The Snow College football team defeated the St. George Junior College Eagles 45-3 Saturday in Ephraim. The Badgers racked up 537 yards of total offense en route to the convincing victory.
 
The Badgers entered the weekend matchup coming off an impressive 27-13 victory over the No. 14-ranked New Mexico Military Institute the week prior.  Following the victory, Snow College moved up to 9^th in the NJCAA Division I Football Poll.
 
The Badgers welcomed the Eagles to town for the first-ever meeting between the two teams.  The Eagles are a newly formed junior college or "gap year" football program and are the first such private team in the state of Utah.
 
The Eagles opened their 2023 season against NMMI in Roswell, New Mexico.  They suffered a 75-17 defeat at the hands of the Broncos.
 
Neither team scored on their first two possessions to start the game.  The Badgers broke through after Tremell Wright picked off Eagle's quarterback Emery Thorson and set them up at the STJC 40-yard line.
 
A 37-yard connection from Donovan Smith to Ayo Shotomide-King set the Badgers up at the Eagles goal line.  AJ Tillman punched it in on the ground from three yards out on the next play to give the Badgers a 7-0 lead following the PAT.
 
It was the Snow College special teams who made the next impact of the game.  Diego Grateron penetrated the Eagle's punt formation and blocked the kick, which was eventually scooped up by Shandon King and returned for a touchdown.  This was the first time the Badgers have returned a blocked punt for a touchdown since Levi Thompson did it in 2012 against ASA Brooklyn.
 
Snow College would strike again a few possessions later to take a 21-0 lead.  The Badgers used a pair of 34-yard completions, one to Ethan Wood and the other to Amir McGruder, to find the end zone.  It was the pitch and catch from Smith to McGruder that went the distance.
 
STJC scored its only points of the game following a 16-play, 67-yard drive that resulted in a 40-yard field goal that split the uprights.  The Badgers responded immediately on the following drive.  Smith had four completions for 65 yards mixed around a pair of rushes by Hyrum Boren, the second of which was a 1-yard tote into the end zone to give the Badgers a 28-3 lead heading into the halftime break.
 
Tillman helped set up the Badger's fifth touchdown of the game midway through the third quarter.  Tillman had three rushes that went for a total of 57 yards, setting the Badgers up in Eagle territory.  Snow College scored two plays later as Smith again found McGruder from 35 yards out.
 
The Badgers struck again midway through the fourth quarter.  They sustained a drive taking nearly five minutes off the game clock but were forced to settle for a field goal attempt.  Casey Keeslar drilled the field goal from 32 yards out, giving Snow College a 38-3 lead.
 
The final touchdown for the Badgers came near the end of the game.  Three consecutive rushes from Spencer Lambert totaling 36 yards set the Badgers up in the red zone.  Tillman finished the drive two plays later from nine yards out extending the Badgers lead and giving them the 45-3 victory.
 
The 537 yards of total offense is the highest total for the Badgers in a game this season.  They also threw for 355 yards through the air, also a season high.  Including the blocked punt, the Badgers forced six turnovers and scored 21 points directly following those turnovers.
 
Smith went 16-32 for 324 yards and two touchdowns.  McGruder caught three passes for 111 yards and two touchdowns.  Tillman carried the ball 13 times totaling 92 yards and two touchdowns.  Lambert had 65 ground yards on 10 carries to aid in the victory.
 
Snow College will now have a bye week before traveling to Dodge City, Kansas to take on Dodge City Community College Saturday, Sept. 23.  
 
The Conquistadors are 2-1 so far this season with their lone loss coming against No. 1 Iowa Western Community College.  They collected two victories against Coffeyville Community College and Highland Community College.  The Badgers and the Conquistadors have faced each other just once since 2012.  The Badgers won that game 38-14 in Hutchinson, Kansas.
 
Kickoff is scheduled for 12:00 p.m. MDT inside Memorial Stadium in Dodge City, Kansas.  For video streaming and live stat information, visit snowbadgers.com.