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Jalen Cropper

Fresno State’s Jalen Cropper Soars Over UCLA

Jalen Cropper highlights weekly list of Latinos in College Football

Jalen Cropper did it all on Saturday, helping the Fresno State Bulldogs pull off the biggest upset in college football this weekend. He was one of two Latino wide receivers who proved clutch in upsets over Pac-12 teams.

It was another spectacular weekend for Latinos in college football. Ole Miss quarterback Matt Corral, last week’s Our Esquina Offensive Player of the Week, continued to make a strong case for the Heisman Trophy.

Like Corral, though, we like to spread the ball around at Our Esquina, where we amplify Latino voices and stories in sports, arts and culture. We are tracking all the Latinos playing or coaching college football.

We want to highlight their achievements and tell their stories during the season, as we did leading up to Cuban American Zach Calzada’s first start for Texas A&M.

Here is a look at the outstanding performances of this past weekend. 

In the Mountain West Conference, two Latino wide receivers were key in upset victories over Pac-12 opponents in the Los Angeles area. 

Latino Offensive Player of the Week

Fresno State wide receiver Jalen Cropper. 

Cropper had 14 catches for 141 yards. His final reception, a 13-yard touchdown with 14 seconds remaining, gave the visiting Bulldogs the 40-37 victory over the UCLA Bruins in the Rose Bowl.

Jalen Cropper, a junior wide receiver, was an All-Mountain West honorable mention selection in 2020. He also rushed for a touchdown in the first quarter against UCLA.


Cropper prepped locally at two Fresno area high schools and is the son of Aaron Cropper and Lisette Moreno. Jalen Cropper’s family made the trek down and represented in Pasadena.

San Diego State wide receiver Jesse Matthews threw a two-point conversion pass at the end of the third overtime to give the Aztecs a 33-31 upset win over the Utah Utes. 

The pass was reminiscent of the Philly Special, popularized by the Eagles in the Super Bowl LII victory over the New England Patriots. 

Matthews, a San Diego native, is a junior and a former walk-on who earned a scholarship. 

Matthews is the nephew of two former NFL players, quarterback Moses Moreno and linebacker Zeke Moreno. 

Latino Defensive Player of the Week

Cameron Martinez, safety, Ohio State.

In a 41-20 victory over Tulsa, Cameron Martinez returned an interception 61 yards for a score in the final minutes of the contest. The pick 6 sealed the victory for the Buckeyes over the pesky Golden Hurricanes, who were within one score as late as the fourth quarter.

Martinez also defended three passes and was part of two tackles. 

The Muskegon, Mich., native is a sophomore academically and only participated in one game during the 2020 season. He is majoring in psychology. Martinez was recognized as an OSU Scholar-Athlete in 2020-21. 

Other impressive performances:

RJ Martinez, a freshman quarterback at FCS program Northern Arizona University.

The 6-foot, 185-pound true freshman from Austin guided the underdog Lumberjacks to a 21-19 massive upset over Arizona, the loser of fifteen straight games. 

RJ is the son of Ray and Jennifer Martinez.

Below is our list of Latinos in college football. Please email juanlozano@ouresquina.com if you have a name we should add on this list. 

