Texas Lutheran athletics photo by Bailee Bauman

The expectation before Mary Hardin-Baylor’s 72-16 slaughter of Texas Lutheran was for a good game, one that included ebb-and-flow scoring by talented offenses of similar styles and the motivated effort of an up-and-coming team. 

The realities were that Texas Lutheran failed to perform and probably hadn’t reached the level needed to contend with a team the caliber of Mary Hardin-Baylor.  In addition, the Crusaders executed their game plan and took advantage of the lack-luster defense and turnover-prone offense of the Bulldogs. 

But, then again, the lopsided victory proved something else about the Cru — they seem to have balance on offense unlike they may have had in the recent past.  They threw for a total of 372 yards, 107 more than their average, and three touchdowns.  They also ran for 181 yards and five touchdowns.

“We feel like we can run the ball when given the opportunity, and we feel like we can throw the ball when given the opportunity,” offensive coordinator Cody Fredenburg said. “What we got last Saturday was an opportunity to throw the ball, based on how the defense was playing, so that’s kind of the direction that our offense went.”

The Cru would have had plenty of opportunities to score against the Bulldogs even if TLU hadn’t given up three interceptions and two fumbles.  The Bulldogs are allowing 445 yards of offense to their opponents, 302 of which through the air. 

Specifically, although he was careful to keep his “secrets” close to the chest, Fredenburg said, “They gave us some match-ups, one-on-one, on the outside, [that] we felt like we could win; and then, they gave us some opportunities in the play-action game.”

And those athletic pass-catchers of Kamray Runnels, Eric Nelson and Marcus Wimby were able to haul in most of what Zach Anderson threw, as the junior quarterback went 16 for 22.  The gaudy margin of victory, however, stemmed from an explosive second quarter, in which the Cru scored 35 points. 

The Cru’s stout defense and a Bulldogs breakdown in most phases of the game led to that killer of a quarter.  The Bulldogs punted the ball four times, at 29.5 yards per punt, committed one turnover on downs and threw one interception.

As Fredenburg said, “Our defense put us in great field position, which never hurts.  So when you only have to go a short field that makes things pretty easy on us.”

The shortened fields made things very easy for Hardin-Baylor, as did a punt return for a touchdown by Runnels and a 72-yard touchdown pass from Anderson to tight end Nelson on top of the three rushing touchdowns. 

This Crusaders team is an unorthodox version of what Hardin-Baylor’s powerhouse teams have looked like in the past.  The Cru does not have a No. 1 running back — four designated running backs were used in last Saturday’s win, with Duane Thompson accruing the most yards (60) and Michael Carpenter getting the most carries (13).  This is also a team that has the ability to run the ball or pass it with game-winning effectiveness based on the opportunities that present themselves. Essentially what that means (and what Fredenburg means by it) is that this team is dynamic, and dynamic teams are the ones that can surprise and catch other teams off guard.  

Fredenburg also attributed this team’s particular success to the fact that “This is probably the most balanced group that we’ve had in a long time, from an athletes standpoint.”

“What’s really unique about what we’ve got going on here is that we feel that we have the ability to run or throw, and that we can be balanced or we can be kind of lopsided, one way or the other.  It is all dictated on what the defense is trying to stop. … I think that makes our offense that much more dangerous.”

Although missing some of the traditional pieces of a powerhouse team, the collection of talent, especially on offense, that the Cru has assembled may be a tougher challenge for the Mount Unions, UW-Whitewaters, Wesleys and Linfields of the D-III world than a predictably good team. And as much as Hardin-Baylor’s offensive leader wanted to convey a sense of perspective and appreciation of the task at hand, there’s no doubt that he, his dad (head coach Pete Fredenburg) and the team itself are working towards and keeping an eye on the ultimate prize — a Division-III championship. 

 “You’ve got to go out and execute whatever your system is,” was all he would say. 

If a balanced offense, from which an opponent never knows who to stop or target, is the system, well, then, that company line could be the truth. 

In the race, really?

Birmingham-Southern with its last two wins against SAA opponents, Berry and Millsaps, improved to 3-1 in the conference standings, a game behind Centre, which is 3-0 in the conference.

Amazingly, this 3-5 Panthers team is in a conference race that also includes Rhodes (5-2, 2-1) and Hendrix (5-2, 2-1).

The interesting part is that Birmingham-Southern and Centre play in the last game of the season.  And if Centre were to lose one game, say to Hendrix or Millsaps, and the Panthers were to beat Rhodes in their next game, this Saturday, the Centre at Birmingham-Southern game would be for the conference title.  

Looking ahead

East Texas Baptist has lost three straight games and has given up 161 points in those three losses.  So, a win against Sul Ross State would do a lot for a Tigers team that was close to breaking into the D3football.com Top 25. 

On the flip side of that coin or just in a better state of being, Hardin-Simmons has won five straight, after an opening loss to Texas Lutheran.  Its next game is against Mary Hardin-Baylor in Belton. 

Despite the 63-7 loss last year, the Cowboys have played the Crusaders tough over the last five years.  It will be interesting to see if the Cowboys can hang around long enough to put pressure on the Cru.  But that’s no small task.