No. 13 Tiger Football will hit the field for the first time in the 2024 season.
 
Last Season
 
The Tigers concluded the 2023 season with a stellar 10-2 overall record and claimed the Southern Athletic Association (SAA) Championship with an undefeated 8-0 conference record. After losing their first game, Trinity dominated the rest of their schedule, outscoring opponents 481-170. In the playoffs, the Tigers defeated Hardin-Simmons 20-6. Trinity had an impressive 22 players selected to the all-conference team and swept the offensive, defensive, and special teams Player of the Year awards. Additionally, nine Tigers earned All-Region honors. Fifth-year quarterback Tucker Horn (Graham, Texas / Graham) was a finalist for the Gagliardi Trophy, while Caleb Harmel (Burton, Texas / Burton), Tyler Huettel (McKinney, Texas / McKinney), and Jacob Munoz (Cedar Park, Texas / Cedar Park) were named D3football.com All-Americans. Head Coach Jerheme Urban was honored as Region 3 Coach of the Year.
 
This Season
 
Trinity will kick off their 2024 season against Texas Lutheran on September 7th. The following week, on September 14th, the Tigers will travel to Jackson, Mississippi, to face Belhaven. Their final non-conference game is scheduled for September 21st against Washington & Lee. Conference play begins with an away game against Centre College on October 5th. After several weeks of conference matchups, the Tigers will host Berry College on October 26th for Hall of Fame Weekend. The regular season will conclude with a game against Millsaps, also in Jackson, Mississippi.
 
The Tigers will bring back All-American kicker Tyler Huettel. All five starters from last year's offensive line will return include All-Region players Caleb Bayer (Grandview, Texas / Grandview) and John Hughes (Cypress, Texas / Bridgeland). Those linemen will pave the way for two very experienced running backs in Winston Hutchison (Round Rock, Texas / McNeil) and Legend Grigsby (Houston, Texas / Cypress Creek). James Ogunrin (Katy, Texas / Episcopal) and TJ Scannell (San Antonio, Texas / Reagan) will lead the defensive side of the ball.
 
D3football.com and SAA Preseason Poll
 
In the national poll by D3football.com, the Tigers were ranked 13th. North Central secured the top spot with 14 first-place votes, followed closely by Cortland with 11 first-place votes. UW-Whitewater, Wartburg, and Mount Union rounded out the top five. Regional rival Hardin-Simmons was ranked 15th, while SAA opponent Berry was ranked 25th.
 
In the SAA poll voted on by the league's coaches, the Tigers were picked to finish second, totaling 45 points and three first-place votes. Berry was chosen to finish first, picking up 47 total points and five first-place nods. Centre and Rhodes round out the top four. Hendrix, Sewanee, Southwestern, and Millsaps fill out the rest of the poll. 
 
Preview - Season Opener
 
The home crowd will be pumped up as the Tigers will be at home to take on the Texas Lutheran Bulldogs on Saturday, September 7th at 7:00 PM. 
 
On the Texas Lutheran Bulldogs: Texas Lutheran finished the season with a 2-8 record and a sixth-place finish in the conference, with a 1-5 record in the American Southwest Conference (ASC). The Bulldogs secured victories against Southwestern and Austin College. Offensively, Texas Lutheran averaged 25 points per game and displayed a balanced offensive strategy. Sophomore quarterback Caden Bosanko threw for 1,260 yards and added 367 rushing yards. He will rely on senior wide receiver Jacob Wallace, who had 42 receptions for 529 yards last season. With the departure of running back Jacob Forton, who amassed over 750 all-purpose yards last season, the Bulldogs will need to find a new key player for the backfield. On defense, Texas Lutheran returns leading tackler Tristan Smith and interception leader Jemario Thomas. However, the defense struggled to pressure opposing quarterbacks, recording only 14 sacks for the season. In their last game of 2022, Trinity defeated the Bulldogs 52-14, improving their overall record to 19-13.
 
Looking Ahead - I'm Going To Jackson
 
The Tigers will head to Jackson, Mississippi to take on Belhaven on September 14th.