President Ahlburg Welcomes Back Tiger Football Team

San Antonio – The Trinity Tigers football team is back in action.

A total of 100 players – 55 returnees and 45 newcomers –reported for duty as they prepare for the Sept. 4 home game with Howard Payne University.

Trinity football was the first team on campus for the 2010-11 campaign. It is also the first Tiger team for University President Dr. Dennis Ahlburg, who assumed the office in January.

The Tigers are led by head coach Steve Mohr, in his 21^st year at the Trinity helm.

Coach Mohr has guided Trinity to 14 Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference Championships, and 11 appearances in the NCAA Division III playoffs. He also took the Tigers to the 2002 Amos Alonzo Stagg Bowl, the NCAA Division III Championship game.

Trinity had an overall season record of 7-3 in 2009, and went 4-2 in the SCAC.

Spearheaded by 16 returning starters (eight offense, six defense, two special teams), the Tigers will strive to recapture the SCAC title, which they last won in 2007 (a co-championship with Millsaps College).

Trinity’s offense scored 29.6 points per game in 2009, third in the SCAC. The Tigers were third in rushing offense (162.4 yards per game), fourth in pass offense (196.8 yards per game), and fifth in total offense (359.2 yards per game).

Senior quarterback Robert Davidson of Fort Worth, Texas (All Saints Episcopal), was fourth in conference passing average, with 146.2 yards per game. Davidson was fifth in pass efficiency (137.7), fifth in total offense (150.4 yards per game). He completed 102-168 passes (one interception), for 1,170 yards and 10 touchdowns. Davidson also scored four rushing touchdowns.

Junior quarterback Patrick Dickinson of San Antonio (Central Catholic) completed 41-67 passes (one interception) for 538 yards and five touchdowns, as well as rushing for two more.

Senior wide receiver Caleb Urban of Victoria, Texas (Memorial), was elected to the All-SCAC Second Team Offense. He snagged 34 passes for 538 yards and six touchdowns. Urban also rushed 21 times for 212 yards and a touchdown.

Daniel South, a senior wide receiver from Montgomery, Texas (Montgomery), caught only six passes, but they added up to 133 yards and two touchdowns. Junior tight end Markham Stayton of  Katy, Texas (Katy), had 10 receptions for 91 yards.

The offensive line returns four solid starters, anchored by junior tackle Justin Campbell of Victoria, Texas (Memorial). Campbell was selected for the All-SCAC Honorable Mention Team. The versatile Campbell is also an All-American in the discus throw.

The Tiger defensive unit was  second in conference scoring defense, allowing 21.2 points per me. Trinity ranked third in total defense (312.4 yards per game), third in rushing defense (119.1 yards per game), and fourth in pass defense (193.3 yards per game).

Jonathan Osei-Kuffour, a junior cornerback from Houston (Lamar), made the All-SCAC First Team Defense. Osei-Kuffour registered 25 tackles (18 solo), to go along with one intercption, one fumble recovery, and two pass breakups.

Junior cornerback Tyler Barrett of Spring, Texas (Oak Ridge), is the Tigers’s leading returnee in tackes, with 37 (27 solo). Barrett, selected for the All-SCAC Honorable Mention Team, also leads in interceptions, with two for 63 yards.

The linebackers corps is led by junior Ben Robinson, and senior Jarrod Burns, both selected for the All-SCAC Honorable Mention Team.

Robinson, from Coppell, Texas (Coppell), had 36 tackles (25 solo), two interceptions (for 24 yards), and two fumble recoveries. Burns, from nearby Bulverde, Texas (Smithson Valley), accounted for 34 tackles (13 solo).

The Tigers defensive line is led by senior ends Garrett Van Dyke and Reuben Lucas.

Van Dyke,  from Houston (Northland Christian), was elected to the All-SCAC Honorable Mention Team. He produced 29 tackles (14 solo). Lucas also had 29 tackles (13 solo), and led in sacks, with 2.5 (14 yards).

Trinity’s special teams unit brought national attention to the Tigers.

Sophomores Garrett Biel and Kyle Trella were elected to the D3football.com All-America Third Team.

Biel, a kicker from Clayton, Calif. (De La Salle), led the NCAA Division III in field goals made, connecting on 17 of 19. His longest field goal was 48 yards. Biel’s 17 field goals set a new school record for a single season. He also broke the mark for most field goals in a single game, making four against Rhodes College.

Trella, a punter from Chandler, Ariz. (Chandler), led the nation in punting during the regular season (No. 2 after the playoffs), averaging 44 yards per attempt. He broke a 46-year-old Trinity record with his 48.8 yards per punt average against Sewanee. Trella now holds four of the top-10 averages in Tigers’ single-game history (minimum of five punts). He landed over 33 percent (16) of his punts inside the 20-yard line.

In addition, Trella was named the SCAC Football Newcomer of the Year. Both Biel and Trella were elected to the All-South Region First Team, and the All-SCAC First Team.

Another player who consistently stepped up is the previously mentioned Caleb Urban. He  returned 24 kickoffs for a school single-season-record 630 yards, and one for a touchdown of 87 yards. He also broke the Trinity record for career kickoff return yards, and for most returns.

The career kickoff return yards, and single-season yard records were previously held by Urban’s older brother, Jerheme, who was a Tiger standout from 1999-2002. He is now a receiver for the Kansas City Chiefs. As a member of the Arizona Cardinals, Urban played in this year’s NFL Divisional game against the New Orleans Saints. He also was a member of the 2009 Cardinals Super Bowl team.

After the non-conference opener with Howard Payne, the Tigers return home Sept. 18 to host the Rhodes Lynx in a SCAC contest at the Trinity Football Stadium. The Tigers play host Sept. 25 to SCAC co-champion Millsaps Majors, and do not play at home until Oct. 23 against the DePauw Tigers, on the University’s Alumni Weekend. DePauw shared the 2009 SCAC title with Millsaps, and won the NCAA automatic qualifier. The Tigers wrap up their regular-season home schedule Nov. 13 by hosting the Austin College Kangaroos in a conference tilt.

Five road games are on the docket, starting Oct. 2 in Birmingham, Ala., with the Birmingham-Southern Panthers, a SCAC opponent. Trinity travels to nearby Seguin Oct. 9, for a non-conference game with the Texas Lutheran Bulldogs. The following week, Oct. 16, it will be a SCAC  battle of the Tigers as Trinity takes on Sewanee: the University of the South at Sewanee, Tenn. The Huntingdon Hawks will host Trinity Oct. 30 in a non-conference meeting at Montgomery, Ala. The Tigers finish their road schedule Nov. 6 at Danville, Ky., taking on the Centre Colonels in a SCAC pairing.