TJC running back Ryan Young (4) takes the handoff against Coffeyville (Kan.) on Saturday at TMF Rose Stadium. (Courtesy Photo | Vanessa Curry)

Coffeyville (Kan.) Community College missed three field goals, and Tyler Junior College freshman Ryan Young scored two rushing touchdowns as the Apaches opened the 2011 football season with a 16-14 victory on Saturday night at Trinity Mother Frances Rose Stadium.

The difference proved to be a safety early in the game when sophomore Jacoby Alexander blocked a Coffeyville punt out of the end zone to put TJC ahead 2-0.

The bend-but-don’t-break Apaches defense allowed 20 pass completions, but no touchdowns through the air. The defense sealed the victory when sophomore Justin Jones blitzed quarterback Najee Tyler, forcing the Coffeyville QB into an incompletion on fourth down with about a minute to play.

Young, a standout from Sulphur Springs, finished the game with 107 yards rushing on 18 carries. Young scored on runs of 4 and 25 yards. The latter came quickly with 4:09 left in the third quarter, right after Tracy Smith caught a 47-yard pass from quarterback Randy Price.

“I thought Ryan Young really played well and added to our offense,” TJC head coach Danny Palmer said. “He might have been a difference-maker for us.”

The score put the Apaches up 16-7, but the Apaches lost two fumbles in the fourth quarter and Coffeyville (0-1) turned one of the miscues into a touchdown to draw within 16-14 with six minutes left in the game.

TJC also reached the Coffeyville 1-yard line in the third quarter but came away with no points after a missed field goal.

“These kids really amaze me,” said Palmer, who played 39 freshmen in the game. “There’s not a lot of jumping and hollering because they know they should have won by a larger margin. And I feel the same way. It was really ugly sometimes offensively, then we had spurts where we looked like a pretty good junior college football team.”

Young rushed for 58 yards and one touchdown in the first half, and Alexander blocked a Coffeyville punt out of the end zone to put the Apaches up 9-0.

The Red Ravens got on the board with a 12-play, 66-yard drive in which quarterback Tyler scored untouched on a 4-yard keeper with 3:59 left in the first half.

Ryan Black, a freshman from Jacksonville, came in to quarterback the Apaches on their final possession of the half and led a nine-play drive. Black ran on six of the plays but he fumbled on what would have been a first down inside the Coffeyville 20, preventing the Apaches from at least attempting a field goal.

SMOKE SIGNALS: In other scores Saturday, Trinity Valley dominated Independence (Kan.) 63-0, Northeastern Oklahoma A&M downed Garden City (Kan.) 26-20, and Cisco defeated Dodge City 35-19. … The Apaches play at Kilgore College next Saturday at 7 p.m. It will be a non-conference game.

Tyler 16, No. 15 Coffeyville 14

At TMF Rose Stadium

Coffeyville  0   7   0   7 — 14

Tyler          9   0   7   0 — 16

First Quarter

TJC—Safety (Jacoby Alexander blocked punt out of end zone), 10:37.

TJC—Ryan Young 4 run (Isaac Arellano kick), 1:42.

Second Quarter

CCC—Najee Tyler 4 run (Tyler Bishop kick), 3:59.

Third Quarter

TJC—Young 25 run (Arellano kick), 4:09.

Fourth Quarter

CCC—Jamarius Green 5 run (Justin Hamacher kick), 6:08.

EST. ATT. —3,000.

                               CCC           TJC

First Downs        15          14

Rushes-Yards    35-63      41-173

Passing Yards    198        102

Comp.-Att.-Int.  20-32-0  8-11-1

Punts-Avg.        4-32.8    4-39

Fumbles-Lost    2-1         5-3

Penalties-Yards 13-80     8-65

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS

RUSHING—Coffeyville, Jamarius Green 9-21, Hayden Groves 8-15, John Zeno 2-14, Grail Brewster 12-13, Najee Tyler 5-0. Tyler, Ryan Young 18-107, Ryan Black 11-34, Ridge Wilson 4-20, Antonio Anderson 2-17, JaVante Mack 1-0, Randy Price 5-(minus 5).

PASSING—Coffeyville, Tyler 20-32-0—198. Tyler, Price 7-9-1—95, Black 1-2-0—7.

RECEIVING—Coffeyville, Jordon Jenkins 11-88, British Footman 6-82, Dylan Burford 2-20, Barron Metcalf 1-8. Tyler, Tracy Smith 3-87, Young 2-10, Jalen Claiborne 2-7, Mack 1-(minus 2).