TU Moves to 4-0 with Blowout of Kentucky Christian

GRAYSON, Ky. – Taylor scored touchdowns on seven of its first nine possessions on its way to a historic scoring output and cruised to a 67-35 win at Kentucky Christian on Saturday afternoon to improve to 4-0.

With the win, the Trojans continued their best start since opening the 1999 season at 6-0 and eclipsed the 50-point marker in a third-straight game for the first time in program history. The 67 points scored at KCU were also the third-most in a single game by Taylor, trailing only the 68 scored against Hanover in 1963 and the 73 scored against Rose Poly in 1961.

The Trojans also made history with a school record seven rushing touchdowns in the contest.

TU put the game away early, continuing its season-long trend of first-half offense and finding the end zone on six-of-eight drives before the half. A seventh touchdown on their first possession of the third quarter gave the Trojans a 48-8 spread and sent them on the way to a comfortable 32-point win.

Taylor closed the game with 560 total yards of offense, posting 7.1 yards per play and piling up 307 yards on the ground for a third-straight outing with at least 300 yards rushing.

Jameson Chesser led the ground game, piling up three first-half touchdowns and ending with 84 yards and those three scores on just eight carries. Nathan Parker also enjoyed a solid afternoon with 66 yards on 11 touches and one touchdown, while Ethan Albert and Kyle Stratton added rushing scores.

Damon Hockett accounted for four touchdowns, rushing for one and throwing for three more. Hockett posted 253 yards through the air on 12 completions.

Jack D'Arcy led the TU receivers with five catches for 121 yards and one touchdown, while Nathan Munson continued his touchdown streak, catching two more passes and finding the end zone on both. The freshman tight end has now caught seven passes in four games, with all seven resulting in touchdowns.

The Taylor defense was anchored once again by Aven Jones, who posted eight solo stops among his team-leading nine tackles, but Jeremiah Mansfield stole the show with three sacks and four hits behind the line of scrimmage for a loss of 26 yards. Mansfield ended with eight total tackles, one forced fumble and one fumble recovery.

Wade Jones followed with seven tackles, while Parker Whitby and Caleb Ranzau each registered a sack and Reid Messer hauled in his third interception of the season.

Carter Loveless did his part on special teams, averaging 44.0 yards over four punt attempts and sticking all four inside the 20-yard line.

Taylor (4-0, 1-0 MSFA) closed the game ranked second in the NAIA with 18 rushing touchdowns, third with 311.3 rushing yards per game, fourth with 523.3 total yards per game and fourth with 52.8 points per contest.

The Trojans will look to continue their strong start when they host No. 5 Marian (3-0) on Saturday, September 28 at 7:00 pm inside Turner Stadium.