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| Travis Sparks-Jackson, left, had a big night in big spots for La Verne in its first win vs. Redlands since 1995. La Verne athletics photo by Christopher Mora |
Travis Sparks-Jackson isn’t afraid of some hard work.
That’s evident by the fact that he works two jobs in addition to attending classes and playing running back for the La Verne football team. And his work ethic is paving the way for his success in the Leopards’ backfield.
Sparks-Jackson is part of an experienced group on offense, and the La Verne defense has made tremendous strides under new coordinator Oscar Rodriguez. Now, after beating Redlands for the first time since 1995, the Leopards are in position to win their first conference title in 20 years.
“We have an outstanding senior class,” said La Verne head coach Chris Krich. “These guys have been working hard the last three seasons, and they really came together as a family. That’s one of the biggest reasons we’ve had this change.”
The Leopards are 5-1 overall this season, including a perfect 4-0 in SCIAC competition, despite going 2-7 a year ago.
“When you come off a 2-7 season, you just want to do better,” Krich said. “As coaches, we kind of had an idea that – if the cards fall right and we can stay healthy – we could have an opportunity to win some games that we didn’t win last year.
“We were in a lot of close games last year and just didn’t win. Now, this year, we’re winning those games,” Krich added, crediting the team’s veteran composure.
Sparks-Jackson is among the seniors leading the way. But he had to wait to get his opportunity because when he arrived on campus, La Verne’s all-time leading rusher Matt Biggers was still in the program.
“When he got in, we saw that explosiveness,” Krich said Sparks-Jackson. “He worked really hard in the offseason because he wanted to be the feature back when his opportunity came about.”
Sparks-Jackson was a 1,000-yard rusher a year ago, but he felt a hamstring injury held him back. He came into this season healthy and – working alongside fellow running back Dallas Parent – is well on his way to cracking 1,000 rushing yards again.
“It helps with a two-back system. Both of us our fresh and both of us are good backs,” Sparks-Jackson said. “(The O-line) is creating holes for us and letting us go do our thing out there in the open field.”
Krich applauded Sparks-Jackson’s work ethic. He said the running back manages his time well, maintains a high GPA and gets in the weight room as early as 6 a.m.
“He just one of those young men who is completely driven,” Krich said. “It shows on the football field.”
Additionally, Sparks-Jackson works at the campus’ fitness center and puts in hours at a restaurant down the street.
“It keeps me busy and out of trouble, but it’s pretty time-consuming,” Sparks-Jackson said.
“At D-III, I think that’s just basically what we do,” he added. “We work and we play – and we play for fun. We love it.”
Sparks-Jackson rushed for 154 yards and two touchdowns Saturday. His second score broke a 42-42 tie with 57 seconds to play, lifting the Leopards to their first win over Redlands since 1995.
“None of our guys really knew how to react, at first, so we kind of just went a little crazy because it’s been so long,” Krich said. “It was a long time coming, and it was hard to hide that emotion. I think our guys handled it really well.”
“It was very emotional,” Sparks-Jackson agreed. “I was speechless. I couldn’t believe it. When the clock hit zero, I thought it was a dream.”
La Verne is the only team unbeaten in SCIAC play, holding a one-game lead over Claremont-Mudd-Scripps with three games remaining on the schedule.
The Leopards haven’t won the SCIAC since claiming three straight league titles from 1993 to 1995, earning the school’s only NCAA Division III playoff appearance in 1994.
“We’re in this uncharted territory right now,” Krich said. “It’s a situation where we don’t like to talk about it. But everyone has an understanding that we’re playing for something every day. That hasn’t happened here in a long, long time where every game means something.
“We try to downplay what can be or what could be. We just focus on that next game,” the coach continued. “We can’t look forward or look ahead at what could be at the end of the season.”
However with an experienced group, including Billy Livingston – the first two-year starter at quarterback during Krich’s tenure with La Verne, the Leopards are optimistic.
“We haven’t made it yet, but we’re on our way,” Sparks-Jackson said. “We haven’t had much respect, but we feel like we’re slowly getting that now.”
Sparks-Jackson said this year’s team is different – not the players, but the attitude they play with. The team plans to approach every game like it’s a championship game, focusing all of its efforts on that week’s opponent.
"I'm happy about how we're playing. I intend to keep playing like this,” Sparks-Jackson said.
Linfield, UW-Oshkosh seize control of conference races
Both Linfield and UW-Oshkosh faced challenges by ranked conference rivals. However both teams earned convincing victories to remain atop the standings in their respective conference.
After falling behind early, 3-0, Linfield scored 35 straight points to take control of its game with the Pirates. The Wildcats went on to win, 52-10.
Sam Riddle scored on a 7-yard run and then threw four touchdown passes to help the Wildcats build a 35-3 lead in the third quarter. Riddle threw five touchdowns on the day, completing 12-of-21 passes for 233 yards.
Meanwhile the Linfield defense compiled 17 tackles for a loss, including eight quarterback sacks.
“Besides a couple of big kind of scramble plays, we kind of shut them down,” Linfield linebacker Mitchell Kekel told the McMinnville News-Register. “It was a good day for us.
Behind 639 yards of total offense, UW-Oshkosh cruised to a 63-28 win over UW-Platteville.
