Quarterback Zach Anderson wants to bring the Cru to Salem in his final postseason run. Photo by Joe Fusco, d3photography.com

By Joe Sager
D3sports.com

It's been a season of redemption for Mary-Hardin Baylor.

The Crusaders (11-1) hope that trend continues this week when it visits Linfield (11-0) for a quarterfinal matchup.

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First, UMHB wanted a chance to avenge its only loss of the season after the Cowboys shocked the Cru with a 29-26 decision on Halloween.

"You don't get many second chances at anyone, especially against a team like Hardin-Simmons," Cru senior quarterback Zach Anderson said. "I think that loss was good for us. It opened our eyes to our flaws and things we needed to work on and things we needed to address before trying to make a playoff run. I think it was good eye-opener for us."

It gave the team a renewed sense of urgency, too, since earning a playoff spot was no guarantee after the setback.

"Every time I've lost here, it's meant it was the end of year. It was a little different to have a couple more games to come back to. We were able to come back out and work on the things we needed to address rather than waiting a whole offseason," Anderson said.

UMHB crushed Howard Payne (67-14) and East Texas Baptist (67-20) and was given a playoff spot. The Cru's first postseason opponent? Hardin-Simmons.

"It's amazing. You're always struggling to keep from developing a little bit of apathy. You always fight like the dickens to stay focused and do the things you need to in order to be successful," Cru coach Pete Fredenburg said. "When you suffer a setback like that, it wakes you up and motivates you. I think, no question, our guys stepped up and rose to the occasion. The games we played against Howard Payne and East Texas were really nice.

"When we got the chance to go out to Hardin-Simmons, the guys were excited when that was announced. We have a lot of respect for them, but it just meant a lot to have a chance to redeem ourselves."

The Cru did exactly that as it responded in the second half with 31 points to post a 37-19 victory.

"I feel like our playoff journey started right after our loss. We knew every game could be our last," Anderson said. "The older guys stepped up and expressed to the younger guys how each game could be our last together on the field."

Momentum carried over to the next week as UMHB produced a 43-23 win over Huntingdon to set up the matchup with Linfield. The Wildcats eliminated the Cru last year. They overcame a 21-17 deficit in the third quarter and held on for the 31-28 win. Linfield intercepted an Anderson pass deep in its own territory late in the game to seal the win.

"First of all, just being this deep is great. We got cut short last year. It feels good to get back over there and have a chance to make up for last year," Anderson said. "The whole offseason and through fall camp, we really addressed issues that hurt us last year. We're striving to get to the national championship game, first and foremost. Meeting up with these guys in the meantime hopefully provides a good opportunity for us.

"They are a great team and they are playing well. We've been really excited ever since the bracket came out and we saw this potential matchup could happen. I think it'll be a good game between two quality teams. We'll be ready and they will be ready, too. At the end of the day, it'll come down to whatever team makes the least amount of mistakes."

In 2013, the Cru dropped a 16-15 decision to Wisconsin-Whitewater in the semifinals. Anderson believes the past three setbacks have galvanized his teammates.

"We have some good leadership with the juniors and seniors, who have been a major part of the team for a while. We have some four-year guys that played against Mount Union (in the 2012 semifinals). We're eager to make that deep push," he said. "I think the losses build character. I think they build a hunger and let you know you're not unbeatable, too. When we lost to Hardin-Simmons, I think it did for our younger guys what the playoff losses the past couple years did to the older guys. We understand we have to come to work if we want to reach that ultimate goal."

Fredenburg is confident in Anderson's ability to pull the lessons learned from the past two postseasons and apply them to Saturday's battle.

"He has an incredible leadership quality. He has that leadership that is hard to define. He demands a lot of himself. He is a very unselfish player. He does a nice job and we have had great success with him running our offense," he said. "I think he has a burning desire to overcome those playoff losses and hope to not experience that hurt again.

"We're excited to be in this situation and to play Linfield again. It's nice to be playing football at this time of the year."