Bolivar, Mo. – The SBU football team opened the 2026 season in dominant fashion Thursday evening, defeating William Woods University 63-6 inside Plaster Stadium. The Bearcats controlled all three phases of the game, piling up 504 yards of offense while forcing five interceptions. This victory moves the Bearcats to 1-0 on the season.
SBU jumped out to an early lead behind the rushing attack of
Tyrone Scyrus. The senior found the end zone from one yard out before quarterback
Jaron Saunders connected with
Jobe Smith for a six-yard touchdown to give the Bearcats a 14-0 advantage after the first quarter. Scyrus struck again early in the second with a 28-yard touchdown run.
The Bearcat defense quickly joined the scoring as
Chucky Sutton returned an interception 42 yards for a touchdown. Saunders later connected with
Keivon Flint for a 35-yard score, sending SBU into halftime with a commanding 35-3 lead.
SBU continued to pull away after halftime. Scyrus completed his three-touchdown night with a three-yard score before
Joel Beshore returned an interception 50 yards for another defensive touchdown. Saunders added his third passing touchdown in the fourth quarter on a 33-yard connection with
Jaden Mays before
Vic Williams III capped off the scoring with a 27-yard touchdown run.
The Bearcats finished with 326 rushing yards, averaging 8.4 yards per carry. Smith led the ground attack with 173 yards on 16 carries, while Scyrus added 105 yards and three touchdowns. Williams III contributed 60 yards and a touchdown on just six carries. Saunders finished the night with 178 passing yards and three touchdowns.
Defensively, SBU held William Woods to 255 total yards and did not allow an offensive touchdown. The Bearcats intercepted five passes and recorded four sacks. Beshore led the turnover barrage with two interceptions, while Sutton,
Hayden Wolfe and
Maxwell Kates each added one. Sutton also led the team with 11 tackles, 2.5 tackles for loss and a sack.
Southwest Baptist will have just over a week off before heading north to South Dakota Mines. That game will take place on September 5
th at 2pm central time.
