College Football: Mario Cristobal, Matt Corral Highlight Latino Impact
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Juan Lozano, Sports business columnist
- September 13, 2021
Weekly Roundup of Latino contributors in College Football
Ole Miss quarterback Matt Corral and Oregon coach Mario Cristobal arguably shone brightest among Latino contributors in college football this weekend.
The Cuban American Cristobal guided the Oregon Ducks to an upset over Ohio State in Columbus, Ohio, despite another standout performance from last week’s Our Esquina Offensive Player of the Week, Ohio State wide receiver, Chris Olave.
Cristobal, 50, is in his fourth season at the helm of the Ducks. The victory over Big Ten power Ohio State is his best win as head coach of the Pac-12 power, and that’s saying a lot.
After the victory, the Ducks jumped from No. 12 in the AP Top 25 to No. 4.
Boise State’s Andy Avalos earned his first career victory as head coach, leading the Broncos over UTEP 54-13 last Friday.
Latino Offensive Player of the Week, Matt Corral
Ole Miss quarterback Matt Corral.
In a 54-17 victory over Austin Peay, Matt Corral threw five touchdowns and completed 21-of-33 attempts for 281 yards. Corral, 22, junior from Southern California. He very well could be playing his final college football season as he may declare for the 2022 NFL Draft.
Corral was named the Walter Camp Football Foundation Bowl Subdivision National Offensive Player of the Week after his performance.
Latino Defensive Player of the Week, Malcolm Rodriguez
Oklahoma State linebacker Malcolm Rodriguez. The fifth-year senior led the Cowboys with 13 total tackles, eight of them solo, in a 28-23 victory over Tulsa.
In a Week 1 contest victory over Missouri State, Rodriguez had another stellar performance as he was in on fifteen tackles.
Rodriguez, a former safety converted to linebacker before the 2019 campaign, has adapted well to the new position. He has led the Cowboys in tackles the last two seasons. He’s a team captain and a Second Team Academic All-Big 12 selection in 2020.
Rodriguez is known as a “super senior” after electing to play an extra season following an NCAA eligibility ruling that gave players an extra season because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Other notable Latino contributors
Texas A&M sophomore quarterback Zach Calzada came off the bench in Denver to help the No. 5 Aggies avoid the upset. Considering that starting quarterback Haynes King suffered a lower leg injury, it won’t be surprising if Calzada and Matt Corral face each other this season.
At Our Esquina, where we amplify Latino stories and voices in sports, arts and culture, we’ll keep track of all the Latinos playing college football.
This is our second weekly list of Latinos in college football. We want to highlight their achievements and tell their stories during the season.
Our list has grown since last week. If you know of somebody who is missing from this list, please let us know. Email JuanLozano@ouresquina.com for any additions.
| LAST NAME, FIRST NAME | TEAM | POSITION | STATS | TEAM RESULT |
| Alonso, Mandy | Virginia | DL | Tackles, 3- Total, 1- solo | W, 42-14Illinois |
| Araiza, Matt | SDSU | P/K | 7 punts, 53.1 avg., 3 inside 20 FG: 1-2 |
W, 38-14Arizona |
| Aranda, Dave | Baylor | Head Coach | W, 66-7Texas Southern | |
| Arias, Daniel | Colorado | WR | 3 rec., 37 yds. | L, 7-10Texas A&M |
