ADRIAN, Mich. – An early lead turned out to not be enough with the 2025 Border Brawl going to the nationally recognized Adrian College by the score of 44-21.
The Trine University football team scored the first two touchdowns of the game to take a 14-0 lead with 6:23 remaining in the first quarter. The Bulldogs won the toss and gave the ball to the Thunder to start the game. RJ West II connected with Tristan Burrus for 54 yards on the first play, setting up a completion to Zack Pillow a few plays later for the 7-0 lead.
Adrian moved the ball into the offensive side of the field on their first drive, but their drive ended with a failed fourth down play setting up a second early Trine drive. This time the offense was much more methodical, taking ten plays to go 60 yards for the touchdown. The one long play went to Burrus on a 19 yard pass. Cortaveon Barnett capped the drive with a five yard rush.
The home team found the endzone on their next drive, but the Thunder did as well. The first play after the Adrian touchdown was a 53 yard completion to Burrus that led to another short touchdown pass to Pillow. The 21-7 lead lasted into the first intermission.
The Bulldogs scored in the opening minutes of the second quarter, before both teams traded punts. The Thunder looked primed extend their lead again when Barnett broke a 73-yard run to the two yard line, but a fumble soon after ended the drive and let the Bulldogs tie the game with their third touchdown of the game. The game held the 21-21 score into halftime.
Trine's defense came up with another stop to start the third, getting the ball back with 12:19 on the clock. The drive ended quickly, and the punt play was a disaster for the team. A bad snap forced Hugo Belmonte to kick the ball out of the back of the endzone for a safety. Adrian doubled down with touchdown to take a 30-21 lead.
The momentum never came back to the Thunder. They had two more drives end in lost fumbles, while Adrian scored two more touchdowns to build their final 44-21 lead.
West finished the game 284 yards of passing while going 24 for 32. He added the second most rushing yards for the team with 78. Barnett led the team with 107 yards. Burrus finished the game with 138 yards receiving as the top target.
Defensively, Trey Richards led the team with 11 tackles, followed by a trio, including Jahari Branch, Roman Schrock, and Cole Basey, each with seven. Basey also had one of the team's two sacks in the game, with the other going to Blake Lincoln.
Trine falls to 4-5 overall and 2-4 in Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association (MIAA) play. They will finish their season at home next Saturday, November 15 when they host Kalamazoo College. The senior day contest is scheduled to start at 1 p.m.
