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Truman State University Athletics

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Football

Football Notes: Truman vs. William Jewell - October, 13 (2:00 p.m.)

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Truman Bulldogs (4-1; 3-0 GLVC) vs. William Jewell Cardinals (2-3; 2-0 GLVC)
Saturday, October 11, 2014 ~ Stokes Stadium, Kirksville, Mo. ~ 2:00 p.m.
Promotions/Events:
Homecoming 2014 – Special Halftime recognition of Alumni and Truman Athletics Hall of Fame Inductees as well as the Homecoming Committee and Court.
 
KIRKSVILLE, Mo. – A pair of conference unbeaten will square off at Stokes Stadium for Homecoming as Truman host William Jewell on Saturday at 2:00 p.m.

Game Preview:  Truman, William Jewell and Indianapolis are the three remaining undefeated teams in conference play as the Bulldogs hit the second half of the season.  The Bulldogs will host the Cardinals and Greyhounds in consecutive weeks looking to take control of the title race.
Truman enters week six with the top scoring, rushing and redzone defense in the GLVC and boasts the second best rushing offense behind senior running back Garrett White.

White leads the league in rushing yards with 642 in the first five games. He is averaging 128.4 yards per game and 5.6 per carry and is ranked 13th in Division II in rushing yards and 12th in rushing touchdowns with eight. He had new career-high 159 yards and three touchdowns in Truman's 30-17 win at McKendree (Ill.) on Saturday.

Truman's defense held when it counted the most against the Bearcats limiting McKendree to just three points out of three straight possessions in the second quarter that ended inside Truman's 10 yardline. Freshman Jordan Brown had season-high 15 total tackles with Devin Gillespie recording two sacks and four tackles for loss.

The defense has held opponents to 322.4 total yards per game, 98.8 yards on the ground and a conference-best 15.6 points allowed per game.  Gillespie leads the team with 10 tackles for loss and five sacks and Austin Zoda leads all defenders with 34 total tackles.

William Jewell has knocked off both associate members of the GLVC for their conference wins in dramatic fashion. In the season opener against Southwest Baptist, Thomas Cook returned a kickoff 90 yards for a fourth quarter touchdown and the Cardinals defense got an interception at their own 13 to preserve a 29-26 win over the Bearcats.  Cook accounted for 287 all-purpose yards while defensive back Quinlan Riser tackled Lincoln's Khiry Draine at the one as time expired in William Jewell's 20-13 win over the Blue Tigers.

Cook garnered GLVC Offensive Player of the Week honors for his effort and enters Saturday's game leading the Cardinals in rushing with 350 yards from scrimmage and also being a dangerous specialist with 87 punt return yards and 237 kick return yards.

Quarterback Nick West has thrown for 900 yards and eight touchdowns with his top target being Cook with 24 receptions for 171 yards and Anthony Mullins with 19 catches for 384.

The Cardinals are next-to-last in the league in scoring defense, allowing 37.2 points per game and total defense at 458.2 yards per contest.
 
Series With William Jewell:
This is the 15th meeting between William Jewell and Truman dating back to 1903. Twelve of the games played took place between 1903-1923 with two losses by Truman occurring in 1909, one a forfeit. The Bulldogs won a 1961 game and 52 years later won 45-7 in 2013. The Cardinals last win came in 1923. The series record is 6-6-2.

In last year's meeting, Truman took control early racing out to a 35-0 halftime lead and cruised to the victory. The Bulldogs had a 271-37 yard advantage during the first half while Chico Orlando caught a pair of first quarter touchdowns.
 
Coaches:
Truman is guided by Gregg Nesbitt, in his fifth year as head coach of his alma mater. Nesbitt is 23-26 during his tenure. He played and lettered for the Bulldogs in 1978 and 1979, served as the team's defensive coordinator from 1990-93 and returned to the Truman campus in 2010. Saturday's game will be the 50th for Nesbitt on Truman's sideline .

Jerod Kruse is also in his fifth season at the helm of the Cardinals and has overseen their transition from the NAIA to Division II. Kruse is 15-32 during his tenure at William Jewell.  He is a 2000 graduate of Emporia (Kan.) State University
 
Truman Receiving Votes:
In the latest poll released by the American Football Coaches Association (AFCA), Truman was one of 39 schools to receive votes. The Bulldogs garnered two from coaches, same as conference foe Indianapolis. Truman received five votes in the preseason poll that listed 53 schools.  

