2023 NJCAA Football Division I National Championship game for the second straight season. The Reivers 61 points was the most scored in a national championship game since 2015, and second most all time.
The Reivers defense flexed there might, only allowing one offensive touchdown and forcing the Lions to punt eight times. Quarterback Hunter Watson led Iowa Western with 312 yards of total offense and 5 touchdowns. These efforts earned Watson the National Championship MVP.
Iowa Western took an early lead on a on a Hunter Watson pass to Bryant Williams to take a 6-0 lead.
The Lions fired right back, and Jaylon York weaved through the kickoff team to take it 91 yards and give East Mississippi a 7-6 lead.
A 10 play drive by the Reivers and Watson scoring on a QB Sneak to give Iowa Western the lead back. They would not surrender it for the remainder of the game.
Iowa Western scored 61 points on the game, which is the second most all-time in NJCAA Football National Championship Game history.
The Reivers outgained East Mississippi 553 to 317 yards. Iowa Western rushed for 335 yards on the game. Watson and Jonathan Humpal each rushed for 100+ yards and a combined 4 rushing touchdowns.
Lions quarterback Ty Keyes passed for 261 yards and a touchdown.
Iowa Western entered the NJCAA Football Playoffs as the No. 2 overall seed, with their only loss on the season coming to the No. 1 seed Hutchinson (KS).
The Reivers outscored the semifinal and championship game opponents by a 108-21 total.
This championship is Iowa Western’s second consecutive and third in school history.
The Lions entered the playoffs as the No. 4 seed and earned the final spot in the NJCAA DI Football Playoff. They went on the road and knocked off top-ranked and No. 1 Hutchinson in a thrilling game to earn there way to their first title game since 2018.
East Mississippi finishes the season with a 10-3 record. Wide Receiver Raymon Blackman finished the game with 4 catches for 76 yards and a touchdown.
Iowa Western Quarterback Hunter Watson was named the National Championship Game’s Most Valuable Player.
Watson finished 17/26 for 204 yards and three passing touchdowns. On the ground, Watson rushed 14 times for 108 yards and two touchdowns.