EPHRAIM, Utah (July 22, 2019) -- With the breakup of the Western States Football League (WSFL), Snow College was forced to put together an independent schedule this fall. The Badgers, who finished ranked No. 9 in the final 2018 NJCAA national rankings, have two opponents repeating from last year's schedule, (ASA Miami and Iowa Western) and will be taking on last year's No. 2, No. 3, No. 6, No. 11 and No. 13 teams, which marks one of the toughest -- if not the toughest--schedule in Snow's 100th year of college football.

"We're excited about the season," says first-year head coach Andrew Mitchell. "This is likely the toughest schedule Snow has ever played."

Mitchell, who was Snow's offensive coordinator for the past two seasons, took over the helm shortly after the departure of Paul Peterson who took over the head coaching position at Dixie State University after leading Snow to an 8-3 finish in 2018.

Snow last played an independent football schedule in 1923. Snow played in the WSFL for 34 years since the league's founding in 1985, the same year that the Badgers won the NJCAA National Championship. From 1948 through 1984 Snow played in the Intermountain Collegiate Athletic Conference, and before that played in the Utah-Idaho Intermountain Junior College Conference from 1924 through 1947

The Badgers open this season at Garden City, Kan., on August 24 and will take on last year's No. 2 team. Last season the 10-1 Broncbusters lost to East Mississippi in the National Champioship game, 10-9. Garden City won the National Championship in 2016. The season-opener against Garden City will see a familiar face on the opposing sideline. New GCCC head coach, Tom Minnick, who knows as much about Snow as anyone in the country, moved to Garden City from Arizona Western following that school's decision to drop its football program at the end of last season. Garden City Community College, founded in 1919, is celebrating its centennial this year, while Snow College is completing its 100th year playing football. (Snow first played football in 1920, but did not play games during 1938 and 1943-45.)

On Aug. 31, the Badgers will return to the mid-west to challenge last year's No. 11 team -- the Grizzlies of Butler Community College in El Dorado, Kan. The Grizzlies finished with a record of 8-4 last year with all four losses coming against teams finishing no lower than 13th in the final rankings. This year's game will mark the fourth meeting between the two teams, all three previous meetings taking place in Snow's Top of the Mountains Bowl in 2005, 2007 and 2008. Snow won the first meeting between the teams by a field goal, but Butler won the last two meetings which were National Championship games, including the 2007 game in which now-head coach Andrew Mitchell was a first team All-American lineman for Snow.

The Badgers will be at home during the month of September, hosting Air Force Prep on Sept 7, followed by a Sept. 14 match up against last year's No. 6 team, Lackawanna. On Sept 21, Snow will play host to last year's No. 13 team, Iowa Central. 

While this year's match-up against Air Force Prep will be the seventh match-up between the two schools, the game against Lackawanna College (Pa.) will mark the first-ever meeting between the two schools. The Falcons finished last year, 11-0, but were passed over by a pair of 10-2 teams. Lackawanna's final game of the 2018 season was a 17-10 win over No. 19 Arizona Western in the El Toro Bowl. 

The Badgers wrap up their home stand on Sept 21 by hosting last year's 13th ranked Tritons of Iowa Central Community College  in Snow's homecoming game. For the second week in a row, the Badgers will be hosting a team in a first-ever match-up.

On October 12, Snow will travel to Florida with the ASA Miami Silver Storm. This will be the third year in a row the teams have faced each other, including last year's 71-27 Badger win in Ephraim. The following week the Badgers travel to Council Bluffs, Iowa, for only their second rematch from last year's schedule. There they get a shot at avenging a 19-17 loss to the Reivers of Iowa Western in last year's Graphic Edge Bowl. This will be the third game ever between the two teams, with Snow winning the first matchup in the 2010 Top of the Mountains Bowl. The Reivers won the National Championship in 2012.

The Badgers close out the regular season on Nov. 2 as they host RPA Prep College from Arlington, Texas. Along with its game at Snow, this year RPA will play against NJCAA's Cisco, Blinn, Trinity Valley and Hutchinson.

"I feel like we have elevated our talent at all the skill positions over last year, especially in the defensive backfield and on the offensive perimeter," said Mitchell. "Second team All-WSFL quarterback Braxton Kerr is coming back, which is rare at Snow College."

Kerr threw for 2,299 yards and 25 touchdowns last season and helps a lot from a continuity and experience standpoint according to Mitchell.