Kickoff

• Trinity International hits the road for the final game of the 2016 season, as the Trojans head to Taylor University for a noon kickoff.
• Streaming video and live stats of Saturday's contest will be available at Athletics.Taylor.edu.

Quick Hits

• Trinity will look to end the season on a three-game winning streak, following victories over St. Francis (Ill.) and Siena Heights.
• The Trojans rank 3rd in the MSFA, and 22nd in the NAIA, with 200.4 rushing yards per game.
• Junior linebacker Riley Schussler became Trinity's all-time leading tackler on Oct. 1 at St. Ambrose, and is now the first Trojan to ever make 400 career tackles, with 435 during his time at Trinity.
• On Aug. 27, senior wide receiver Cory Windle set the all-time TIU record for receptions, now with 158 catches over three-plus seasons. Windle is now the program's all-time leader in reception yards as well, with 1,938.
• Trinity (27.4 ppg) ranks 6th, and Taylor (26.7 ppg) ranks 8th in the MSFA in scoring. Defensively, Taylor allows 33.6 points per game (10th in MSFA), while Trinity ranks 11th (36.7 ppg).
• Sophomore running back Isaac Branch is four yards shy of 1,000 rushing yards this season.

Series History

• Trinity and Taylor have met 14 times before Saturday, with both teams claiming victory seven times.
• TIU won the first four meetings, from 1993-96, but Taylor has claimed victory in the last three meetings, dating back to 2009.

Last Time vs Taylor

• A fourth-quarter rally brought Trinity to within six points on their final drive, but the Trojans ultimately fell in the season finale, 34-28 to visiting Taylor, on Nov. 14, 2015 at Leslie Frazier Field.
• Senior wideout Dillon Turk collected five receptions for 86 yards and a touchdown, while running back Chris Elliott scored his 32nd career rushing touchdown, the second-highest career total in TIU history.
• On the defensive end, Sione Ma'U made five tackles and recovered a key fumble inside the TIU five yard-line, stopping a potential score.

About Taylor

• The Taylor Trojans are going for their fifth win of the year on Saturday, and are coming off a 48-45 road victory over Lindenwood-Belleville last weekend.
• Quarterback Everett Pollard is 8th in the MSFA with an average of 191.3 passing yards per game.
• Junior linebacker Cameron Gray is 9th in the MSFA with 8.0 tackles per game.
• As a team, Taylor has allowed 400 passing yards twice to MSFA opponents, Missouri Baptist and Marian.

A Trojan Win Would...

• ... Improve the team's record to 4-7.
• ... Be the first win over Taylor since 2003.
• ... Be the team's first three-game win streak since 2013 (Aug. 31-Sept. 21)
• ... Give the Trojans their best overall record since 2013 (5-5)
• ... Be the first road win of the year, snapping a nine-game streak.

Leslie Frazier Field

• TIU is 13-24 at home in the Wherritt era, and are 54-80-1 all-time at Frazier Field.
• Trinity's home record of 3-2 this season is the best home campaign in three seasons. The Trojans finished 4-1 at Frazier Field in 2013.
• TIU's head coach for the inaugural season in 1989 through 1996 was Leslie Frazier. Frazier was a member of the 1985 Super Bowl Champion Chicago Bears, and is currently the secondary coach of the NFL's Baltimore Ravens. He had a record of 38-37-3 while at TIU, and remains the winningest coach in Trinity International history.

Trojan Football History

• The Trinity International Trojan football program has an all-time record of 105-176-2 (.373), dating back to their first season as a varsity program in 1990.
• Trinity has won three MSFA Midwest League titles in school history (1994, 1995, 2003).
• TIU has earned two NAIA Football Championship Series berths (1994, 2004). The program is still searching for their first NAIA playoff victory, falling to Northwestern (Iowa) and Georgetown (Ky.), respectively.
• TIU has one appearance in the NCCAA Victory Bowl, where they fell to Garner-Webb (N.C.), 54-14, in 2001.

NCCAA Victory Bowl

• The top two eligible teams in the NCCAA based on Massey Rating will meet at the end of the season in the 2016 Victory Bowl.
• The Trojans are ranked No. 4 in the NCCAA rankings, the third-highest program from the NAIA. 

Offensive Leaders

• Senior quarterback J.J. Burmeister is averaging 158.2 passing yards per game this season, throwing 18 TDs on the year.
• Senior Cory Windle leads the Trojan receiving corps with 39 receptions and ten TDs.
• Sophomore running back Isaac Branch leads the Trojans with 996 yards on the ground, including a career-high 255-yard performance against St. Xavier last month, the highest total for a TIU rusher since 2012, when Chris Elliott set a new MSFA record with 346 yards.
• Branch is averaging 99.6 yards per game, reaching the century mark four times this season.
• Senior kicker Jeremiah Carter is Trinity's all-time leader in field goals made, and points scored by a kicker. This season, Carter leads the team with 62 points, going 10-for-15 on field goals, and 32-for-33 on extra points.

Defensive Leaders

• Linebacker Riley Schussler continues to lead the Trojan defense, with 115 total tackles. Schussler ranks 2nd in the MSFA and 10th in the NAIA with 11.5 tackles per game.
• Justin Hackley was named MSFA Midwest League and NCCAA National Player of the Week after his performance against Concordia on Sept. 24. Hackley recorded three sacks and 4.5 tackles for loss against the Cardinals, and is now the team leader with five sacks on the year. Hackley also has a team-high eight tackles for loss.
• Bradley Mowbray leads the team with three interceptions, including one last week against St. Xavier. Last week, Mowbray recorded two sacks, and now leads the team with six QB hurries.
• Linebacker Kelvin Acosta picked up the team's first defensive touchdown last week, with a fumble recovery and 43-yard return for the score.

Campbell Trophy Semifinalist

• Senior linebacker Riley Schussler was selected as a semifinalist for the 2016 William V. Campbell Trophy, presented by Fidelity Investments.
• Schussler is one of 156 players across college football, and only one of four NAIA players to be named a semifinalist.
• To be nominated, a player must be a senior or graduate student in their final year of eligibility, have a grade point average of at least 3.2 on a 4.0 scale, have outstanding football ability as a first team player and have demonstrated strong leadership and citizenship.
• Schussler becomes the first player in Trinity history to be nominated for the award.

TIU in the Polls

• TIU has been ranked 29 times in the program's history, and holds an all-time record of 15-12 (.556) as a nationally-ranked team.
• Trinity was ranked as high as No. 21 on Oct. 7, 2013, following their win over Olivet Nazarene.
• The Trojans are 7-51 (.121) all-time against ranked opponents, and 57-75 (.432) against unranked teams.
• When TIU is unranked, they are 53-125 (.298) since the poll's debut in 1999.

Mission108

• For the past four seasons, Trinity Football has supported the fight against human trafficking. Join us today in giving towards the goal of $10,000 to support a Safe House in Northern India and a Safe House in Chicago. Donations are online at www.Mission108.com.