Wichita native AJ King scores highlight-reel TD; Butler juco football moves to 2-0

The same hands and speed that made A.J. King a force in the City League helped the Wichita native stand out in his first collegiate football game.

The East High graduate caught four passes for 129 yards, including a highlight-reel 66-yard touchdown, in his debut for Butler Community College in the No. 10-ranked Grizzlies’ 45-3 road win over Highland on Saturday afternoon.

Butler improved to 2-0 under first-year coach Brice Vignery, setting up a potential top-10 juco showdown at 1:30 p.m. next Saturday at BG Products Veterans Sports Complex. The Grizzlies host Snow College, the No. 5-ranked team, albeit an opponent that did lose to the No. 1-ranked team this weekend.

After leaning on a dominant run game to spring a top-10 upset of Garden City to start the season, Butler showed its potential in the passing game against Highland. Quarterback Jake Wolff threw for 303 yards on 14-of-28 passing and two touchdowns, as Butler led 28-0 after the first quarter on Saturday.

“We thought they were going to put an extra guy down there to stop the run and they did,” Vignery told ButlerGrizzlies.com following the game. “We were able to take advantage of certain things and certain formations and using our tempo to do some certain things.”

The most impressive catch of the day belonged to King, a 5-foot-9 slot receiver and return specialist who was an all-state player at East High last season.

King sprinted free down the middle of Highland’s zone defense, then stuck out his right arm, his closest to the ball, to snag a pass that was over his head and slightly behind him with one hand, cradle it and out-run the defense for a 66-yard touchdown play in the game’s first five minutes. The Butler social media account pushed for the play to be included in SportsCenter’s Top-10 plays of the day.

King led Butler in receiving, while Quavez Humphreys also caught four balls for 90 yards and a touchdown. Butler running back Azhuan Dingle delivered his second straight 3-touchdown performance to open the season and added 48 yards on the ground.

Butler’s defense held Highland without a touchdown and just 81 total yards of offense on 60 plays. The Grizzlies recorded seven sacks, featuring Caleb Foster, Laine Jenkins, Emmanuel Cannon, Ugochukwu Nosike and Devaca Parks.

Kansas Jayhawk Conference JUCO football scores

No. 10 Butler 45, Highland 3

No. 14 Coffeyville 38, Dodge City 10

No. 3 Hutchinson 70, Ellsworth (Iowa) 7

No. 9 Iowa Central 40, No. 12 Garden City 21

Kansas NAIA football scores

Avila (Mo.) 41, Tabor 7

No. 12 Baker 34, William Penn (Iowa) 14

No. 23 Bethel 14, McPherson 13

No. 22 Culver-Stockton (Mo.) 44, MidAmerica Nazarene 29

No. 2 Grand View (Iowa) 44, Benedictine 42

No. 12 Kansas Wesleyan 70, Friends 0

Saint Mary 37, Sterling 11

No. 8 Southwestern 29, Ottawa 6