Bulldogs In The GLVC:
  • Truman is in their second season as members of the Great Lakes Valley Conference and are 8-2 overall in league games. The Bulldogs were 5-2 and finished in a tie for second in their inaugural run through the league last season.  
  • The Bulldogs have outscored GLVC opponents 271-142.
  • In all-time GLVC game statistics, Truman has run for 1,902 yards (190.2/game, 4.5/rush) while allowing 663 opponent rushing yards (66.3/game, 2.0/rush). In total offense, Truman averages 377.0 per game and allows 264.1 per GLVC game.
  • The defense has sacked opposing GLVC quarterbacks 29 times for 199 while the Bulldog offensive line has garnered 12 sacks for 89 yards.
  • The Bulldogs have scored when entering the redzone on 38 of 48 trips and opponents have scored 10 touchdowns on 13 trips.
  • Opponents have returned nine of Jacob Lamp's 44 punts in conference for a total of eight yards (0.9 yards per return).
  • The lone negative stat, Truman has lost 16 of 23 fumbles while opponents have lost 10 of 16. Overall, Truman has had 25 turnovers in league play while gaining 18, a minus seven ratio.
Milestone Watch
Garrett White has become the 13th Bulldog to rush for over 2,000 career rushing yards and entered the top 10 in rushing with 2,305 yards. He will pass Mike Harris (1977-78) for the ninth spot with 45 yards, Mike Richardson (1962-65) with 49 yards and Sharron Washington (1963-66) for seventh with 130 yards.

White has 28 tied with Lenvil Elliott (1969-72) for sixth all-time. He will next pass Washington with three rushing TDs and Steve Powell (1974-77) with four.

He averages 5.6 yards per carry with a single-game high of 159 against McKendree and a long rush of 80 yards against William Penn.

White has eight career 100+ yard games.

Nic Abbate is tied for second all-time in tackles for loss with 34.5 with Eric Sternberg (2005-09) and three behind former line mate Patrick Blackwell for the overall career lead.

McKendree Game Highlights:
  • The Bulldogs allowed 414 yards of total offense by McKendree and it was the first time since Northwestern Oklahoma State in 2012 that Truman won a game while allowing over 400 yards of total offense.
  • Truman was 4-for-4 in redzone scores with three touchdowns to improve their season average to 77.8%. The Bearcats were 2-of-6 in the redzone with one touchdown and lowered Truman's opponent redzone percentage to a league-leading 52.6%.
  • True freshman Jordan Brown led the Bulldog defense with 15 total tackles (11 solo) and had one tackle for loss and a pass break-up.  It was the most tackles by a defender since Austin Zoda made 15 stops against Grand Valley (Mich.) State last season.
  • Kurt Loyd caught five of Devonte Black's 14 pass completions for 49 yards including the 20-yard touchdown.  It was Loyd's team-leading third TD reception this season fourth of his career.
  • Black used six different receivers while McKendree's Fisher had seven different receivers catch balls.
  • Garrett White has been the team's leading rusher in 18 of the last 20 games played.
  • Truman improved to 8-2 in GLVC games all-time and under Coach Gregg Nesbitt, improved to 14-4 when leading after the first quarter, 18-2 when leading at half and 20-3 when leading after three quarters.
  • Jacob Lamp hammered four punts for an average of 45.0 yards per with a long of 63 and two touchbacks. Only four of 24 punts this season have been returned and none in conference play.
 
Thrillers:
The Bulldogs have had nine of their last 16 games (6-3 Record) in which the final score was within single-digits. Seven of the previous 33 games (21%) fell within that margin in the previous three years (3-4 Record) and since 2000, the Bulldogs averaged three games a season (26% of all games)in which the outcome was a one-possession game (17-12 Record).
 
In The Classroom:
The Bulldogs had 36 players named to the Academic All-GLVC list last season, most of any school in the conference. To earn Academic All-GLVC, a player must have a 3.30 cumulative grade-point average or have posted a 3.40 over two semesters. The team's cumulative GPA last season was 2.94 for over 100 members of the squad.
 
Bulldog Pedigree:
  • Truman has won 549 games in 106 years of football which is 8th all-time in Division II in terms of wins. The 1931-35 Bulldogs, under Coach Don Faurot, still have the eighth longest winning streak and 25th longest unbeaten streak among Division II schools.
  • This will be the 974th game in Truman Football history. The Bulldogs' .582 winning percentage is tops among the 15 NCAA (FBS, FCS, II, III) schools in the state of Missouri.
  • Truman is 4-3 in overtime games.  Six of the seven games have been played at home with the last being a road overtime loss to Drake 13-7 on September 6, 2014.
 