| Arroyo, Elijah | Miami (FL) | TE | 1 rec., 11 yds. | W, 25-23, Appalachian State |
| Avalos, Alex | Boise State | Head Coach | W, 54-13UTEP | |
| Banda, Ephraim | Utah State | Def. Coord/Safeties | W, 48-25North Dakota | |
| Borregales, Andrés | Miami (FL) | K | 3-4, FGsLong: 43 | W, 25-23, Appalachian State |
| Calzada, Zach | Texas A&M | QB | 18/38-183 yds., 1 TD 7 rushes-28 yds. |
W, 10-7 Colorado |
| Camarena, Evan | Portland State | CB | 6 tackles, 3 solo1 Pass Defended | L, 24-44Washington State |
| Canales, Mike “Chico” | Maryland | Analyst | W, 62-10Howard | |
| Cardenas, Oscar | UTSA | TE | 1 rec. 19 yds. | W, 54-0Lamar |
| Coley, James | Texas A&M | TE Coach | W, 10-7 Colorado | |
| Corral, Matt | Ole Miss | QB | 21/33 281 yds., 5 TD’s 8 rushes, 35 yds. |
W, 54-17Austin Peay |
| Corrales, Beau | North Carolina | WR | NO STATS | W, 59-17Georgia State |
| Cristobal, Mario | Oregon | Head Coach | W, 35-28Ohio State | |
| Cruz, Gunner | Arizona | QB | 10-19, 70 yds.1 TD, 1 INT | L, 38-14San Diego St. |
| Davila, Peter | Albany | DB Coach | L, 14-16Rhode Island | |
| Diaz, Manny | Miami (FL) | Head Coach | W, 25-23Appalachian State | |
| Escobar, Alex | New Mex. St. | RB | NO STATS | L, 25-34New Mexico |
| Escobar, Ivan | New Mex. St. | DL | NO STATS | L, 25-34New Mexico |
| Figueroa, Nick | USC | DL | Tackles- 1 solo and 1 TFL | L, 28-42Stanford |
| Flores,Reynaldo | UTEP | RB | 5 rushes, 38 yds.1 rec., 9 yds | L, 13-54Boise State |
| Flores, Justin | Maine | WR coach | L, 7-55James Madison | |
| Fuente, Justin | Virginia Tech | Head Coach | W, 35-14Middle Tennessee St. | |
| Garcia, Elijah | Rice | DL | Tackles- 6- Total 3- Solo.5- TFL.5- Sack | L, 7-44Houston |
| Garcia, Julio | UNLV | OL | 155 yds.- Total offense | L, 10-37Arizona State |
| Garcia, Xavier | Temple | Def. GA | W, 45-24Akron | |
| Garcia- Castaneda, Isaiah | New Mexico St. | WR | 3 rec., 98 yds, 1 TD | L, 25-34New Mexico |
| Gonzalez, Billy | Florida | WR/ Passing Game Coord. | W, 42-20South Florida | |
| Gonzales, Christian | Colorado | CB | Tackles- 6 solo, 2 TFL | L, 7-10Texas A&M |
| Gonzales, Danny | New Mexico | Head Coach | W, 34-25New Mexico State | |
| Gonzales, Paul | TCU | Safeties Coach | W, 34-32California | |
| Gutierrez, Daniel | UNLV | K | 1/1- FG1/1- PAT | L, 10-37Arizona State |
| Hernandez, Dan | Eastern Illinois | OL Coach | L, 10-17Dayton | |
| Hernandez, Zach | Cal Poly | DB | 6 solo tackles, 1 TFL, 1 sack | L, 10-63Fresno State |
| Infante, Gabe | Temple | RB Coach | W, 45-24Akron | |
| Jackson, Jim | Rice | TE Coach | L, 7-44Houston | |
| Lozano, Alex | Portland State | LB | 4 tackles, 3 solo1 pass defended | L, 24-44Washington State |
| Madrigal, Anthony | SJSU | LB | NO STATS | BYE |
| Magana, Jorge | Montana Tech | LB | NO STATS | BYE |
| Maldonado, Dino | NM State | QB | 14/35- 203 yds. 2 TD- 2 INT 6 rushes, 46 yds. |
L, 25-34New Mexico |
| Martinez, Adrian | Nebraska | QB | 13/19- 242 yds, 2 passing TD’s 9 rushes, 112 yds. |
|
| Martinez, Marc | Tarleton St. | LB coach | W, 54-7Fort Lewis | |
| Martinez, Willie | Tennessee | CB coach | L, 34-41Pittsburgh | |
| Mateos, Eric | Baylor | OL | W, 66-7Texas Southern | |
| Mejia, Christian | Washington St. | DL | 1 solo tackle | W, 44-24 Portland State |
| Melo, Lucas | Davenport University | Run Game Coordinator/Defensive Line | W, 10-6Walsh University | |
