#ProJacks Report: Self Leads Southwest Kansas to NAL Title, Harris Named to Team USA’s FIBA World Cup Qualifying Roster
6/24/2026 1:28:00 PM | General
Cotton finishes '26 campaign as Italian Football League's leading tackler
NACOGDOCHES, Texas – Former SFA football all-conference quarterback Trae Self led the Southwest Kansas Storm to the National Arena League title on Sunday night, defeating the Salina Liberty 42-38 inside Dodge City's United Wireless Arena. Self connected with former McNeese and UIW wide receiver Mason Pierce on a two-yard touchdown pass in the final seconds to give the Storm the franchise's first championship.
Self, a midseason signing for the Storm on April 16 following injuries in the quarterback room, helped the franchise clinch the league's top seed for the playoffs. In eight games, including a pair of playoff contests, Self passed for 1,299 yards and seven touchdowns.
Kevon Harris was recently named to the 12-man roster for USA Basketball's next window of FIBA World Cup qualifying games. Harris will represent the Stars & Bars in the Dominican Republic on July 3 and in Mexico on July 6. It is the third of six qualifying windows in advance of the 2027 FIBA Men's World Cup in Doha, Qatar.
Harris was a midseason signing of the Xinjiang Flying Tigers of the Chinese Basketball Association and averaged 18.1 minutes per game and shot nearly 40% from three-point range with an overall shooting clip of 45.6% after joining the club in December 2025.
Cody Templeton appeared twice in relief last week for the Milwaukee Milkmen. Templeton tossed a hitless frame against Kansas City on June 20, before firing back with 2.2 innings against Lake Country. The former Lumberjack ace has seen action in seven games since his May 27 signing. Templeton picked up his first pro victory against the Chicago Dogs on June 12. He has totaled 14.0 innings, all in relief, with ten strikeouts. Templeton returns to his native Texas in late July when the Milkmen meet East Division foe Cleburne Railroaders for a six-game series from July 28 through August 2.
Keon Thompson, the 2026 Southland Conference Men's Basketball Player of the Year, completed a pre-draft workout with the NBA's Memphis Grizzlies over the weekend. Thompson was also in Houston in early May where he completed a pre-draft workout for the Rockets. The NBA Draft is set for June 23 and 24 from inside the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York, with the NBA Summer League scheduled to run from July 3-19.
Will Vest completed a reliever's trifecta over the past seven days for the Detroit Tigers. Vest earned a hold in a 4-3 win over AL Central-leading Chicago on June 19, was credited the win two days later in a 5-4, ten-inning victory over the White Sox and most recently tossed 1.1 innings with two strikeouts to finish off the Yankees on Monday and secure a save. This season, Vest's sixth in the big leagues, the former Jack has appeared in 26 games, finishing nine, with two saves, seven holds and three wins over 25.2 innings. As of June 24, the Tigers are 7.5 games back of CWS and 5.0 games outside the Wild Card chase. Lumberjack fans can celebrate America's 250th Birthday with Vest in Arlington as the Tigers are scheduled for a three-game series against the Rangers on July 2-5. Detroit's schedule can be found here.
Josiah Cotton, who concluded his college football career with the Lumberjacks in 2024, recently completed the 2026 season with the Milan Rhinos of the Italian Football League (IFL). Cotton is a two-way player for one of the founding teams of American Football in Italy. He finished the eight-game season with an IFL-leading 59.5 tackles, 8.5 for loss including 2.5 sacks, with two pass breakups. On the offensive side of the football, Cotton led the team with 62 carries for 318 yards and six touchdowns including a long rush of 52 yards.
Willie Jefferson recorded two tackles and a sack, the 78th of his CFL career, in Winnipeg's 37-27 Week 2 loss to Hamilton. Jefferson entered the 2026 campaign second all-time in career knockdowns and six shy of 100 for his career, and is three sacks shy of becoming just the fourth Blue Bomber to reach 50 all-time in club history. The Beaumont, Texas native and the Blue Bombers return to action on June 25 at home against Edmonton. For the full 2026 WPG schedule, visit bluebombers.com.
Qualan Jones | Toronto Argonauts of the CFL | Practice Squad
Thomas Walkup | Olympiacos of the GBL and EuroLeague | Offseason
READ: "I'm not the type of guy who questions authority, the coach or the team"
NATIONAL FOOTBALL LEAGUE: Recent Minnesota Vikings draft pick Charles Demmingsconcluded organized team activities on Thursday, June 18. John Franklin-Myers, who preps for his eighth NFL season and first with the Tennessee Titans just concluded OTAs. Xavier Gipson and the New York Giants concluded OTAs and mandatory minicamps in June. The former All-American was in Nacogdoches earlier this week and joined fans, alumni and supporters at Fredonia Brewery for the department's annual Purple Lights Fund end-of-year celebration.
NFL SCHEDULE NOTES: The Vikings and Giants open preseason action on August 15 and Minnesota travels to New Orleans on October 11. The Titans and the Giants meet Week 3; Tennessee plays at Dallas on November 22 and will close out the regular season in Houston. The Giants make two trips to Texas, the first on October 25 for a Week 7 tilt at Houston and on January 3 against NFC East rival Dallas.
FULL 2026 SCHEDULES: VIKINGS | TITANS | GIANTS
FOLLOW THE LUMBERJACKS
For all the latest information on SFA athletics, visit SFAjacks.com. For up-to-the-minute updates, follow the Lumberjacks on X, Instagram and Facebook.
