With the Crusaders going 32-7 in that span, there was no reason to believe it should have been otherwise. But given that Saenz has looked the perfect fit for UMHB’s offense during his first three starts, it would seem easy for the rugged senior to ponder what might have been.
But that just isn’t in the no-nonsense quarterback’s nature.
“I never got frustrated the past few years,” said Saenz, who backed up Josh Welch last year. “I know you can’t take a guy whose team has won and take him out and put somebody else in. It was his position and he had earned it fair and square.”
But that was then. This is now.
Saenz has the quarterback’s job under lock and key and will make his fourth career start at 1 p.m. Saturday when NCAA Division III third-ranked UMHB (4-0, 3-0 American Southwest Conference) squares off with Louisiana College (2-2, 0-2) at Bates Stadium in Pineville, La.
After sitting out the season opener for disciplinary reasons, Saenz has been more than proficient in guiding the Crusaders’ attack and is on pace to have the most prolific season as a first-year starting quarterback in UMHB history.
He enters Saturday’s game averaging 118 passing yards and 98 rushing yards per game. Andy Padron threw for 95 per game in his first year as a starter in 2004, and Cody Fredenburg ran for 41 a game in 2000.
To say the Crusaders - three-time defending ASC champions - haven’t skipped a beat would be an understatement.
“I have run the option since my freshman year in high school,” said Saenz, a former high school standout at McAllen. “I’m used to it. And our coaches get us ready so we always feel like we’re prepared.
“If we have to throw a bunch in a game, we’re ready for that. If we run the option 30 times or something, then we’re ready for that, too.”
Saenz has done both this season. Two weeks ago, he passed for 214 yards and three touchdowns when the Crusaders’ ground attack faltered against McMurry. He followed that with 162 yards and two scores on the ground last week to help carry UMHB past rival Hardin-Simmons, 20-18.
“His ability to run the option opens up a lot for us,” Crusaders coach Pete Fredenburg said. “He’s a strong runner, and he has a little shiftiness about him that’s kind of deceiving. He moves our offense well.”
UMHB hasn’t had an all-conference quarterback since Cody Fredenburg’s final season in 2003, but Saenz doesn’t lend any weight to personal achievement.
“Honestly, all I want to do is help these guys and these coaches win a national championship,” Saenz said. “Any kind of personal achievement could never compare to having a national championship ring on your finger.”
Is a title the only thing that would make the last three years worth it all?
“It’s already been worthwhile,” Saenz said. “I never thought about changing schools, not with the way Coach Fredenburg does things here. It’s all about putting yourself in the program for four years and you’ll get something out of it. And I’ve already got something out of it.
“This season has been a lot more fun than I thought it would be. I thought I would feel more pressure, like ‘Hey, no mistakes. You have to have everything right with no mistakes at all.’ This is my last year ever playing football, and I’m enjoying every minute of it.”
edrennan@temple-telegram.com
