SEWANEE, Tenn. –
Barton Mixon carried 32 times for 120 yards but 22
nd-ranked Trinity University scored three times in an 11-minute stretch in the second half, pulling away for a 32-3 victory over Sewanee in Homecoming football action here Saturday at McGee Field-Harris Stadium.
The Tigers (3-5, 1-4 SAA) trailed 13-0 at the half and drove 73 yards on 18 plays, taking almost 10 minutes off the clock to open the second half.
Sean Johnson caught a pass for 24 yards and
Dyer Barnes made a six-yard catch on fourth down, keeping the drive alive.
Mixon rushed three times to set-up 1
st-and-goal and the Tigers had 3rd and 4
th-and-goal at the three, but Mixon was stuffed on both plays, turning the ball over to Trinity (7-1, 4-1).
The visitors wasted little time, with Hondo Franklin hitting Alejandro Tavarez for 51 yards on third down and two plays later, Tavarez caught a 31-yard touchdown pass, pushing the Trinity lead to 19-0.
Sewanee moved 64 yards on nine plays in the fourth quarter, with Mixon gaining 30 yards on the first play and 27 on the third. A pass interference penalty pushed the ball to the Trinity 25-yard line, but the drive stalled and
Will Simpson booted a 38-yard field to get the Tigers on the board.
Three Sewanee quarterbacks completed 9-of-23 passes for 104 yards and three interceptions, with Barnes and Johnson each catching four balls in the contest. Sewanee managed only 218 yards of offense in the contest.
Franklin finished 16-of-23 passing for 261 yards and three TDs while nine Trinity players rushed the ball, led by Xadrian Huerta's 45 yards on nine attempts. Sewanee's defense accounted for four sacks and six tackles-for-loss, stopping three drives in the first half on fourth down. Trinity led 7-0 before scoring with 1:40 to play in the second quarter and the third-quarter TD started a 21-0 spurt to pull away.
The Tigers sacked Franklin on fourth down at the Sewanee 32 on the opening drive of the game, starting a trend in the first half where the home team ended three Trinity drives with fourth-down stops.
Trinity scored late in the first quarter on a six-play, 78-yard drive highlighted by a double-pass from Collin Bishop to Franklin, which turned into a 51-yard play. Huerta carried three times for 19 yards and Franklin broke a tackle near the goal line for a rushing touchdown and a 7-0 lead for the visitors.
Barnes caught a 44-yard pass early in the second quarter to the Trinity 19, but
Kade Smith tossed an interception on third down, with Jaden Powell stepping in front of the throw to end the possession in the red zone.
Trinity failed on fourth down at the Sewanee 37 on its first drive of the second period and again at the 37 after the INT. The visitors used two of its timeouts to get the ball back before the half.
Franklin's pass at the Sewanee 45 was broken up by
Jaylen Mack, who was called for pass interference on the play. On the next play Franklin tossed a touchdown to Tyson Hancock, though Trinity missed the extra point and led 13-0 at the break.
The Tigers registered just 64 total yards of offense in the half, punting five times and gaining just three first downs on seven possessions. Trinity collected 13 first downs and 254 yards of offense but converted 1-of-6 on third down and 0-for-3 on fourth down.
Sewanee ends the home schedule next Saturday, taking on Centre College for Senior Day at 1 p.m.
