MINNEAPOLIS, MINN.—The No. 7 Bethel University football team are off to their best start to a season since 2013 following a 56-7 road victory over Augsburg at Edor Nelson Field in Minneapolis on Saturday afternoon. That 2013 Bethel squad finished with a 10-0 regular season mark.
The Royals improve to 5-0, 4-0 MIAC, while the Auggies fall to 2-3, 2-2 MIAC.
Bethel 56, Augsburg 7
It was another day at the office for Bethel's rushing offense, who accumulated 271 yards with a balanced attack that saw four individuals contribute at least 40 yards. Freshman Taye Manns registered 41 of his game-high 92 yards rushing throughout the game's opening drive that ended with Cooper Drews' two-yard touchdown run that gave the Royals a 7-0 lead with 10:57 left in the first quarter.
Jace Fadden recovered a Augsburg fumble on the ensuing kickoff, which gave Bethel the ball back on the Auggies' 30 yard line. The Royals scored two plays later off Cooper Drews' 15 yard touchdown pass to Albert Rundell that pushed their cushion to 14-0 with 10:40 on the clock.Â
Bethel's next two scores were touchdown passes from Cooper Drews to Aiden Eckert from five and 10 yards out, respectively, which widened the score to 28-0 with 2:51 remaining in the second frame.Â
Jake Borman intercepted a pass from Auggies quarterback Caden Rodkewich on the ensuing drive at Augsburg's 36 yard line, and returned it 10 yards to the 26 with 2:06 left in the second quarter. The Royals ran the clock down to 0:16 with an eight-play drive that ended with a one-yard touchdown run from Riley Gritz that gave Bethel a 35-0 halftime lead.
Albert Rundell's 41-yard reception down to Augsburg's 13-yard line highlighted Bethel's lone scoring drive of the third quarter. Manns finished that series with a one-yard touchdown run that made the score 42-0 with 2:11 on the clock.Â
Augsburg's Tyrone Wilson, who finished with a game-high seven receptions and 117 yards, narrowed the score to 42-7 with an eight-yard touchdown grab with 14:21 left in the fourth quarter. Bethel sealed a 56-7 win off Cooper Drews' 12-yard touchdown pass to Albert Rundell with 11:00 remaining, and Ian Burkman's one-yard rush with 1:56 on the clock.
The Royals defense surrendered just 36 yards rushing. Thomas Rush paced Bethel's defense with 10 tackles (four solo), followed by eight (three solo) from Devin Williams. Marcus Whiting's four tackles included 1.5 sacks and 2.5 TFL's. Jace Fadden, who also had four tackles, contributed a forced fumble and fumble recovery while Jake Borman had five tackles and one interception. Foster Mulvehill and RJ Chakolis each had 14 stops for the Auggies.
Bethel quarterback Cooper Drews completed 15-of-26 passes for 136 yards and four touchdowns. Aiden Eckert had five grabs for 37 yards and two touchdowns, while Albert Rundell had three catches for 68 yards and two touchdowns. Taye Manns had 92 yards rushing and one touchdown on 21 carries, followed by 77 yards and one touchdown on 15 carries from Riley Gritz.Â
Augsburg quarterback Rodkewich completed 18-of-29 passes for 171 yards and one touchdown.
Bethel finished with 407 yards of total offense, and held Augsburg to 207.
The Royals will host St. Olaf for Homecoming at Royals Stadium on Saturday, October 18 at 1 p.m.
