Memphis - Rhodes College football won their first game of the 2019 season at home over Family Weekend Saturday. Sewanee traveled to town for the 66th annual Orgill Cup and after a Lynx 14-3 victory, Rhodes holds a 36-29-1 lead in the cup race and inch closer to tying the all-time series as the Tigers hold a 43-41-3 advantage. 

Sewanee scored first on a 51-yard field goal just over three minutes into the game. Rhodes responded on the next drive, moving the football 75 yards on 10 plays before Mitch Batschelett rushed in a yard for Rhodes' second touchdown of the season and first on the ground. Rhodes forced Sewanee to punt and then rushed in for a touchdown before it was called back on a Lynx holding penalty. The ensuing field goal attempt was blocked by the Tigers. Sewanee ran the ball back to the endzone but was penalized for a block in the back. Eventually the Lynx defense held strong as Jordan McCoy made a tackle, sending the Tigers back three yards on fourth and one for a turnover on downs on the first play of the second quarter. 

Rhodes took over with the ball on their own 44 yard line and on the 10th rush, Stephan Jean-Francois ran the ball in three yards to put Rhodes up 13-3. Franklin Garner made the point after attempt to end the game's scoring. 

In the third quarter, Kobe Bins came up big for the Lynx to help shutout Sewanee in the second half as the sophomore blocked their field goal attempt with under nine minutes to play. Nearing the end of the same quarter, Bins had Sewanee's Cyrus McCullough wrapped up after an 11-yard pass when Brycen Brown came in to strip the ball. Chris Brannagan came up with the fumble recovery on Rhodes' 33 yard line to thwart another Sewanee scoring attempt.

Sewanee made three straight incomplete passes in their first drive of the fourth quarter. After Rhodes was forced to punt, Sewanee missed a 45-yard field goal attempt, which was caught in the endzone and returned 37 yards by Brannagan before the Tigers forced a fumble, but the Lynx maintained possession. Rhodes was able to use up 3:51 on the clock before turning the ball over on downs. Kobe Bins sacked Sewanee's Alex Darras under five minutes left to help the Lynx run out the rest of the clock. 

Darras threw for 121 yards on 11 attempts while Jace Franklin went 148 yards in the air on 25 attempts. JaVon Cooper led Rhodes with 93 net rushing yards including a 30-yard rush. Frankling totaled 59 yards and Jean-Francois 51. Andrew Herring recorded the longest Lynx reception (21) yards while Coopr and Adam Martinez each recorded a 15-yard catch. Cooper led the Lynx with 32 receiving yards on five receptions. 

Defensively, Rhodes totaled six tackled for a loss of 12 yard, forced two fumbles and the Lynx secondary broke up seven Tiger passes. Tony Heyward led Rhodes with six tackled with McCoy and Taylor Smith picking up five. Smith led Rhodes with five solo tackles. 

The Lynx are on the road next weekend, traveling to nearby Hendrix for a 6 p.m. game on Saturday, October 5.