GAMEDAY CENTRAL | Taylor vs Saint Francis | Game Six

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UPLAND, Ind. - Offense could be on full display on Saturday, October 5, when Taylor welcomes Saint Francis to Turner Stadium for a 1:00 pm start. TU will enter the game ranked No. 3 in the NAIA with 49.0 points per game, while USF enters ranked No. 7 with 45.0 points per game.

SCOUTING TAYLOR: The Trojans have climbed to No. 2 in the NAIA with 340.8 rushing yards per game, rushing for over 300 yards in four-straight games. While the offense has gotten all of the attention early in the season, TU's defense has been led by Aven Jones and Reid Messer, who rank third and first respectively in the NAIA in total tackles and interceptions. 

SCOUTING SAINT FRANCIS: The Cougars enter Saturday on the heels of three-straight lopsided wins on their home turf against Defiance, Siena Heights and Madonna. USF has done it through the air, passing for 358, 255 and 480 yards in those outings. Graduate-senior quarterback, Joshua Kulka, has been outstanding in his final campaign, completing 70.1-percent of his passes and throwing 10 touchdowns.

LAST MEETING: Taylor and Saint Francis both rushed and threw for over 200 yards, while also turning the ball over four times each in a 44-31 USF victory on TU's Senior Day last November. The game came down to the final snap, with USF recovering a fumble and returning it 76 yards for a touchdown as time expired. Jacob Hockett highlighted the afternoon for the Trojans with a game-high 14 tackles.

SERIES HISTORY: Taylor is 2-21 all-time against Saint Francis on the gridiron, and 0-3 against the Cougars under the direction of fourth-year head coach Aaron Mingo.

LAST TIME OUT: A deflected pass by a diving defender on TU's two-point attempt in overtime spoiled an upset bid by the Trojans in a 35-34 loss to then-No. 7 Marian. The Trojans never trailed in regulation, forced five takeaways and ran for a program record, 459 yards, in the instant classic.

HALL OF FAME CLASS OF 2024: During halftime of Saturday's game, Taylor Athletics will officially induct Kendall Bradbury (women's basketball), Alec Dutkowski (men's golf), Alex Lovelace Hughes (softball) and Jay Teagle (men's basketball) into its Hall of Fame. Fans can also view TU's digital Hall of Fame here.

SCORE EARLY, SCORE OFTEN: Taylor has showcased a robust first-half offense through its first five games by finding the end zone on 20-of-31 offensive possessions before the half that were not ended by time expiring. In that span, Taylor has averaged 29.8 points in the first half, scoring at least 28 points before the break in all but one outing. 

PARTY LIKE IT'S 1999: With wins in its first four games Taylor got off to its best start since opening the 1999 season at 6-0. The Trojans went on to finish 10-2 that year, winning the MSFA Midwest League Championship and advancing to the second round of the NAIA Playoffs.

LIGHTING UP THE SCOREBOARD: With 58, 52 and 67 points in successive wins against Olivet Nazarene, Judson and Kentucky Christian, Taylor made history by putting at least 50 points on the scoreboard in three-straight games for the first time in program history. TU has scored at least 34 points in each of its five games this season and its current clip of 49.0 points per game would shatter the program record of 38.0 set in 2015.

RUNNING WILD: Through the first five weeks of the season, Taylor has surpassed 300 yards rushing in all but one of those contests. TU's 340.8 rushing yards per game this season rank the Trojans No. 2 in the NAIA entering the sixth week of the season.

JONES HONORED BY NAIA AND MSFA: TU's Aven Jones was named the NAIA National Defensive Player of the Week and earned his third MSFA Defensive Player-of-the-Week honor of the season following his performance in Taylor's overtime loss to then-No. 7 Marian. Jones posted a career-high 19 tackles in the contest, with one sack, 2.5 hits for lost yardage and one fumble recovery.

LUCKY NUMBER 7: Taylor's freshman tight end, Nathan Munson, started his collegiate career with seven catches over TU's first four games. All seven of those receptions ended with Munson in the end zone, as the rookie hauled in touchdown catches of seven, 11, 21, 29, 58, 75 and 82 yards. Munson's streak ended against Marian, as he caught his first pass of the season that did not result in a touchdown.

TROJANS IN THE NAIA RANKS: Taylor enters week-six at No. 1 in the NAIA with 35 touchdowns. The Trojans also rank No. 2 with 528.2 total yards per game, No. 2 with 340.8 rushing yards per game, No. 2 with 23 rushing touchdowns and No. 3 with 49.0 points per game. There are also multiple Trojans ranking near the top of the NAIA, as Reid Messer ranks No. 1 with four interceptions, Aven Jones ranks No. 2 with 37 solo tackles and No. 3 with 59 total stops, Nathan Munson ranks No. 3 with seven receiving touchdowns, Jameson Chesser ranks No. 4 with 569 rushing yards and No. 7 with seven rushing scores and Carter Loveless is No. 6 with 43.4 yards per punt. 

TICKET INFORMATION: Fans looking to purchase tickets to any Taylor game can do so by visiting TaylorTrojans.com/tickets.

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