The UT Martin football team went on the road and posted a statement OVC victory at Tennessee Tech, picking up a 55-14 win in the opening game of the annual Sergeant York Trophy Series.
The Skyhawks (4-2, 3-0 OVC) remain unbeaten in league play with their third consecutive victory while dominating every phase of the game. UTM would score a total of seven touchdowns while adding a pair of field goals to cap off an evening in which the team tallied a season-high 553 yards of total offense. The Skyhawks also scored a season-high 55 points which ranked as the high scoring output against an OVC foe since 2014 against Murray State.
The win also moved the Skyhawks to 1-0 in the highly-contested Sgt. York Trophy series. Overall, the Skyhawks are 26-11 all-time against foes of the quadrangular season series between the four OVC football-playing schools located in the state of Tennessee.
After a strong performance against TTU Saturday, Skyhawks junior placekicker Ryan Courtright was named OVC Specialist of the Week.
Courtright remained perfect on the season by making a pair of field goal attempts and seven point after attempts against Tennessee Tech. Courtright gave the Skyhawks a double-digit advantage in the first quarter with a season-long 45-yard field goal attempt before adding another 30-yard attempt in midway through the second quarter.
Courtright has been automatic this season by making 5-of-5 field goal attempts this season. For his career, Courtright has tallied 124 total points while making 20-of-23 field goal attempts and 64-of-69 PATs.
Meanwhile, UTM freshman quarterback John Bachus III was recognized for his remarkable performance Saturday by being named OVC Offensive Player of the Week, College Football Performance Awards (CFPA) FCS National Performer of the Week, and OVC Newcomer of the Week.
Bachus threw for five touchdown passes while completing 16-of-22 passes for 331 yards (and no interceptions), tallying career-highs in both yards and touchdown passes. He had touchdown passes of 22, 24, 73, 21 and 66 yards and completed passes to eight different receivers while averaging 20.7 yards per completion. His five touchdown passes ranked as the most by a Skyhawk since 2015.
Bachus has found his stride as of late, pushing his season totals to 95-of-150 completions with 1,263 yards and eight touchdowns. He currently ranks 25th nationally in completion percentage (63.3%) while ranking amongst OVC leaders in pass efficiency (first), total offense (second) and passing average per game (third).
The Skyhawks will return to action on Saturday afternoon, playing host to Eastern Illinois. Kickoff from Hardy Graham Stadium is slated for 2:00 with airtime at 1:30 on WCMT.
