SEGUIN, Texas -- Texas Lutheran clinched a share of its third consecutive Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference Championship with a 41-7 home win Saturday against the Austin College Kangaroos.
At TLU's Bulldog Stadium at Frank L. Dunne Field, senior quarterback
Trenton White (Sachse/Sachse) threw four touchdown passes and became TLU's all-time touchdown passing leader.
The Bulldog Defense allowed only a touchdown in the final 3:16. TLU held the Kangaroos to 4-of-15 on third down and to 0-of-5 on fourth down. Austin College was 0-for-1 on red zone scoring chances.
TLU, ranked 20th in the latest D3football.com poll, improved to 7-2 overall and to 2-0 in the SCAC. The Bulldogs remain undefeated, at 8-0, in their short time in the SCAC. The Bulldogs are in their third season in the league.
Austin College dropped to 5-4 overall and to 1-1 in the SCAC.
TLU can clinch its third straight outright SCAC title with a win next Saturday against Southwestern University. The Bulldogs and Pirates kickoff at 6 p.m. Saturday from Georgetown ISD's Birkelbach Field.
White, now with 61 career TD passes, tossed touchdown strikes to
A.J. Saucedo (San Antonio/Central Catholic),
Jekovan Holmes (San Antonio/O'Connor),
Caleb Oliver (Pearland/Lutheran South), and
Mac Prichard-Warren (Tolar/Tolar).
For Prichard-Warren, the senior tight end, it was his first career touchdown. He scored from 11 yards.
For Holmes, the touchdown catch was the 14th of his stellar freshman season. Holmes broke a tie with former Bulldog Cameron Peavy for single-season TD receptions.
Holmes now has 14 TD receptions, 44 total receptions and 636 yards receiving. Peavy set the old TLU single-season mark with 13 scoring grabs in 2013.
Holmes has caught a touchdown in six consecutive games and in eight of the nine TLU contests this year.
Oliver caught his eighth TD of the season to move his career TD reception total to 19. Oliver is just three receiving TDs behind Peavy for second on the all-time TLU list.
The Bulldogs went 5-for-6 in red zone scoring chances.
The Bulldog Defense harassed Austin College quarterback Cooper Woodyard for much of the afternoon. Woodyard finished the day 14-for-30 for 163 yards with an interception and a touchdown.
Junior linebacker
Darian Candler (Humble/Atascocita) led TLU with 13 total tackles.
Drake Dowling (Katy/Katy), TLU's senior safety, added 12 total tackles. He also registered a forced fumble and an interception.
Senior defensive tackle
Dominick Stives (Wylie/Wylie East) collected 10 total tackles. Senior defensive end
Jonathan Olonade (Houston/Alief Taylor) posted a sack and two tackles for loss.
Junior safety
Matt McCullough (Georgetown/Georgetown) recorded a sack and had two tackles for loss.
The Bulldogs finished with seven total tackles for loss (25 yards in total losses). The team had five quarterback hurries.
Twelve TLU seniors - White, Dowling, Stives, Olonade, Prichard-Warren, Saucedo,
Jake Bahr,
Jacob Sadler,
Jordan Sims,
Andrew Syrinek,
Andrew Rodriguez, and
Tre La Grone - appeared in their final home games at Bulldog Stadium. The 12 were honored during a pre-game ceremony.