Garden City Community College, Dodge City Community College, KJCCC football players earn Preseason All-America honors
Image courtesy of Garden City Community College Athletics.
GARDEN CITY, Kan. (Western Kansas News) – With the college football season just days away from being upon us, media attention across the country continues to ratchet up in scale and detail in anticipation of the 2025-26 season.
While one might think that the bulk of the attention is spent on the NCAA FBS teams, especially with local squads like Kansas State and Iowa State getting the NCAA season under way this coming Saturday in Dublin, Ireland, the NJCAA is turning its eyes to the top players in the country as well. JCGridiorn, the junior college/community college wing of the sports reporting agency, On3, released their NJCAA Preseason All-America 1st Team list on Monday, and the Jayhawk Conference saw a host of talent represented across the board.
Defending national champions and co-conference champions in the Hutchinson Blue Dragons stole the show with an astounding ten players being named to the 1st Team All-America list. The next closest team to place multiple players was Trinity Valley with four.
Garden City Community College, however, placed three on the 1st Team list, with the notable distinction being the Broncbuster quarterback and East Carolina University bounceback Tanner Helton being named alongside Sierra quarterback Maddox Varella, Gulf Coast quarterback Landon Varnes, and East Mississippi quarterback Rodge Waldrop. Helton, a dual threat quarterback from Florida, was recognized along with Broncbuster QB Jaydyn Sisk earlier in the off season by Noicey Sports as a Top 20 quarterback in the NJCAA, and is the only Jayhawk Conference quarterback named to the 1st Team All-America. The Broncbusters are looking to improve their passing attack in the 2025-26 season and have recruited with that offensive expansion in mind.
The Broncbusters, who sported a crushing rushing attack which ranked among the best in the country last season, also had Steven Moore (2024 All-KJCCC Honorable Mention) and Siosaia “Leni” Lapuaho named to the 1st Team All-America list at offensive guard and offensive tackle respectively. Dodge City Community College placed one on the 1st Team list with Mahki Whitney, a Washington State bounceback, at wide receiver. The Butler Grizzlies also landed two on the 1st Team.
GCCC also placed John Randle, RB (Utah bounceback, former Wichita Heights), Bryson Esser, OT (Richmond bounceback), T.A. Cunningham, DT (Penn State bounceback), Keon Webb, DT (NC A&T bounceback), and Aram Williams, CB (Norfolk State bounceback), on the JCGridiron 2nd Team All-America list, Josiah Jackson, S (West Virginia bounceback) on the JCGridiron 3rd Team All-America list, and Enese Tonga, TE (GCCC last year), Joseph Nnamuchi, DE (GCCC FB and MBB last year), Jer’Quise Clayton, OLB (Lighthouse Christian transfer), and Karson Butts, ILB (R-Fr) on the JCGridiron 4th Team All-America list.
DCCC placed Jowhar Franklin, DT (DCCC last year) on the JCGridiron 2nd Team All-America list, and A.J. Vaughns, DT (R-Fr), and Anthony Mattison, OLB (DCCC last year) on the JCGridiron 3rd Team All-America list.