“Unbelievable effort by our guys. The offense just exploded,” UW-O head coach Pat Cerroni told the Oshkosh Northwestern.
Quarterback Brett Kasper returned to the Titans’ lineup. Kasper completed 21-of-33 attempts for 448 yards and four touchdowns. Zach Kasuboski and Sam Mentkowski caught six passes each for 162 and 119 yards, respectively. Kasuboski hauled in a pair of touchdowns while Dylan Hecker ran for two other scores.
The Titans’ defense intercepted three passes and notched three quarterback sacks to keep Platteville’s offense quiet.
Number of the week
73: as in the number of seconds remaining when Claremont-Mudd-Scripps trailed Occidental, 42-29. Trey Smith recovered a fumble that allowed the Stags to retain possession and then caught a touchdown pass two plays later. After a successful onside kick, Smith – who finished the day with seven receptions and 119 yards – caught another touchdown pass to give C-M-S a one-point lead, 43-42. Time expired on the ensuing kickoff, but the ball was fumbled and bounced into the end zone, leading to a safety and a 45-42 victory for the Stags.
The rest of the West
Dubuque retained its IIAC lead with a 44-13 win over Buena Vista. The Spartan defense intercepted four passes, including two picks by Chad Sadowski. … Nick Martin had more touchdown passes (3) than incompletions (2) in St. John’s win over Carleton. Martin completed 11 of 13 passes for 268 yards in the 56-0 shutout. … Cole Chandler threw a pair of touchdown passes and Austen Kindle rushed for two more scores as Pacific Lutheran notched its first win of the season, 28-27, over George Fox. … Jeremiah McKibbins gained a school-record 265 yards and scored three times on 22 rushing attempts. His efforts in the backfield helped Chapman top Cal Lutheran, 49-21. … UMAC leader St. Scholastica held Minnesota-Morris to 91 yards of total offense and won the game, 32-7. … Jordan Ratliffe overcame an injury to score four touchdowns for UW-Whitewater. The Warhawks built a 28-7 lead early, and held on to defeat UW-Stevens Point, 35-27. … John Gould completed 18-of-21 pass attempts for 186 yards and two touchdowns, leading St. Thomas to a 45-14 win over rival Bethel. … Wartburg bounced back with a convincing 47-7 win at Luther. Logan Schrader threw for 257 yards and four touchdowns. … Northwestern (Minn.) remained in contention for the UMAC title with a 27-10 win over Westminster (Mo.). Joe Sutton and Caleb Couwenhoven combined to catch 11 passes for 143 yards and three touchdowns. … Loras rallied for 21 points in the fourth quarter to claim a 27-9 decision over Simpson. Zach Minch racked up 202 yards rushing and a pair of scores for the Duhawks. … UW-La Crosse improved to 3-0 at home this season with a 27-25 win over UW-Eau Claire. Joel Oxton caught five passes for 81 yards and two touchdowns in the win. … Nathan Suyematsu caught 10 passes for 175 yards while Bronson Barretto rushed for 73 yards and two touchdowns to help Pacific top Willamette, 29-24. … Greenville rolled by Martin Luther, 47-21, as quarterback Jacob Battaglia threw for 279 yards and four touchdowns. … Rance Ashley rushed for 133 yards and two touchdowns, leading UW-River Falls over UW-Stout in a shootout, 54-48. … Augsburg defeated St. Olaf, 57-35, behind Ayrton Scott’s 313 yard effort. The Auggies quarterback completed 26 of 32 pass attempts and threw four touchdown passes, including three to Joey Sonnenfeld. … Austin Zirkle hauled in three touchdown receptions, including the go-ahead score with 5:27 to play, propelling Eureka past Crown, 29-26. … Corbin Blythe registered three of Central’s four sacks in a 27-13 win over Coe. … Brandon Zylstra caught four passes for 136 yards and two scores and he rushed twice for 42 yards and a touchdown, helping Concordia-Moorhead take down Hamline, 30-20. … Puget Sound intercepted two passes and recovered a couple of fumbles during its 38-7 triumph at Lewis and Clark. … Aseal Birir rushed 36 times for 189 yards and scored three touchdowns in Pomona-Pitzer’s 25-13 win over Whittier. … Jorian Clemons racked up 142 yards receiving and scored a touchdown in MacMurray’s 26-13 win over Iowa Wesleyan.
Rank ‘em
Eight teams from the West Region were listed among the teams in the Top 25, including a quartet ranked in the top 10.
Receiving six first place votes, Linfield remained ranked No. 2 for another week, and UW-Oshkosh came in at No. 5 once again. St. Thomas climbed one spot to No. 6, while UW-Whitewater fell one place to No. 7.
St. John’s rose one place at No. 12 while MIAC rival Concordia-Moorhead jumped up three spots to No. 14. UW-Platteville tumbled four places to No. 16, and Wartburg improved one spot to No. 21.
Whitworth fell out of the Top 25, but received votes (51). Dubuque (25) and Gustavus Adolphus (8) also received votes this week.
Be heard
Do you have a story idea for the Around the West column? Contact me about approaching milestones, broken records, breakout players or any other storylines in the Region. Or just drop me a note to let me know what you think of the column. All ideas and feedback are welcome. Email me at josh.smith@d3sports.com or follow me on Twitter @By_Josh_Smith.
