Newton’s Travis to play football for St. Ambrose

Newton High senior Jordan Travis made an impact on both sides of the football for the Cardinals last fall.

Travis is going offense as he moves into college football. Travis signed a letter of intent Tuesday to play football at St. Ambrose University in Davenport. St. Ambrose is a NAIA program and plays in the Mid-States Football Association.

“The football program is top-notched and the facilities are the best I’ve seen,” Travis said of St. Ambrose.

Travis is a 6-foot-5 inch and 205-pound tight end. He caught 13 passes for 180 yards and one touchdown for Newton as a senior. He also was a lead blocker for the Cardinals’ running game.

“I think I can be a vertical threat-type tight end and be able to spread out and go up against a 5-foot-10 inch or 6-foot cornerback, or go down the seam and they can throw up the ball and I can go up and catch it,” Travis said.

St. Ambrose went 5-5 in 2014 and 2-3 in the MSFA. Under head coach Mike Magistrelli, the Fighting Bees have gone 55-30 the past eight years. St. Ambrose has won three conference champions and made four appearances in the NAIA playoffs in that span.

Travis was named to the Class 3A District 6 All-District Team after Newton’s 7-4 campaign in the 2014 season. The Cardinals ended the season in the second round of the 3A playoffs. It was the first time in the playoffs for Newton since 2012.

Travis played tight end on offense and defensive end for the Cardinals. He is a three-year starter at defensive end. He led Newton in tackles with 47 solo stops and 11 assisted tackles, which ranked him 14th in District 6. He had seven tackles for loss and five solo quarterback sacks.

Travis said he plans to pursue a degree in accounting at St. Ambrose. He is the son of Jim Travis of Newton.

Contact Jocelyn Sheets at
641-792-3121 ext. 6535 or jsheets@newtondailynews.com