No. 6 Tiger Football will play their final regular season home game against Hendrix College on Saturday.
 
The Tigers (8-1) dominated again in the game against the Sewanee Tigers, winning by a score of 44-6. The Tigers accumulated 245 yards of offense through the air and 200 yards on the ground. The Tigers were led by quarterback Tucker Horn (Graham, Texas / Graham), who collected 230 yards passing and three touchdowns. In the backfield, it would be Jackson Williams (Manor, Texas / New Tech) to lead the way with 55 total yards. For the receivers, Cole Monago (Houston, Texas / Klein Cain) racked up 103 yards receiving and a touchdown.
 
D3football.com Rankings - Tigers Stay At 6
 
For the third week in a row, the Tigers were ranked 6th nationally on the D3football.com poll. North Central (Ill.) remains number one, while Mount Union is in second. Region rival Hardin-Simmons jumps one spot to 19th and conference foe Berry is ranked 23rd. 
 
SAA Player of the Week - Eli Gehman, Special Teams
 
Punter Eli Gehman has been selected as the SAA Special Teams Player of the Week. This is Gehman's second career SAA Player of the Week selection.
 
Gehman booted five punts for 233 yards (46.6 yards/punt) during the Tigers game against Sewanee. Gehman had two punts of 50+ yards, including a 53-yarder and a season-long 64-yarder later in the game.
 
Preview - Final Home Game
 
The Tigers will host the Warriors of Hendrix College this Saturday with a noon kickoff. The Warriors are 3-6 (3-4 SAA) this season, collecting wins against Southwestern, Millsaps, and Rhodes. During the 2022 game, the Tigers defeated the Warriors by a score of 28-7. Overall, the Tigers are 4-2 all-time against Hendrix since their first game in 2017.
 
Offense: Led by Horn, the offense stayed on fire this week. This marks the third game in a row, fifth overall, that the Tigers have amassed more than 40 points. Horn also ranks 13th nationally for passing touchdowns and 10th in passing efficiency. Give credit to the Tiger offensive line, as they paved the way for a backfield that averaged 7.4 yards a carry last game. Legend Grigsby (Houston, Texas / Cypress Creek) added a touchdown to his season total. The Tiger receiving core was immaculate as well, Monago caught a touchdown and fifth-year Ryan Merrifield (Austin, Texas / Vandergrift) caught six passes for 82 yards and two touchdowns. Overall, it was a successful day for Offensive Coordinator Wade Lytal and the offense. Offensively, the Warriors are no joke. Led by sophomore quarterback Jacob Buniff, the Warriors have only been held to single-digit scoring once this season. Also, Buniff ranks 14th nationally in passing yards. Buniff will get the ball to his favorite receiver, senior Christian Gadison, who has collected 706 yards this season. 
 
Defense: The game against Sewanee was the fourth contest in a row that the Tiger defense has allowed less than 10 points. Leading the way would be safety Ryan Arnold (Austin, Texas / Vandergrift) with 6 total tackles. However, it was a full team effort for the Tiger defensive unit as they collected 9 tackles for loss, four sacks, and two interceptions. Both Quinn McDermott (Fairview, Texas / Lovejoy) and Roan Erwin (San Antonio, Texas / Alamo Heights) got their first interceptions of the season. Defensively, the Warriors have struggled. They have given up 30-plus points in 7 of their 9 games this season. However, the Warriors are led by senior linebacker Nathan Hahn, who has amassed 57 total tackles on the season. The Warriors have not applied pressure to quarterbacks as they have only gotten 16 sacks on the season. 
 
Special Teams: Besides Gehman, the Tiger special teams didn't have much action. Kicker Tyler Huettel (McKinney, Texas / McKinney) went 1-2 on field goals and 5-5 on extra points. In the return game, Will Taylor (Houston, Texas / Strake Jesuit) would lead the way with 26 yards on three returns. For Hendrix, kicker Slate Stanton has gone 2-7 on field goal attempts this season, making his two kicks from 20-29 yards out. For kickoffs, the Warriors will send out freshman Clay Brandenburg. Brandenburg has had 4 touchbacks on his 47 kicks this season, so look for the Tiger returns to give Horn and the offense good field position during this game. 
 
Key To The Game
 
Get On 'Em Early: The Tiger offense has a big opportunity to light up the scoreboard against a diminished Warrior defense. It will be up to Horn and Coach Lytal to get the offense into a groove. As Hendrix is the second-to-last ranked defense in the conference, the Tigers will be able to sling the rock all over the field and could put up big numbers.
 
Looking Ahead - Playoff Time In Texas
 
The Tigers will compete in the first round of the NCAA III Football Playoffs on Saturday, November 18th. The opponent and location is TBD.