SEWANEE, Tenn. –
Barton Mixon rushed 29 times for 201 yards and threw two touchdown passes,
Sean Johnson caught two touchdowns and Sewanee's defense picked off three passes, two by
Jaylen Mack, in a 28-6 victory over Rhodes College in football action Saturday in Memphis, Tenn.
The Tigers (3-4, 1-3 SAA) claimed the Orgill Cup in consecutive seasons for the first time since 2001-02.
Johnson caught TD passes of 11 and 42 yards, both in the first half, while
Dyer Barnes added a 17-yard scoring reception in the third quarter for a 21-0 Sewanee advantage.
After the Lynx (1-6, 0-4) scored on a busted play for a 65-yard touchdown pass late in the third period,
Trevon Garden added the final score for the Tigers on a 19-yard run around right end midway through the final quarter.
Sewanee's defense limited Rhodes to just 71 rushing yards in the game while posting six sacks, 12 tackles for loss and three interceptions, including two by Mack and one from
Troy Holloway.
Brody Sanderson,
Balint Rendessy and
Jaden Gnagy all posted two sacks while Gnagy collected four tackles for loss and Sanderson added three TFLs.
Rhodes started the game with a 15-play drive that took nearly half the first quarter but stalled at the Sewanee 36. Mixon broke off a 42-yard run on the second offensive play for the Tigers and after gaining 13 more yards on three carries,
Cam Beasley hit Johnson for an 11-yard TD.
Mack intercepted a pass near midfield on the second Lynx play on the ensuing possession.
Early in the second period Mixon hit the big play again, but this time throwing the ball, hitting Johnson for a 42-yard TD down the right sideline, extending the lead to 14-0. Holloway intercepted a pass near at the Sewanee 26 and returned it near midfield late in the quarter.
Midway through the third quarter Sewanee put together a seven-play, 58-yard drive with Mixon rushing or passing for all 58 yards. He rushed twice for 16 yards and found Barnes for eight before another eight-yard carry. After an incompletion he picked up eight more yards on the ground and then hit Barnes for a 17-yard touchdown.
Taylor Haas scrambled right and hit a streaking Liam Sitz for a 65-yard TD on the first play of the next play by Rhodes, though the home team missed the extra point.
After the defense forced a turnover on downs, the Tigers scored again in the fourth quarter thanks to a six-play, 56-yard drive. Mixon rushed three times for 23 yards and after an incompletion, gained nine more yards on the ground. Rhodes committed a penalty on 3
rd-and-1, giving Sewanee a first down, and on the next play Garden rushed around right end, weaving his way for the touchdown.
Mack posted his second INT late in the game near the Sewanee goal line, keeping the Lynx from cutting into the deficit.
The Tigers host Trinity University next Saturday at Noon for Homecoming at historic McGee Field-Harris Stadium.
