NMMI's 10-1 football season leads to Sunday home playoff game

Dec. 3—When Kurt Taufa'asau became interim head coach of the New Mexico Military Institute junior college football team in June he had confidence in the Broncos, but he didn't expect them to reach the levels they have this season.

NMMI is 10-1 with the top scoring and rushing offense in National Junior College Athletic Association Division I. The Broncos, the Southwestern Junior College Football Conference champions, will play host to Northwest Mississippi in the inaugural NJCAA national championship four-team playoff Sunday at 2 p.m. at the Wool Bowl in Roswell.

NMMI is the No. 2 seed after winning its first SJCFC title since 2016 when the Broncos joined the conference. NMMI's last shot at a national title came in 1958 when it finished undefeated. That's the best finish in Broncos' history that began in 1907.

"With the coaching change, we didn't have any goals of making it this far at the time," Taufa'asau said. "We just knew that the group of guys we had coming back if we could keep them together and have them gel we could do something special. In fall camp our guys came to a point where they said this is going to be a players-led team instead of a coaches-led team. I think guys held each other accountable throughout the year. We were able to overcome adversity and perform at a high level."

Taufa'asau, who played for the Broncos in 2010 and has been on the coaching staff since 2016, took over as coach when former head coach Joe Forchtner stepped down to fill a new academic position at NMMI, as well as assist in the athletic department in an administrative role. Forchtner and the Broncos went 5-4 during the condensed spring season that ended with a 23-21 loss to Iowa Central in the Graphic Edge Bowl on May 29.

Taufa'asau, 31, had the interim tag removed at the end of this regular season after a 58-28 win over Trinity Valley on Nov. 8, and he's now the head coach.

He played at Wyoming as a defensive lineman after NMMI and had stints as a practice squad player for the then-Oakland Raiders, Tennessee Titans and Indianapolis Colts before getting into coaching as a high school volunteer in Utah. He said he met up with Forchtner in 2016 when NMMI played at Snow College, where Forchtner asked him to join the staff.

Taufa'asau has had quite the debut as head coach, leading the Broncos to the NJCAA national championship playoff. But there have been challenges.

"I felt like we did overcome adversity this season," Taufa'asau said. "We had our only loss to Cisco (on Oct. 23 in Roswell) that put us back down to reality. That game made us realize that we have to be on our 'A' game if we want to get to where we want to go."

Taufa'asau said the Broncos are sound in all three phases, but their offense has stood out the most, ranking among the best in NJCAA Division I. NMMI is first in scoring (446 points), sixth in points per game (40.5), fifth in total offense (4,597 yards), first in rushing yards (3,022), first in rushing yards per game (274.7) and second in rushing touchdowns (33).

NMMI sophomore running back Anthony Grant, from Buford, Georgia, leads the Broncos with 1,140 rushing yards, which is No. 2 in the nation.

Sophomore quarterback Diego Pavia is among 20 New Mexico natives on the Bronco roster. Pavia, out of Volcano Vista, has thrown for 1,429 yards and 18 touchdowns on 100-of-184 passing. He has also rushed for 608 yards and six touchdowns on 97 carries in NMMI's run-heavy offense that uses the triple-option at times.

"Our quarterback has been tremendous," Taufa'asau said. "He's been helping us out a ton this season. Diego has grown up a lot since the spring. Playing in the spring helped him. He's been making great decisions, protecting the football and controlling the pace of the game."

On the other side of the playoff bracket, No. 1 ranked Iowa Western (9-0) hosts fourth-seeded Snow College (7-1). Iowa Western beat Snow, 17-14, on Oct. 9.

Sunday

NJCAA football semifinal: No. 3 NW Mississippi CC at No. 2 NMMI, 2 p.m., Wool Bowl, Roswell. Tickets: $15 at njcaa.org/tickets.