San Antonio - The Tiger football team took advantage of five turnovers and another strong offensive performance to earn a 35-6 victory over Willamette University in Saturday night's home opener.

The victory pushes Trinity to a 2-0 record to start the season for the first time since 2012.  Tonight's game was the season opener for the Bearcats, which defeated the Tigers in Oregon last season.

Trinity's offense powered up for a 436-yard performance in tonight's win, while the defense recorded three interceptions and picked up two fumbles.  

After both teams traded punts to start the game, the Tigers got on the board first with an 11-play, 92-yard drive that was capped by the first of two touchdown receptions by wide receiver Cody Sandman.  Sandman finished the game with seven receptions for 150 yards and the two scores - all of which came in the first half.

Willamette put together a nice drive on its next possession, but stalled in the red zone, and had to settle for a field goal attempt.  That field goal was wide right, and Trinity took the ensuing possession for another score and a 14-0 lead.  Rhodes Legg converted a fourth-and-three on a fake punt from midfield to key the Tiger scoring drive.  

A strong kickoff return put the Bearcats in good position, and the visitors converted the short field into points with a 16-yard touchdown run - though the extra point was missed to keep it 14-6.  Trinity added another score late in the second to take the 21-6 advantage at halftime.

Trinity scored a pair of scores in the fourth quarter to secure the victory, capped by a 57-yard touchdown run by running back Travis Williams.  Williams finished the game with 100 yards rushing and two scores.  Defensively, Trinity wound up with a pair of fumble recoveries in the fourth quarter that also salted away the win.

Quarterback Austin Grauer, filling in for an injured Mason Blaschke, enjoyed a strong game in his first career start, connecting on 14-33 passes for 260 yards and three scores.  In addition to Sandman's strong half, Legg also had five receptions for 56 yards and a score. 

Williams and Jeremy Simmons combined for most of the team's 176 yards rushing, as well as catching three passes each for 44 total yards receiving.  Simmons had 18 carries for 78 yards, as well as three receptions for 32 more yards.  Williams added 12 yards receiving to his 100-yard rushing day.

Julian Turner picked up his second straight game with double-digit tackles, leading the team with 12 stops and a pair of quarterback hurries.  Brad Hood finished with 10 tackles and 1.5 sacks in the game, while Mitchell Globe added nine more to the total for the three linebackers.

Trinity will remain at home for a matchup against Sul Ross State University next weekend, kicking off at 6:00 p.m.  The Tigers won a narrow 14-6 game on the road against the Lobos last year.