Self, a midseason signing for the Storm on April 16 following injuries in the quarterback room, helped the franchise clinch the league's top seed for the playoffs. In eight games, including a pair of playoff contests, Self passed for 1,299 yards and seven touchdowns.
TOUCHDOWN!!! Southwest Kansas Storm and the Salina Liberty watch it live at the NAL Network. pic.twitter.com/wUCAjBgWSq
— National Arena League (@NALFootball) June 21, 2026
Kevon Harris was recently named to the 12-man roster for USA Basketball's next window of FIBA World Cup qualifying games. Harris will represent the Stars & Bars in the Dominican Republic on July 3 and in Mexico on July 6. It is the third of six qualifying windows in advance of the 2027 FIBA Men's World Cup in Doha, Qatar.
Harris was a midseason signing of the Xinjiang Flying Tigers of the Chinese Basketball Association and averaged 18.1 minutes per game and shot nearly 40% from three-point range with an overall shooting clip of 45.6% after joining the club in December 2025.
Cody Templeton appeared twice in relief last week for the Milwaukee Milkmen. Templeton tossed a hitless frame against Kansas City on June 20, before firing back with 2.2 innings against Lake Country. The former Lumberjack ace has seen action in seven games since his May 27 signing. Templeton picked up his first pro victory against the Chicago Dogs on June 12. He has totaled 14.0 innings, all in relief, with ten strikeouts. Templeton returns to his native Texas in late July when the Milkmen meet East Division foe Cleburne Railroaders for a six-game series from July 28 through August 2.
Keon Thompson, the 2026 Southland Conference Men's Basketball Player of the Year, completed a pre-draft workout with the NBA's Memphis Grizzlies over the weekend. Thompson was also in Houston in early May where he completed a pre-draft workout for the Rockets. The NBA Draft is set for June 23 and 24 from inside the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York, with the NBA Summer League scheduled to run from July 3-19.
Will Vest completed a reliever's trifecta over the past seven days for the Detroit Tigers. Vest earned a hold in a 4-3 win over AL Central-leading Chicago on June 19, was credited the win two days later in a 5-4, ten-inning victory over the White Sox and most recently tossed 1.1 innings with two strikeouts to finish off the Yankees on Monday and secure a save. This season, Vest's sixth in the big leagues, the former Jack has appeared in 26 games, finishing nine, with two saves, seven holds and three wins over 25.2 innings. As of June 24, the Tigers are 7.5 games back of CWS and 5.0 games outside the Wild Card chase. Lumberjack fans can celebrate America's 250th Birthday with Vest in Arlington as the Tigers are scheduled for a three-game series against the Rangers on July 2-5. Detroit's schedule can be found here.
Josiah Cotton, who concluded his college football career with the Lumberjacks in 2024, recently completed the 2026 season with the Milan Rhinos of the Italian Football League (IFL). Cotton is a two-way player for one of the founding teams of American Football in Italy. He finished the eight-game season with an IFL-leading 59.5 tackles, 8.5 for loss including 2.5 sacks, with two pass breakups. On the offensive side of the football, Cotton led the team with 62 carries for 318 yards and six touchdowns including a long rush of 52 yards.
 |
 |
Willie Jefferson recorded two tackles and a sack, the 78th of his CFL career, in Winnipeg's 37-27 Week 2 loss to Hamilton. Jefferson entered the 2026 campaign second all-time in career knockdowns and six shy of 100 for his career, and is three sacks shy of becoming just the fourth Blue Bomber to reach 50 all-time in club history. The Beaumont, Texas native and the Blue Bombers return to action on June 25 at home against Edmonton. For the full 2026 WPG schedule, visit bluebombers.com.
Qualan Jones | Toronto Argonauts of the CFL | Practice Squad
Thomas Walkup | Olympiacos of the GBL and EuroLeague | Offseason
READ: "I'm not the type of guy who questions authority, the coach or the team"
NATIONAL FOOTBALL LEAGUE: Recent Minnesota Vikings draft pick Charles Demmingsconcluded organized team activities on Thursday, June 18. John Franklin-Myers, who preps for his eighth NFL season and first with the Tennessee Titans just concluded OTAs. Xavier Gipson and the New York Giants concluded OTAs and mandatory minicamps in June. The former All-American was in Nacogdoches earlier this week and joined fans, alumni and supporters at Fredonia Brewery for the department's annual Purple Lights Fund end-of-year celebration.
Legendary ??????#AxeEm x #EastTexasTough pic.twitter.com/UveB4Wazu1
— Lumberjack Football (@SFA_Football) June 24, 2026
NFL SCHEDULE NOTES: The Vikings and Giants open preseason action on August 15 and Minnesota travels to New Orleans on October 11. The Titans and the Giants meet Week 3; Tennessee plays at Dallas on November 22 and will close out the regular season in Houston. The Giants make two trips to Texas, the first on October 25 for a Week 7 tilt at Houston and on January 3 against NFC East rival Dallas.
FULL 2026 SCHEDULES: VIKINGS | TITANS | GIANTS
FOLLOW THE LUMBERJACKS
For all the latest information on SFA athletics, visit SFAjacks.com. For up-to-the-minute updates, follow the Lumberjacks on X, Instagram and Facebook.
Thursday, April 23
Monday, April 06
Monday, March 30
Friday, March 20
