Butte’s Jobanni Esparza signs at D-II
Esparza, a Hamilton alumnus, to handle special teams duties at Winston-Salem State
BUTTE VALLEY >> Jobanni Esparza never pictured himself playing football long-term, let alone playing in college.
But Esparza, the kicker and punter for the Butte College football team, surpassed his own expectations.
Esparza, also a 2018 Hamilton High graduate, signed his letter of intent to join Winston-Salem State University, a Division II program in North Carolina. Esparza signed his letter of intent alongside his sister Vanessa and his mother Nancy during a brief signing ceremony Monday morning at Butte College.
“I didn’t even think I’d take this path. I’d been playing soccer forever,” Esparza said. “Once I started seeing (Rigoberto Sanchez) succeed, I thought I’d give it a try.”
Rigoberto Sanchez, the punter for the Indianapolis Colts as well as Hamilton High and Butte College alumnus, has served as a mentor to Esparza. The two have practiced kicking and punting drills during a few sessions.
Like Sanchez, Esparza’s first passion was soccer. His skills in soccer transferred over to football when he decided to join the football team.
However, when he joined Esparza said he didn’t tell the coaches he knew how to kick.
“They got kind of mad at me because I hadn’t told them for four weeks,” Esparza said. “I got the start week five.”
After graduating from Hamilton in 2018, Esparza didn’t play football.
“I wasn’t 100 percent sure if I wanted to keep playing,” he said.
But then Butte kicking coach Abel Hernandez, also a former coach of Sanchez, convinced Esparza to kick for the football team.
“He taught me how to kick and do everything right,” Esparza said of Hernandez. “He played a big role.”
Hernandez said it was awesome to see Esparza find a program to continue playing at.
During the 2019 season, Esparza was 2-for-3 on field
goals but the one miss was a blocked attempt. Esparza had two punts with an average of 37 yards per punt.
But there were five kickers on the roster in 2019 which meant Esparza had to compete for playing time.
“He was our top guy that year,” Butte head coach Rob Snelling said. “I’m excited
to see this opportunity for him.”
Esparza said he’s excited to play in a game again since he last competed in 2019 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
He added that he’s still working on his punting game and perfecting the mental side of kicking.
But finding a Division
II college program was far past his expectations and he said he’s grateful to find a new destination.
“It means a lot, especially for my parents,” Esparza said. “They sacrificed a lot for me.”