San Antonio - Trinity's football team suffered its first defeat of the 2015 season, as Hardin-Simmons University took a 31-7 win over the Tigers on Saturday afternoon.

Trinity fell to 4-1 on the season, while the Cowboys maintained their unblemished record at 4-0.  The only score for the Tigers came with 22 seconds remaining, keeping the team from suffering its first shutout since the final game of the 1994 season.

"That is a very good football team," admitted Head Coach Jerheme Urban, when asked about Hardin-Simmons. "Coach Burleson has done a great job. They are big and physical in the trenches on both sides. They are athletic on the outside as well. There is a reason they are ranked in the top 15 in the country and climbing. I thought our guys did a great job in battling, but we ended up on the wrong side of the turnover battle. That's something you just can't do against a good team like that."

Hardin-Simmons scored on its first three possessions of the game to take a 17-0 lead early in the second quarter.  The biggest blow to the Tigers came after the Cowboys were able to convert a 15-play, 96-yard drive into the second touchdown of the game.  Hardin-Simmons converted three third downs during the drive.

Coach Urban also had this to say: "You just gotta make a few more plays, and we gotta get off the field on third down early in the game. I think, when we get those things corrected, we will be good to go."

Later in the second quarter, Trinity looked to have something going after a roughing the kicker penalty kept its drive alive.  The Tigers bogged down at the 30 yard line, though, and a penalty backed them up even more, forcing a punt.  Trinity's defense held, but the ensuing drive started with a 53-yard interception return for a touchdown by Hardin-Simmons, and the game was 24-0 at the half.

Trinity's defense was much better in the second half, allowing just 62 total yards of offense after the break, and the only touchdown allowed came on a short field (45 yards) for Hardin-Simmons.  Unfortunately, though, the Tigers could not muster enough offense to match what the defense was doing in the second half of play.

Jeremy Simmons had a strong game, rushing for 139 yards on 22 carries, but two interceptions and six sacks allowed neutralized his overall effectiveness in the end.  "We have continued to see that Jeremy Simmons can run the ball," said Coach Urban. "To have that kind of performance against an outstanding defense...it's pretty awesome."

Julian Turner led Trinity's defense with 12 tackles in the game, while Mitchell Globe finished with 11 of his own.  Luke Packard and Alejandro Anzaldua had 1.5 sacks each, and the Tigers finished with a total of 10 tackles for loss and six sacks of their own.

Austin Grauer completed 14-28 passes for 109 yards and the late touchdown to Cort Cowart from 10 yards out.  Evan McDowell caught four passes for 33 yards on the final drive, as well as rushing four times for 10 more yards to help the Tigers reach the end zone.

Trinity will head into the bye week after today's loss, returning the field for a home non-conference game against Austin College on October 17.