TACOMA, Wash.  — Film on Monday. Weekly game plan on Tuesday. Perfecting that plan on Wednesday and Thursday. Final fine-tuning on Friday.
 
That brings Anthony Mahaffey to the day when he and his Pacific Lutheran football teammates put all of that precision and preparation into play, pointing toward another tally in the win column.
 
"By Saturday, we're pretty confident in what we're running – that's not a day for being off," the Lutes junior said. "I would say I always have confidence in me and especially in my team.
 
"I always tell myself I'm ready."
 
For the past three weeks since the beginning of the Northwest Conference schedule, Mahaffey has been ready as PLU's starting quarterback for the first time in his career. And last Saturday on their home turf at Sparks Stadium in Puyallup, he was more ready than ever, tying a school record with six touchdown passes in a 47-29 victory against Pacific.
 
"I definitely was not expecting that to happen," said the 20-year-old Mahaffey, whose half-dozen TD tosses accounted for 155 of his 331 total passing yards – 85 of those coming on his final one of the day, a long launch downfield that was caught by Connor Meade late in the fourth quarter for a 47-21 lead. "I think the first touchdown really got us going. As soon as we got the momentum, we just never gave it back. I was very excited for the opportunity for the team and for me."
 
In the program's long, illustrious history, only two other Lutes have passed for six touchdowns in a game – and the last time it happened was 32 years ago in 1993 when Marc Weekly did it for the second time in his career. That performance came against Cumberland. He also had six in 1991 against Oregon Tech.
  The other Lute to air mail six TDs was Craig Kupp in 1989 against Southern Oregon. Along with being a PLU Hall of Fame member (as is Weekly), Kupp just happens to be the father of both Cooper Kupp, the former Los Angeles Rams Super Bowl MVP and now-Seattle Seahawks receiver, and of current PLU defensive coordinator / linebackers coach Ketner Kupp.
 
"I remember seeing the names," Mahaffey said of the Kupp connection, "and that was a cool thing to see."
 
In the immediate aftermath – the outcome of which kept the Lutes tied with Whitworth for first place at 3-0 heading into this Saturday's home showdown against perennial power Linfield – neither Mahaffey nor head coach Brant McAdams was aware of the record-tying performance.
 
"It definitely caught me off-guard," McAdams said. "The offense operated well, the guys in the box did a good job kind of establishing the run, and Anthony did a good job of taking high-completion throws."
 
In fact, it was a career-high 24 completions for Mahaffey, on 34 attempts. The 331 yards was also a career high (281 against Willamette). Mahaffey even called his own number four times and finished with a career-high 52 yards on the ground.
 
"He just saw the field really well," quarterbacks coach / passing game coordinator Graydon Kulick said. "He did a good job of going through the progressions, seeing the coverage and spread the ball around really well."
 
GETTING THE CALL
After not playing at all as a true freshman in 2023, the 6-foot-2, 175-pound product of El Dorado High School in Placerville, California (about 45 miles east of Sacramento) saw limited snaps as a sophomore in 2024, playing five games and going 13 for 23 with one touchdown.
 
This fall started off in a similar way. Through the three non-conference games, Mahaffey was 5 of 10 for 32 yards and one interception. Pacific Lutheran had a 1-2 record in those games heading into their Northwest Conference opener at home against Willamette on Oct. 4.
 
It was early in that week when Mahaffey got the word from Kulick.
 
"My coach called and was telling me they were going to give me the reins," Mahaffey said. "He was telling me, 'We have confidence in you. You can rally these guys and make things happen.
 
"I was definitely hoping for it going into preseason. But I definitely didn't expect it at the time. I'm very grateful for the opportunity.
 
Added Kulic, "The mental side of what he brings to the position is just awesome. He's able to bounce back after a bad play and go back on the attack. He's not a guy who has to force the ball. He uses his feet well, loosens up the defense, and takes what's there. The passion he has for football just resonates throughout our team, and we feel real fortunate with that."
 
Willamette had a 21-0 lead five minutes left before halftime. But as the clock ticked down, Mahaffey found Dayton Savea for a 3-yard touchdown with 15 seconds left until intermission. That capped an 11-play, 70-yard drive on which he completed 2 of 4 passes and also rushed it himself four times, converting on a 4th-and-4 with one of those carries.
 
Another pair of TD tosses in the third quarter lifted the Lutes into a 21-21 tie. After Willamette went back top 28-21 on the opening play of the fourth quarter, PLU scored the final 10 points, going ahead when Mahaffey found AJ Stepina for a 6-yard touchdown with 3:30 left in the game for what eventually became the final score of 31-28.
 
Mahaffey threw two more touchdowns on Oct. 11 as the Lutes, down 20-17 at halftime, beat rival Puget Sound, 41-27. Even Pacific had an early 6-0 jump on PLU last Saturday before Mahaffey got going with his six TDs. Of those, four came during the second quarter, helping to produce a commanding 30-6 lead at the intermission.
 
"We've been talking about how we've been a second-half team the last couple weeks," Mahaffey said. "What we were talking about against Pacific last week was 'Let's be a first-half team.' We got things going pretty quick compared to what we've done in the past. We've been focusing on executing early in the game."
 
Head coach McAdams clearly liked what he saw.
 
"Anthony has come through. He has sat in the wings and has seen a lot of good quarterbacks develop," he said. "He is a student of the game behind Darius (Chaffin, the QB through the first three games). He took that role seriously and is continuing to grow and develop even when he wasn't on the field."
 
ONE SPORT, ONE POSITION
Growing up in Pollock Pines, California, Mahaffey was all over the sports spectrum: Football. Wrestling. Baseball. Soccer.
 
He also was all over the football field: Tight end. Fullback. Running back. Middle linebacker. And of course, quarterback.
 
By the time he got into 6th grade, quarterback was his only spot. By the time he got to his sophomore year at El Dorado, football was his only game.
 
"I enjoyed my time with those other sports while I had them," Mahaffey said. "I still definitely miss playing them – that's why intramurals are awesome. (He particularly enjoys volleyball and softball.) But I think I'm better at (football) than anything else,"
 
During his first three seasons at El Dorado, his father, Christian, was the head coach, having gotten that job prior to Anthony's freshman year. It afforded both of them an opportunity to continue a long-standing football bond.
 
"When I was young, I was always his water boy, his ball boy for every single game that he was a coach," Mahaffey said. "My dad has taught me a lot, not just about football, but about being a leader. He likes to instill confidence in some things that need to be done."
 
In the process of choosing a college, Mahaffey said it quickly became clear that PLU was the place for him.
 
"I remember on my visit how they were always talking about how the brotherhood here is a real thing. A lot of teams talk about that, but (here), you can definitely feel it – how we interact, how close we are as a team," he added. "And it's not just football. It's a little bit more than that, about being a good person and a good leader in life."
 
Those attributes have become more and more evident to McAdams.
 
"You can tell the way he interacts with his teammates that he understands leadership and competition and he understands football," McAdams said. "He just connects with all the guys on offense, defense and special teams.
 
"He doesn't let the moment get too big," McAdams continued. "He has a little bit of swagger to him, but it's confidence, not arrogance."
 
A kinesiology major and self-described "science nerd" with an eye toward a possible career in physical therapy "to help athletes get back on the field," Mahaffey isn't necessarily expecting to throw six more touchdown passes on Saturday against perennial NWC title contender Linfield … as long he can throw enough to help win the game.
 
"They're a playoff team, but nothing changes," he said. "We're going to do what we do.
 
"I have the utmost confidence in the people around me," Mahaffey said. "They're going to make the plays. I've just got to get them the ball."