Who is Clutch City College Prep?: A Look at College Football’s Newest Countable Opponent

Howard Payne will play the first Division III game at The Ford Center at The Star in Frisco, a.k.a. the Dallas Cowboys’ practice facility. Yet, somehow, that is not the strangest game on the Yellow Jackets’ schedule.

On September 12th, a mysterious school travels to Brownwood. The name Clutch City College Prep fills the schedule. Two weeks later, Hardin-Simmons, a school with appearances in the 1936 and 1937 Sun Bowls and time spent in the AP Poll, will host this unknown program.

Many may look at the name and write the school off as another placeholder “school” with a questionable operation like Virginia-Lynchburg and Lincoln (CA). However, a conversation with their head coach, James Moore, shows that Clutch City College Prep has a sturdier foundation than Lincoln (CA) or Virginia-Lynchburg.

So who is Clutch City College Prep?

In short, they are similar to a junior college, but not your conventional JUCO. The Eagles participate in the National Junior College Prep (NJCP) Football League. The NJCP features a league of teams that offer accredited classes from Southern Utah University, to help players obtain NCAA eligibility. Clutch City College Prep is Houston’s NJCP team.

While their 2026 Division III opponents Howard Payne and Hardin-Simmons have a combined 232 seasons of play, Clutch City only officially launched in January of this year.

Much like a junior college, most of Clutch City College Prep’s players are not there for more than two years, with head coach James Moore hesitating to call Clutch City a conventional junior college, instead opting for the term “stepping stone program”. In fact, Moore made it clear to his recruits that he hopes they can move on to bigger programs after just one year in the program.

Clutch City College Prep’s campus is rudimentary, but it has everything Moore needs for his program. He referred to the setup as a “non-traditional campus” multiple times.

“Our kids come to the same building for study hall and classes, and it's the same building we do our workouts in. We got about 40 yards of indoor turf if we want to walk through. If we don't want to go outside, then our field is about five minutes from our facility”, Moore explained.

Naturally, there has been no shortage of challenges for Clutch City College Prep in their first year.

When asked about the greatest challenge, Moore joked, “Man, what wasn't the biggest [challenge]? I got challenges I'm going through right now, you know. Still, Moore attributes a deep faith in God for helping Clutch City make it so far in the offseason, despite not hacing “two nickels to rub together” still, mere days away from kicking off their inaugural season.

Moore proclaimed, “We stay prayed up over here, man. And God has shown us a lot of favor, you know, and I'll say this: we're gonna praise them in the good times and the bad times, and that's what's gonna get us through.”

Head Coach James Moore has a proven track record in non-affiliated football, previously serving as offensive coordinator at Westgate Christian. Moore has a reputation as a talent developer from certain schools.

He explained that a former Westgate Christian lineman and a receiver now play for Arkansas Pine-Bluff. When Westgate Christian played at Arkansas-Pine Bluff last year, Moore estimated NCAA schools recruited three or four players from their roster based on that film alone.

Despite all this, the question of how Clutch City College Prep landed on Howard Payne and Hardin-Simmons’ roster remains. Coach Moore was diligent and persistent, initiating contact with both schools. Both schools had struggled to find games with the American Southwest Conference only featuring six schools.

The presence of two well-known Division III schools is worth marveling at, but it may not be the most miraculous part of the schedule. Moore mentioned that Clutch City will host four home games at Houston’s Spring ISD Stadium.

This is where Clutch City separates itself from Virginia-Lynchburg and Lincoln (CA). Virginia-Lynchburg and Lincoln (CA) rarely have home slates, instead focusing on collecting guarantee checks throughout the season. Clutch City is not just selling itself endlessly to humiliating road games to keep the lights on like the other schools. Moore had the safety of his players in mind when forming the schedule.

He explained, “But I'm smart with who I reach out to because having to protect my players is a big thing for me.”

Another thing that separates Clutch City College Prep from Lincoln (CA) and Virginia-Lynchburg is vision. Rather than aimlessly collecting paychecks and headlines like the other two, Clutch City College Prep will compete for a title. Moore noted that his team’s focus is on SoFi Stadium, where the NJCP Championship will take place.

Clutch City could have appeared on some SWAC schedules this year before the league passed its mandate barring games against sub-Division II schools. Moore mentioned he reached out to Mississippi Valley State, Texas Southern and other SWAC schools. He stated one of the ultimate goals of the program was to play an FCS program in the near future.

At the end of the day, Moore and Clutch City College Prep are trying to offer players another avenue in an evolving college football world. His roster is full of players who “slip through the cracks” or are bouncing back from setbacks at the Division I level. These games against Howard Payne and Hardin-Simmons are significant career-changing opportunities for these players.

Clutch City College Prep is not the most conventional school, but if this year goes as planned, you may be seeing them on more NCAA schedules.