Latinos in College Football

LAST NAME, FIRST NAME TEAM POSITION STATS TEAM RESULT
Aguilar, Luis NAU K PAT-3/3 W, 21-19Arizona
Alonso, Mandy Virginia  DL Tackles, 2- Total L, 39-59North Carolina 
Araiza, Matt  San Diego St. P/K 9 punts, 51.4 avg.FG: 1-3PAT- 4/4 W, 33-31Utah 
Aranda, Dave  Baylor  Head Coach  W, 45-7Kansas 
Arias, Daniel  Colorado  WR  1 rec., 8 yds. L, 0-30Minnesota
Arroyo, Elijah Miami (FL)u TE 1 rec.,7 yds.  L, 17-38Michigan State
Arroyo, Marcus UNLV Head Coach  L, 3-48Iowa State 
Avalos, Alex Boise State Head Coach L, 20-21Oklahoma State
Banda, Ephraim  Utah State Def. Coord/Safeties W, 49-45Air Force 
Barr-Mira, Nicholas UCLA K FG-1/1PAT- 4/4 L, 37-40Fresno State 
Borregales, Andrés Miami (FL) K 1-2, FGsLong: 55PAT: 2/2 L, 17-38Michigan State
Calzada, Zach Texas A&M QB 19-33, 275 YDS, 3 TD, 1 INT W, 34-0New Mexico
Camarena, Evan  Portland State CB 1 tackles W, 21-7Western Oregon
Canales, Mike “Chico” Maryland  Analyst  W, 20-17Illinois 
Cardenas, Oscar UTSA TE 2 rec., 15 yds.  W, 27-13MTSU
Coley, James Texas A&M TE Coach W, 34-0New Mexico
Corral, Matt Ole Miss  QB 23-31, 335 yds., 3 TD
13 rushes, 68 yds., 4 TD’s
W, 61-21Tulane 
Corrales, Beau  North Carolina WR NO STATS W, 59-39Virginia 
Cristobal, Mario  Oregon  Head Coach W, 48-7Stony Brook
Cropper, Jalen  Fresno St.  WR 14 rec., 141 yds. 1 TD
1 rush, 1 yd., 1 TD
W, 40-37UCLA
Cruz, Gunner  Arizona   QB NO STATS L, 19-21NAU
Davila, Peter Albany  DB Coach  L, 24-62Syracuse 
Diaz, Manny Miami (FL) Head Coach  L, 17-38Michigan State
Escobar, Alex  NM State RB 1 rush, 1 yd.  W, 43-35Carolina State
Escobar, Ivan  NM State DL NO STATS W, 43-35South Carolina State
Fernandez, Aaron  Southern Utah RGC/OL W, 40-35Southern Utah
Figueroa, Nick  USC DL NO STATS W, 45-14Washington State
Flores, Reynaldo UTEP RB BYE BYE
Flores, Justin  Maine  WR coach  W, 31-26Merrimack
Fuente, Justin  Virginia Tech  Head Coach  W, 27-21West Virginia
Garcia, Elijah  Rice  DL Tackles- 8- Total 2- Solo L, 0-58Texas
Garcia, Julio UNLV OL 130 yds.- Total offense L, 3-48Iowa State
Garcia, Xavier  Temple  Def. GA L, 3-28Boston College
Garcia- Castaneda, Isaiah  NM State WR 3 rec., 78 yds., 1 TD W, 43-35South Carolina State
Gonzalez, Billy  Florida WR/ Passing Game Coord.  L, 29-31Alabama
Gonzales, Christian  Colorado CB Tackles- 1 solo,  L, 0-30Minnesota
Gonzales, Danny  New Mexico  Head Coach L, 0-34Texas A&M
Gonzales, Paul TCU Safeties Coach  BYE
Gutierrez, Daniel  UNLV K 1/1- FG L, 3-48Iowa State
Hernandez, Dan Eastern Illinois  OL Coach L, 24-31Illinois State
Hernandez, Zach  Cal Poly  DB 2 solo tackles, 1 Fumble Recovery L, 14-48South Dakota
Infante, Gabe  Temple RB Coach L, 3-28Boston College
Jackson, Jim  Rice  TE Coach  L, 0-58Texas 
Lozano, Alex Portland State LB 2 tackles, 2 TFL, 1 sack  W, 21-7Western Oregon
Madrigal, Anthony  San Jose St. LB NO STATS W, 17-13Hawaii
Magana, Jorge  Montana Tech LB NO STATS W, 31-29Rocky Mtn. College 
Maldonado, Dino NM State QB 24-33, 321 YDS, 3 TD
5 rushes, 21 yds.
W, 43-35South Carolina State
Martinez, Adrian  Nebraska  QB 19-25, 289 yds., 1 TD, 1 INT 
17 rushes, 34 yds., 1 TD
L, 16-23Oklahoma
Martinez, Cameron  Ohio State  SAF Tackles- 
2- total , 1-solo
3 PD, 1 INT, 61 yds., 1 TD
W, 41-20Tulsa
Martinez, RJ NAU QB 11-16, 88 yds. , 1 TD, 1 INT
6 rushes, 43 yds.
W, 21-19Arizona
Martinez, Marc Tarleton St.  LB coach L, 35-40Southern Utah
Martinez, Willie  Tennessee CB coach  W, 56-0Tennessee Tech
