The Sewanee Tigers confront the Southwestern University Pirates. Photo courtesy of sewaneetigers.com.
By Harry Davis
Staff Writer
To start off the 2019 football season, the Sewanee Tigers lost to the Southwestern University Pirates 47-7 in their home opener.
Sewanee finished with a record of four wins and six losses last year, which demonstrated consistent improvement from a three win and seven loss season in the 2017 football season. The Tigers started the season with three wins and two losses before starting quarterback Alex Darras (C’20) was injured for the remainder of the season.
The Tigers looked to start the season strong with a home opener against Southwestern. The Pirates finished last year with a six and four record and scored more than 40 points in four of their games.
The Pirates started the game with an eight play, 61-yard touchdown drive. The Tigers’ first possession showed promise as they moved the ball effectively before they punted. Southwestern received the ball and then scored on a 66-yard touchdown pass to put them ahead 14-0. For the rest of the first quarter both offenses struggled to move the ball.
On the Pirates’ first full possession of the second quarter, they scored on a one-yard touchdown run but missed the point after opportunity which expanded their lead to 20-0. Late in the second quarter, Zach Bryan (C’22) recovered a fumble on the Southwestern 47-yard line to set up the Tigers with an opportunity to close the gap late. Sewanee’s offense pushed to the Southwestern 30-yard line before a field goal attempt missed.
As the second half started, the Pirates scored touchdowns on their first three drives to shut down any chance of a comeback as they expanded the lead to 40-0. After another Southwestern fumble, recovered by Jack Lambert (C’21), Darras completed a 24-yard pass to Colin May (C’21) to make the score 40-7. Southwestern scored one more late touchdown to make the final score 47-7. Overall, a tough game for the Tigers as they were out rushed 331 yards to 22.
The Tigers will go on the road to play Washington and Lee on Saturday, September 14, before they return home to play Birmingham-Southern on Saturday, September 21 for Family Weekend.