Game Leaders
Team Stats
Passing Yards
Rushing Yards
Turnovers
Time of Poss.
McMINNVILLE, Ore. – Blake Eaton passed for 302 yards and three touchdowns to power the No. 9 Linfield Wildcats to a 41-13 rout of the George Fox Bruins in Northwest Conference football action Saturday at Maxwell Field.
The Homecoming victory assured Linfield of a 67th consecutive winning season, extending the longest run of winning campaigns in the history of college football. The Wildcats (5-0, 3-0 NWC) last experienced a losing season was in 1955.
Eaton excelled in the pocket, completing 26 of 31 throws without an interception.
Wideout Devon Murray enjoyed has best game of the season, pulling in seven passes for 117 yards and one touchdown. Colton Smith accounted for six grabs for 39 yards. His 2-yard TD strike with 5:45 left in the second quarter gave Linfield an insurmountable 35-0 advantage.
Connor McNabb led the Linfield running game with 32 yards on nine carries. He also caught five Eaton passes for another 57 yards.
Tackle Nick Severson finshed as the Wildcats' leading tackler, making six srtops, including four unassisted. Alex Frazier-Dow and Caiden Biege-Wetherbee contributed four tackles each.
For the day, Linfield amassed 403 yards, averaging 5.7 per play. The 'Cats did not turn the ball over.
Aaron Martinez got the Wildcats on the scoreboard, capping Linfield's opening drive with a 1-yard plunge.
A bad snap on a punt on the Bruins' ensuing possession gave the Wildcats the ball at the visitors' 1-yard line. Two plays later, McNabb soared over the goal line and into the endzone. The extra point by Gavin Dalziel made it 14-0 with just eight minutes elapsed in the first quarter.
George Fox struggled to move the ball against the Linfield defense, only surpassing 100 yards of offense midway through the fourth quarter. The Bruins' points came on Taylor Saben's 87-yard kickoff return to open the second half and Dillan Dobbins' 75-yard pass reception from Max Richey with 2:11 left to play.
GFU linebacker Austin Canchola led all defenders with nine tackles. Nolan Martin added seven stops.
CAT SCRATCH
Saturday's attendance was 2,227. . . the Bruins managed to convert just 1 of 13 third-down plays and went 1-for-4 on fourth down. . . Linfield converted 7 of 8 red zone opportunities into points. . . Paul Thie and Maclain Stoneking combined for 78 yards on six punt returns. . . Linfield punter Thomas Tabor consistently pinned the Bruins deep in their own territory, averaging 46.3 yards per attempt, including three that were downed inside the 20-yard line.
NEXT
Linfield hits the road to Tacoma, Wash., next Saturday where they will play the Puget Sound Loggers. Kickoff is set for 1 p.m. at Baker Stadium. George Fox will host Willamette.