SAN ANTONIO – The Trinity University football team fell just short in a 29-22 NCAA 1st Round Playoff loss to the University of Mary Hardin-Baylor (TX) on Saturday afternoon.
The Tigers fell to 8-3 this season, while UMHB upped its record to 7-3 on the year. Trinity falls to 5-8 overall against the Crusaders, including six straight losses in the NCAA Playoffs. Trinity did snap a seven-game losing streak to UMHB with a win during the 2023 regular season. Trinity scored the first 10 points of the fourth quarter to take a 22-21 lead with 6:56 left, but Mary Hardin-Baylor scored with just under two minutes left to take the lead. The visitors then kept the Tigers from tying things up with a game-sealing interception at its own 33 yard line with just 12 seconds left.
Trinity out-gained UMHB offensively, piling up 292 of its 350 yards through the air. The Tiger defense limited the Crusaders to just 188 passing yards and 321 total yards. Trinity was plagued by three turnovers and two blocked kicks in the game, as well as UMHB using its running game to control the clock. The Crusaders had the ball for nearly 12 minutes in the third quarter alone and had possession for almost 20 minutes in the second half, limiting Trinity's chances to rally after falling behind 21-12 in the third quarter.
Tyler Huettel (McKinney, Texas / McKinney) broke Trinity's single season record for field goals made with a fourth-quarter score from 43 yards out that put the Tigers ahead for the first time in the game. He finishes with 18 field goals this season to establish the new school record.
Will Taylor (Houston, Texas / Strake Jesuit) finished with five receptions for a career-high 100 yards to lead all receivers.
Alejandro Tavarez (San Antonio, Texas / Johnson) made the most of his two catches, scoring two touchdowns for a total of 35 yards.
BJ Rainey (Cedar Hill, Texas / Cedar Hill) had seven receptions for 85 yards to eclipse his career high as well.
Ryan Back (Austin, Texas / Vandegrift) completed 22-of-39 passes for 292 yards and a pair of scores and had a one-yard rushing TD on the day.
Winston Hutchison (Round Rock, Texas / McNeil) led Trinity's rushing attack with 72 yards on 10 carries in the game.
Defensively, linebackers
Cade Rabson (The Woodlands, Texas / College Park) and
James Ogunrin (Katy, Texas / Episcopal) finished their careers with 15 tackles each. Rabson had double-digit tackles four times in the past five games, while Ogunrin's total is a new career high. Rabson also had a shared sack and Trinity's only turnover – an interception he returned 18 yards.
Anthony Njoku (Richmond, Texas / Travis) finished with nine tackles, while
Cullen Betsey (San Antonio, Texas / Smithson Valley) finished with eight stops of his own.
Jackson Barry (Dallas, Texas / Dallas Christian) and
Jonathan Nwobodo (Missouri City, Texas / Ridge Point) had seven tackles each, with Nwobodo piling up 2.0 tackles for loss and 1.5 sacks in the game.
The Rundown
The game started off slowly offensively as both teams tried to settle in for the opening quarter of the postseason. Trinity's second punt of the game was blocked, and Mary Hardin-Baylor took advantage of the short field to change the scoreboard. The six-play drive covered 37 yards and featured a key third-down conversion to keep the drive alive and ultimately, result in a 7-0 lead.
Trinity had a three-and-out on the next possession, but Rabson gave the Tigers a huge lift with an interception on the next play that set up the offense just outside the red zone. Trinity got to first-and-goal from the 10 but were not able to punch it in for the tying score. The Tigers settled for a short field goal, but the snap was high and the ensuing rush for the end zone came up two yards short just before the end of the first quarter. A short punt for UMHB on its next drive gave Trinity another opportunity, but a fumble at the visitors 10 yard line gave the ball back to the visitors. The Crusaders quickly took advantage of the miscue, covering 90 yards on just four plays to make it a 14-0 lead.
Trinity continued to struggle on its next drive but a stop by the Tiger defense put the ball back in the hands of the offense with 5:07 left in the first half. Taylor had two critical third-down catches that covered 57 yards, then Rainey caught a 19-yard pass from Back to reach the one yard line. Back executed the QB sneak and the Tigers were on the board. The ensuing kick was blocked, though, and the score was 14-6 with under two minutes left in the quarter. The Tiger defense fed off the energy of the score and was determined to make another stop. Nwobodo had a 10-yard sack on third down to finish off the drive that went for negative yardage and lasted just 26 total seconds. Back and the offense took over with 1:28 to play in the half and needed just 40 seconds of that to find the end zone once again. After two quick completions to start the drive and move inside the UMHB 35, Back connected with Tavarez two plays later for a 34-yard score that cut the lead to 14-12. The extra-point missed again, and that score remained as both teams headed to the locker room.
Mary Hardin-Baylor took the kickoff after the break and chewed up seven minutes of the clock, covering 76 yards on 12 plays to take a 21-12 lead. The ensuing kickoff turned into the second turnover of the game for the Tigers and the Crusaders took over again on the Trinity side of the field. The Tiger defense held this time, but Trinity's first snap of the second half came with nearly 10 minutes elapsed in the quarter.
After both teams had three-and-out drives, Trinity took over with 1:42 left in the third quarter. Hutchison broke free for a 39-yard run on the second play to get inside the UMHB 15 and the Tigers were ready to stage their comeback bid. Trinity started the fourth quarter with first-and-goal from the three and two plays later, Back found Tavarez for a one-yard touchdown pass to make it a 21-19 game.
Trinity's defense got a big third-down stop to get the offense back on the field. The Crusaders had a three-and-out of their own ruined by a 15-yard penalty to keep Trinity's drive going. The Tigers marched to the UMHB 21 before stalling and settling for a 43-yard field goal from Huettel. That score put Trinity in front for the first time at 22-21 with just 6:56 left in the fourth quarter.
Mary Hardin-Baylor marched 71 yards on 11 plays after taking over, scoring the go-ahead touchdown, and eating up 5:00 off the clock to leave Trinity with under two minutes to play. Trinity's offense took over at its own 14 but got a couple of quick first downs to move near the 40. A false start put the offense behind the chains, but Back found Hutchison on fourth-and-six for a 16-yard play to cross midfield with 18 seconds left. That's when UMHB got their third turnover of the day as Back's pass was intercepted inside the UMHB 30 to seal the Crusaders win.
