The562’s coverage of Jordan Athletics is sponsored by former LBUSD superintendent Chris Steinhauser.
The562’s coverage of football in 2024-25 is sponsored by The Terry Donahue Memorial California Showcase.
The Jordan football program has been much improved in recent years under third year head coach Jon Nielsen. Since taking over in 2022, Nielsen has coached Jordan to back-to-back winning seasons while leading J-Town to an at-large playoff berth last year in the CIF-SS Division 7 playoffs. The Panthers have since replaced almost a dozen starters in their roster as they look to take another step up ahead of their 2024 season.
“We just gotta continue building,” said Nielsen. “It’s taken three years to get here, and we’ve gotten rid of the kids that don’t wanna be here. It’s taken a while but now the group of kids we have out here want to work, and we’re excited for that.”
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Nielsen will retain his son and star quarterback, Jarret “J.J.” Nielsen, who’s proven himself as a true dual-threat. Last year, the Hawaii commit more than doubled his passing yards from the previous season, posting 3,411 yards through the air while adding 783 rushing yards on 66 carries. Nielsen also totaled 37 touchdowns in his junior campaign, eight of which were with his legs.
While his numbers should continue to impress in 2024, J.J. Nielsen’s offense could look much different than it did a year ago. He’ll be without standout running back Jordan Washington in the backfield, who graduated early and started his tenure at the University of Washington last spring. Washington accounted for 1,589 total yards and 18 touchdowns in his senior season, leaving a major workload behind in the Jordan offense.
“Last year we had Jordan Washington so now that he’s gone he’s not here for us to feed him the rock anymore,” said J.J., who says he’ll be throwing the ball even more this season. “(The pass game) has been our identity, not much is changing for me. I’m still gonna play my game.”
Taking carries in place of Washington will be 6-foot-2, 215-pound Kalib Tautolo, a former linebacker who’s shown proven abilities at running back. Coach Nielsen says that Tautolo should be heavily involved in the passing game out of the backfield, and thinks his fit might be even better for this year’s offense.
“I mean he was offensive back of the year at Cerritos before he came over here [to play linebacker for us]. So he’s a running back and he’s a mismatch. 215 [lbs] is a lot to tackle in the open field and he probably has some of the best hands on the team as well.”
After a bad case of dropped footballs last year, Jordan will have a new slate of receivers at their disposal and plan on getting the passing game involved early and often. They’ll be without their top three targets from last season, however, Kani Swisher and Bryan Simmons will return, and they’ll be joined by promising transfers John Lim and Marquice Horton.
“Last year we were limited with who we had to work with at receiver, but I’m excited because we’re an entire unit this year,” said Nielsen. “We’re ready to throw it this year. It’s taken us three years to get to this point so it’ll be fun.”
The Jordan O-line might be the strongest group on the team built around returning senior and center Sei Saolotoga. Jaedion Bookman and Angel Delgadillo will start at tackle, while Cameron Mauinatu and David Velasquez will be at guard.
On the defensive side, the Panthers are thin on the D-line and they’ll likely show a 3-4 front while relying on their deep group of linebackers. Manase Poleo, Ray Gallegos, and Ke’marion Daniels should be the main guys in rotation on the line, while Ugo Gonzales, Phoenix White, and Damian Marquez will lead the way at linebacker.
“We’re gonna pressure and fly to the ball,” said Nielsen. “Last year, that was our weakness. We couldn’t fill holes and do some different things so we upgraded at linebacker. We plan on doing all kinds of stuff on defense.”
The Panthers secondary features some of their youngest talent in juniors Kymani Hill, Trejon Spears, Marcus Williams, and sophomore Brandon Thomas. Hill and Spears will likely fill the two corner spots but Nielsen says his defensive backs can play anywhere the team needs them.
“We’re young and athletic back there,” said Nielsen. “A lot of experience from playing last year. When college coaches came out they liked a lot of our young guys back there and they’re around the mix, so I’m excited for them to get on film.”
Jordan’s campus is undergoing a significant amount of construction which has forced the team to practice and play at Compton College. They’ll host all of their home games there and Nielsen said he’s been thrilled to have his guys playing on a better field.
“I actually like being off campus. It’s an actual football field with the turf and the lines. The kids like it and it’s a destination for us so it’s like a field trip for them every day. It definitely has some positives to it. We’re just excited to get out there and play.”
Jordan will kick off their season at North Torrance on Aug. 23 before facing Kennedy, George Washington Prep, and La Mirada in non-league play. They’ll open up their Moore League season at Long Beach Poly on Sept. 20.
Probable Strarters
Offense
QB – JJ Nielsen, Sr.
RB – Kalib Tautolo, Sr.
WR – Marquice Horton, Jr / Bryan Simmons, Sr / John Lim, Sr / Kani Swisher, Jr
LT – Jaedion Bookman, Jr.
LG – Cameron Mauinatu, So.
C – Sei Saolotoga, Sr.
RG – David Velasquez, Jr.
RT – Angel Delgadillo, Sr.
Defense
DL – Manase Poleo, Jr. / Ray Gallegos, Sr. / Ke’marion Daniels, Sr.
LB – Ugo Gonzales, Sr. / Phoenix White, So. / Damian Marquez, Sr.
DB – Kymani Hill, Jr. / Trejon Spears, Jr. / Brandon Thomas, So. / Marcus Williams, Jr.
2024 Compton Tarbabes Football Schedule
*Note: All home games will be played at Compton College
8/23 – at North
8/30 – vs. Kennedy
9/6 – at George Washington Prep
9/13 – vs. La Mirada
9/20 – at Long Beach Poly (at Vets Stadium)
10/4 – at Millikan
10/11 – at Lakewood
10/18 – vs. Compton
10/25 – vs. WIlson
11/1 – vs. Cabrillo
