A 6-6, Brandon Jordan, center, is a big matchup problem for opposing defensive backs. All-America return specialist KJ Miller, who also plays receiver, is 5-7. Photo by Russell Marwitz, True to the Cru

By Riley Zayas
Managing Editor, True to the Cru

In UMHB’s most crucial test of the regular season, Brandon Jordan was responsible for the catch of the game.

With the clock under seven minutes in the fourth quarter, the 6-6 Jordan leapt over the Hardin-Simmons defender on the left side of the end zone, pulling Kyle King’s pass from the air and securing UMHB’s go-ahead score. It proved to be the difference maker, as UMHB’s 34-28 lead stood until the final seconds ticked off the clock, giving the second-ranked Crusaders their first marquee victory of the season on Saturday.

It was a complete 180-degree turn from where Jordan was two years ago, when Hardin-Simmons and UMHB last met in Belton. Jordan, a former junior college standout, questioned if he would ever again see another snap, or even suit up for a college game. It was only then that he realized how much he truly loved the sport.

Growing up in Santa Barbara, California, Jordan was always a favorite target of quarterbacks with his tall frame and reliable hands. Most mistook him for a tight end, but Jordan says he has “always been a receiver.”

He starred at Carpinteria High School, before moving on to Ventura College, a junior college program in Southern California. It was there that his skill set truly began to reveal itself, with coaches from several high-profile schools taking notice of the 6-6 wideout who was especially strong in the red zone. Jordan was rated a three-star recruit by 247Sports, as offers from Iowa State, Louisville and Fresno State rolled in.

“When I was at Ventura College, I was just exposed to a higher competition level from high school,” Jordan recalled. “I graduated high school in June of 2016, and then I played my first game in September. At a young age, I was exposed to D-I talent playing against other kids who already had Pac-12, SEC, Big 10 offers.”

Along with those Division I offers came one from a school in Texas that Jordan had never heard of. UMHB assistant Steven Thrash saw something in Jordan, reaching out to him following the receiver’s second straight All-SCFA selection.

“Coach Thrash knew my former head coach, Steve Mooshagian,” Jordan said. “I asked my former head coach about it, and he said they were a powerhouse. They’re not your typical D-III. My last season of junior college was 2018, and Coach Thrash actually messaged me after the 2018 season, telling me that ‘your former coach said you're still looking for a home.’”

But Jordan had no interest at that point in the opportunities that lay at the D-III level. Soon, however, it proved to be his last, and only opportunity.

In the second half, with Hardin-Simmons trying to hang onto its lead, Brandon Jordan had six catches, 93 yards and two touchdowns for UMHB. Photo by Russell Marwitz, True to the Cru

While D-I coaches loved his skill set on the gridiron, there were questions when it came to his academic performance.

“The reason I struggled [academically] was that I never really cared for school,” Jordan recalls. “I was an introvert, I didn’t talk to many people, and my parents weren’t really there for me to help me in my courses.”

As Jordan went through 2019, having spoken with Thrash but not seriously considered UMHB, he realized how much he missed the sport that he had devoted so much time towards. He still had NFL dreams, and collegiate potential, but the avenue to getting there was what stood in his way. D-I programs had lost interest, but one program was still seeking to add Jordan to its roster: UMHB.

“When you play your whole life, then you go a season without playing, and have to go work at a 9-to-5, it really hits home,” Jordan said. “You realize how tough it is to just work for a minimum wage job, to barely survive and get by day by day. That’s another thing that really drove me to want to get back out on the field. You realize how fortunate we are to still do this.”

He made the decision to give the Crusaders a chance, heading to Texas for the first time in his life. Jordan knew that it was a program that was consistently ranked high and went deep into the playoffs each year. He understood it was a vehicle that could help him attain his NFL dreams.

“I think it was after the 2019 season, I was looking through my messages and I saw Coach Thrash’s message,” Jordan recalls. “I was like, ‘Let me give this guy a call because obviously they’re not playing around, and they don’t lose.’ My coach reminded me that [UMHB] was a good place to get me to that next level, which is the NFL.”

Jordan admits, however, that his perception of D-III was skewed. He came in, relying on his size and natural talent, expecting to start immediately. Of course, by the time he arrived in Belton, the season had been cancelled, and a five-game spring schedule was set. But even in intrasquad scrimmages during that first fall, he had a wakeup call. If he wanted to see the field for the Cru, his work ethic needed to improve.

“When I got here, I’m thinking in my head, this is D-III,” Jordan said. “I had D-I offers. So I thought I needed to be getting the ball every game, and they humbled me quickly. They told me I had to pay the price to see the reward I wanted. There’s all these kids that were working twice as hard as I ever did.”

But instead of backing down from the challenge, Jordan showed his deep commitment to both UMHB and his goals for competing at the college level. He appeared in four games for the Cru in the spring, catching four passes for 48 yards and two scores. It was far from the impact he expected to have, but compared to where he had been a year prior, facing the prospect of never playing again, Jordan was just thankful for the chance.

“I had to understand, ‘If I want to fit in with the school, I have to really work hard and do what they say because they’re the ones that are giving me the opportunity to step on the field,” Jordan said. “I was thankful for that time of struggle, of not playing, because it built this pressure in me and is creating a diamond.”

Jordan’s improved work ethic was not only evident in his approach to football. With a second chance at a college career, he also made significant gains in the classroom.

“When the game got taken away from me, I realized that if I wanted to play, I had to show up to class and complete my assignments. That’s what drove me the most, getting the game taken away and sitting out from not taking care of my schoolwork and having to watch other players play, knowing I could play with these guys.

“It pushed me. Because I don’t ever want to feel that feeling again. God gave me a second opportunity so I know I can’t disrespect him by failing classes again.”

UMHB head coach Pete Fredenburg has also noticed a change in Jordan from the time he arrived in Belton. Currently, the senior leads the Cru in receptions with 13, and in receiving yards with 274. He has added four touchdowns, two of which came in Saturday’s comeback win against Hardin-Simmons.

“He’s had an incredible development,” Fredenburg said in Monday’s news conference. “I think last year he came in and didn’t really have the work ethic that he needed to really be a premier performer. He’s developed that, he wants to be on everything. Last year, he just kind of wanted to catch passes. This year, he’s done a lot of things, he’s blocked kicks.

“It’s like everything else that we talk about all the time. We’re very interested in guys becoming great teammates and that means doing things to serve your other teammates, to be there for them. I think that Brandon Jordan has grown, and matured a tremendous amount in a year.”

Jordan would agree with that assessment. It seems that he could not have started his season off better. But there is still one thing Jordan has not accomplished: winning a national championship. Based on experience alone, Jordan is no stranger to championship games. He was forced to swallow a loss in the 2018 SFCA Championship game, something that drove him to return to the field, and he experienced the 2020-21 ASC championship with UMHB in the spring. But the Stagg Bowl is on another level, and winning in D-III’s biggest game of the year is the only goal Jordan and UMHB has.

“We all have the same goal,” Jordan said. “It has only one goal: winning a championship. We have nothing else in mind. We have to play like that. We give it our all every day that we can.”

Riley Zayas is co-founder of the website True to the Cru, which covers Mary Hardin-Baylor athletics.