BANNOCKBURN, IL—vNobody gave the Trojans even a puncher's chance to knock off #15 St. Xavier Cougars in Saturday afternoon's clash at Leslie Frazier Field, but the Trojans put their heart, toughness, and talent front and center for all to see as they mounted a remarkable resistance despite dropping the contest, 35-6.
On a sunny and unseasonably warm fall day, the Trojan offense matched the temperature with a scorching start on their opening drive, plodding down the field on a methodical 14-play effort that was jump started by a 28-yard connection between a pair of true freshmen, quarterback Liam Mickle and wideout Cameron Jones that moved the sticks on 4th-and-5. The Trojans continued to press their luck on the next sequence, bamboozling the Cougar defensive unit with a devious play design. On 4th-and-2, Mickle shouted in apparent panic and frustration, drawing the defense's eyes to him as
Charlie Weber tiptoed under center and rumbled forward for a Trojan first down. Despite the creativity and gumption that characterized the drive, the Trojans couldn't catch lightning in a bottle a third time, eventually failing to convert and turning the ball over on downs. After the offense's early exploits, it was the Trojan defense's turn to showcase their abilities in the latter portion of the first quarter. After conceding touchdowns on the first two St. Xavier possessions, the Trojans buckled down, forcing a three-and-out before freshman
Matthew Perry came up with his first career pick to quickly extinguish another Cougar sequence. While the Trojans were unable to convert the turnover into points, they'd successfully stopped the bleeding and harnessed some positive momentum as they trailed 14-0 at the end of the opening stanza.
While the Trojan defense was solid in the first period, they elevated their game to flat out dominate the second. The swarming Trojans consistently applied pressure in the Cougar backfield, with the talented duo of freshman D-linemen Jeremy Walton and Jaylyn Norris giving the vaunted St. Xavier offense all it could handle. The Trinity secondary also worked overtime not only to suppress the explosive Cougar receiving corps, but also to flip momentum back to the Trojans, with cornerback Michael Upshaw registering his first interception of the season. While the Trinity offense didn't have their finest performance in the stanza, their occasional struggles did allow punter Cameron Outlaw to stride into the limelight, as he belted a 62-yard punt to highlight a career day that saw him dole out long fields to the Cougars with regularity. All told, the Trojan defense pitched a shutout in the period, with the only Xavier scoring coming off a pick-six that set the halftime margin at 21-0.
Undaunted by the three-score margin, the Trojan offense once again took center stage as the third quarter began. Trinity marched the ball down the field on the merits of a series of well-executed plays before turning to tailback Javier Acosta to barrel ahead and move the sticks on a 4th-and-4. The pivotal contribution from the running game setup Trinity's lethal passing attack, with fourth-year Trojan vet
Khalid Humphreys getting behind the defense to haul in a 44-yard touchdown throw from Mickle for his first touchdown of the season and the seventh score of his impressive Trojan career. Inspired by the offense's surge, the Trojan defense came up with a huge play of their own, with Upshaw lunging to snare a tipped pass for his second interception of the afternoon. The Trojans would cede one more touchdown before the end of the period, but their exploits on both sides of the ball kept Trinity within shouting distance of the nationally recognized Cougars, who led 28-6 entering the fourth.
Once again, the Trojan defense flexed its muscle in the final 15 minutes of play. With the Cougars knocking on the door of touchdown number five and seeking to put the game on ice, the Trojans came up with a last stand that would have made even Colonel Custer proud. With St. Xavier on the Trojan five-yard line, Trinity repelled their opponent on seven consecutive plays, with the last five being snapped just a yard from the goal line on a sequence that was extended by a controversial penalty. Once again, the stingy Trojan defense didn't allow a single point to the Cougars for the duration of the quarter, with the only scoring in the period coming on another St. Xavier pick-six that would close the game's ledger and set the final margin at 35-6.
While the Trojans were unable to overcome the high-powered Cougars, there certainly wasn't any shame in the result, as St. Xavier has now won each of their last six ball games as they continue to rise in the national rankings. In fact, Trinity put up an even better performance than the respectable final tally would indicate, as with a bit more good fortune, a few less controversial flags, and a couple less mistakes, the Trojans could easily have found themselves standing toe-to-toe with their top-15 foe.
The silver lining took on a particularly bold and shiny hue in the aftermath of Saturday's contest, as several Trojans stood out in the hard-fought battle. Mickle and Jones continued to introduce themselves to the collegiate scene with solid outings against the feared Cougar defense, with Mickle throwing for 210 yards and a score while Jones tacked on four catches for 63 yards while totaling 124 all-purpose yards. While that youthful duo impressed once again, it was reliable senior Khalid Humphreys who was the brightest star of the Trojan offense, as he hauled in seven balls for 85 yards and the lone Trinity touchdown. The Trojan defense was highlighted by Upshaw (2 interceptions), Perry (1 interception, 2 pass breakups), Norris (5 tackles, 2 tackles for loss, .5 sacks) and Walton (9 tackles, 2.5 tackles for loss, 1.5 sacks). After yesterday's performance, Walton stands at 8.0 sacks for the season, a total that earns him the single season record and a place in the career top ten of Trojan history. And while he often goes unnoticed in favor of the emerging offense and persistent defense, punter Cameron Outlaw was a bona fide weapon for the Trojans on special teams, drilling a career-long 62-yard boot while dropping five of his six punts inside the 20 and averaging 45 yards per punt.
The Trojans (0-8) will be back in the saddle next Saturday, October 29, when they travel to St. Louis to try to build on their momentum in a more manageable matchup with Missouri Baptist University.
Trinity International University is a comprehensive, national university affiliated with the Evangelical Free Church of America and located in Bannockburn, Illinois, 25 miles north of Chicago. TIU educates men and women to engage in God's redemptive work in the world by cultivating academic excellence, Christian faithfulness, and lifelong learning.