| Mendez, Julian | Ottawa University | Offensive Coordinator | L, 14-38Avila University | |
| Mirabal, Alex | Oregon | OL Coach | W, 35-28Ohio State | |
| Montano, Abraham | Fresno State | K | 1 tackle,0/0 – FG9/9- PAT | W, 63-10Cal Poly |
| Montero, Antonio | Rice | LB | Tackles- 10 total, 2 -solo, 2- TFL | L, 7-44Houston |
| Morales, Kamari | North Carolina | TE | 4 rec., 42 yds. | W, 59-17Georgia State |
| Navarro, Jaime | SJSU | OL | NO STATS | BYE |
| Navarro, Juan | NCCU | DL Coach | L, 10-44Marshall | |
| Navarro, Donny | Illinois | WR | 2 rec.,11 yds. 2 KR, 22 yds. |
L, 14-42Virginia |
| Nunez, Jay | Eastern Michigan | Sp. TeamsAssoc. HC | L, 7-34Wisconsin | |
| Olave, Chris | Ohio State | WR | 12 rec.,126 yds. | L, 28-35Oregon |
| Ornelas, Jesse | Central Oklahoma | RB Coach | L, 21-31Emporia State | |
| Ortega, Josh | UTEP | DE | Tackles- 1, solo | L, 13-54Boise State |
| Ortega- Jones, Julian | Texas St. | WR | NO STATS. | W, 23-17FIU |
| Pacheco, Isaih | Rutgers | RB | 18 rushes, 44 yds. | W, 17-7 Syracuse |
| Padilla, David | Charleston Southern | Ass’t AD for Football | BYE | |
| Pagan, Justice | Portland State | LB | 4 tackles, 1-solo, 1-5 – TFL | L, 24-44Washington State |
| Perales, David | Fresno State | DL | Tackles-1, solo | W, 63-10Cal Poly |
| Ponce, Frank | Appalachian State | Offensive Coordinator | L, 23-25Miami (FL) | |
| Ramirez, Manny | Texas Southern | OL Coach | L, 7-66Baylor | |
| Regalado, Marco | Washington State | Director of On-Campus Recruiting | W, 44-24Portland State | |
| Restrepo, Xavier | Miami (FL) | WR | 1 rec. 18 yds. | W, 25-23Appalachian State |
| Reveles, Miguel | La Verne | Offensive Coordinator | L, 25-59Chapman | |
| Rivas- Sandoval, Cesar | Southeastern University | Head Coach | BYE | |
| Rodriguez, Anthony | Portland State | TE | 1 solo tackle | L, 24-44Washington State |
| Rodriguez, Drew | Towson St. | QB coach | L, 14-26New Hampshire | |
| Rodriguez, Joel | FIU | OL coach | W, 23-17FIU | |
| Rodriguez, Juan | Fresno State | TE | 2 catches, 27 yds. | W, 63-10Cal Poly |
| Rodriguez, Justin | UTSA | RB | 2 carries, 4 yds. 1 rec. , 9 yds. | W, 54-0 Lamar |
| Rodriguez, Malcolm | Oklahoma St. | LB | 13 tackles, 8 solo, .5 TFL | W, 28-23Tulsa |
| Rodriguez, Oscar | Akron | Assoc. HC/ ILB | W, 45-24Temple | |
| Rodriguez, Robert | Arizona St. | DL coach | W, 37-10UNLV | |
| Rojas, Manny | Delaware | Def. Coordinator | W, 27-10St. Francis | |
| Rubio, Cruz | Cal Poly | LS | 1 solo tackle | L, 10-63Fresno State |
| Santa Cruz, Victor | Hawaii | Defensive Ends coach | L, 27-45Oregon St. | |
| Santana, JuanCarlos | Tulsa | WR | 4 rec.,61 yds. | L, 23-28Oklahoma State |
| Segura, Justin | New Mexico St. | DL | Tackles- 2- solo, .5 TFL | L, 25-34New Mexico |
| Soto, Anthony | Lenoir-Rhyne | Offensive Coordinator/ /OL | BYE | |
| Steele, Chris | USC | CB | Tackles- 4 total3- solo | L, 28-42Stanford |
| Velazquez, Alonzo | Wyoming | OL | 347 yds.- Total offense | W, 50-43Northern Illinois |
| Ybarra, Austin | Montana Tech | LB | BYE |
Juan Lozano
Sports business columnist
Juan Lozano, a native of San Diego, is an attorney who represents coaches and sports executives. He has been in the business of sport in various capacities for more than 20 years. He possesses first-hand knowledge of the collegiate athletic landscape after working for various FBS and FCS college football programs.
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