Mateos, Eric  Baylor  OL W, 45-7Kansas 
Matthews, Jesse San Diego St.  WR 2 rec., 11 yds. 2 pt. conversion pass W, 33-31 Utah
Mejia, Christian  Washington St.  DL Tackles- 3- total, 1 TFL L, 14-45USC
Melo, Lucas  Davenport University  Run Game Coordinator/Defensive Line L, 14-20Northern Michigan 
Mendez, Julian  Ottawa University  Offensive Coordinator  L,  14- 33MacPherson University  
Mirabal, Alex Oregon  OL Coach  W, 48-7Stony Brook
Montano, Abraham  Fresno State K 1 tackle,2/2 – FG4/4- PAT W, 40-37UCLA
Montero, Antonio Rice LB Tackles- 6-total, 1-solo, 0.5- TFL L, 0-58Texas
Morales, Kamari  North Carolina  TE 1 rec., 3 yds. W, 59-39Virginia 
Navarro, Jaime  SJSU OL Total offense-291 yards Hawaii 
Navarro, Juan  NCCU  DL Coach W, 20-13Winston-Salem
Navarro, Donny  Illinois  WR 3 rec.,27 yds.1 KR, 22 yds.3 PR, 11 yds. L, 17-20Maryland 
Nunez, Jay Eastern Michigan Sp. TeamsAssoc. HC W, 42-28UMASS
Olave, Chris  Ohio State WR NO STATS. W, 41-20Tulsa
Ornelas, Jesse Central Oklahoma  RB Coach L, 10-14Missouri Southern
Ortega, Josh  UTEP DE BYE BYE
Ortega- Jones, Julian  Texas St.  WR  2 rec., 28 yds.  Incarnate Word
Ortiz, Angel Ottawa Univ. (AZ) W, 45-31Texas Wesleyan
Pacheco, Isaih Rutgers RB 12 rushes, 67 yds., 2 TD’s
1 rec., -3 yds.
W, 45-13Delaware
Padilla, David Charleston Southern  Ass’t AD for Football L, 14-41Monmouth 
Pagan, Justice  Portland State LB 2 tackles W, 21-7Western Oregon
Perales, David  Fresno State DL Tackles-1, solo W, 40-37UCLA
Ponce, Frank  Appalachian State  Offensive Coordinator  W, 44-10Elon
Ramirez, Manny  Texas Southern OL Coach  BYE
Regalado, Marco Washington State Director of On-Campus Recruiting L, 14-45USC
Restrepo, Xavier Miami (FL) WR 1 rec. 7 yds.  L, 17-38Michigan State
Reveles, Miguel La Verne Offensive Coordinator L, 12-22Pacific Lutheran
Rivas, Eddie  Texas State OL Total Offense  – 448 yards  L, 34-42 Incarnate Word
Rivas- Sandoval, Cesar Southeastern University  Head Coach W 20-14, Thomas More
Rodriguez, Anthony  Portland State TE NO STATS W, 21-7Western Oregon
Rodriguez, Drew Towson St.  QB coach W, 35-7 North Dakota State
Rodriguez, Jacob Virginia  RB 3 rushes, 14 yds3 rec., 23 yds. .  L, 39-59North Carolina 
Rodriguez, Joel FIU OL coach  W, 54-21Texas Tech
Rodriguez, Juan  Fresno State  TE 3 rec., 25 yds.  W, 40-37UCLA
Rodriguez, Justin  UTSA RB NO STATS W, 27-13Middle Tennessee 
Rodriguez, Malcolm Oklahoma St. LB 8 tackles, 5 solo, .5 TFL W, 21-20Boise State
Rodriguez, Oscar Akron Assoc. HC/ ILB W, 35-14Bryant 
Rodriguez, Robert  Arizona St. DL coach W, 27-17BYU
Rojas, Manny  Delaware  Def. Coordinator L, 13-45Rutgers
Rubio, Cruz  Cal Poly  LS NO STATS  L, 14-48South Dakota
Santa Cruz, Victor  Hawaii  Defensive Ends coach L, 13-17San Jose St.
Santana, JuanCarlos  Tulsa  WR 7 rec.,78 yds. L, 20-41Ohio State 
Segura, Justin  NM State DL Tackles- 1- solo, 1- TFL, 2- QB hurry W, 43-35South Carolina State
Sori-Marin, Mariano Minnesota  LB Tackles- 4 -solo, 2 TFL W, 34-0Colorado
Soto, Anthony Lenoir-Rhyne  Offensive Coordinator/ /OL Total offense-337 yards L, 21-28Newberry
Steele, Chris  USC CB Tackles- 1 total  W, 45-14Washington State
Umana, Orlando  Ole Miss OL Total offense- 707 yds.  W, 63-21 Tulane 
Velazquez, Alonzo Wyoming  OL Total offense- 378 yards W, 45-12Ball State
Ybarra, Austin Montana Tech LB W, 31-29Rocky Mtn.College

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