Defensive Notes:
  • The defense has allowed 15.6 points per game through five games in 2014 after allowing 20.4 points per game last season. The total was the lowest average since the 1994 campaign of 17.6 per game.
  • Opponents average 2.9 yards per rush this season with 497 yards and five rushing touchdowns.
  • Quarterbacks have completed 104-of-180 passes against the defense for 1118 yards (223.6 per game average). They have completed six touchdown pass.
  • The defense has not allowed 400 yards of total offense in 11 of their last 12 games.
  • Truman has forced 99 turnovers since Coach Kellen Nesbitt has taken over as defensive coordinator in 2010. The Bulldogs have gained a turnover in 42 of 49 games played and went 33 straight from 2010-2013 forcing a turnover. They have forced a turnover in all four games this season.
  • Opponents are successful 32% of the time on third downs converting 24 of 76 attempts and 43% on fourth down with six of 14 attempts.
  • Austin Zoda leads in tackles with 34 through the five games. Zoda leads the team with 23 solo stops.
  • Devin Gillespie leads the team with 10.0 tackles for loss and 5.0 sacks this season.
  • The team has 12 sacks for 73 yards and 35 tackles for loss for 146 yards.
  • The Bulldogs have not allowed a 100-yard rusher in 13 games dating back to Evan Ressler of William Penn rushing for 164 yards on September 21, 2013.
  • Ben Chaney leads the defense with two of the five interceptions this season. The team has averaged 17.8 yards per interception return.
Offensive Notes:
  • On the ground, Truman has averaged 217.8 yards per game and 4.7 yards per rush this season. Last year, Truman averaged 153.5 yards and in 2011 averaged 115.5 yards on the ground.
  • Truman has 1852 yards of total offense with 370.4 per game and 5.2 per play. They have converted 41% on third down going 28-of-68 and are 3-of-6 on fourth down conversions.
  • Garrett White leads the team with 114 rushes for 642 yards. He has eight 100-yard rushing games for his career and eight runs from scrimmage over 40 yards.
  • Devonte Black has completed 62.9% of his passes in his first year as a starter for the Bulldogs. He has thrown for 763 yards and rushed for another 182.
  • Black's top receiving target has been tight end Chico Orlando with 14 catches for 130 yards. He has thrown to nine different receivers with six touchdown passes.
  • Kurt Loyd has three TD receptions and Joey Schenck have caught two TDs with Loyd having a team-leading 157 reception yards on 12 catches and Schenck catching 11 balls for 105 yards.
  • The offensive line has allowed 13 sacks for 75 yards after allowing 11 all of 2013.
 
Special Forces Notes:
  • Jacob Lamp is averaging 39.4 yards in 24 punts in 2014 with seven inside the 20 and a season-long 70-yard boot against Langston (Okla.).
  • Lamp, for his career is averaging 40.3 yards on 79 punts which is the slightly behind Bob Fletcher's 40.5 career mark during the 1978-79 seasons. Fletcher had 138 punt attempts.
  • Roger Howard is averaging 54.2 yards per kickoff on 23 attempts and is 2-for-6 on field goals made with a long of 36.
  • Nick Dolezal has made 7-of-10 extra point attempts and a field goal of 29 yards.
  • Between Truman and their opponents, four of 12 field goal attempted has been successful.
  • Derek Hammann has returned nine kickoffs for 177 yards (19.7/return) with a long of 34.
  • Kurt Loyd has been able to return six punts for 38 yards (6.3/return) with a long of 18.
  • Chris Stanton has the team's field goal block this season against Langston (Okla.).
  • Opponents have four punt returns for 28 yards with a long of 18.
 
Upcoming:
The Bulldogs will welcome the University of Indianapolis to Stokes Stadium for the first time on October 18. The Greyhounds are the two-time defending GLVC champions after downing Truman 21-14 in the de facto title game at seasons end last year.  If Indianapolis gets past McKendree this week, they will bring a perfect 18-0 record in conference games into the match-up. Kickoff is scheduled for 1:00 p.m.
 
 
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Players Mentioned

Nic Abbate

#92 Nic Abbate

DE
6' 2"
Senior
Devonte Black

#9 Devonte Black

QB
5' 11"
Sophomore
Ben Chaney

#19 Ben Chaney

DB
6' 2"
Redshirt Freshman
Nick Dolezal

#42 Nick Dolezal

K
5' 10"
Redshirt Freshman
Devin Gillespie

#59 Devin Gillespie

DE
5' 11"
Junior
Roger Howard

#38 Roger Howard

K/P
6' 0"
Redshirt Freshman
Jacob Lamp

#13 Jacob Lamp

P
6' 1"
Senior
Kurt Loyd

#27 Kurt Loyd

WR
5' 11"
Senior
Chico Orlando

#84 Chico Orlando

TE
6' 2"
Senior
Joey Schenck

#15 Joey Schenck

WR
6' 4"
Sophomore
Chris Stanton

#30 Chris Stanton

DB
5' 9"
Sophomore
Garrett White

#28 Garrett White

RB
6' 0"
Senior

Players Mentioned

Nic Abbate

#92 Nic Abbate

6' 2"
Senior
DE
Devonte Black

#9 Devonte Black

5' 11"
Sophomore
QB
Ben Chaney

#19 Ben Chaney

6' 2"
Redshirt Freshman
DB
Nick Dolezal

#42 Nick Dolezal

5' 10"
Redshirt Freshman
K
Devin Gillespie

#59 Devin Gillespie

5' 11"
Junior
DE
Roger Howard

#38 Roger Howard

6' 0"
Redshirt Freshman
K/P
Jacob Lamp

#13 Jacob Lamp

6' 1"
Senior
P
Kurt Loyd

#27 Kurt Loyd

5' 11"
Senior
WR
Chico Orlando

#84 Chico Orlando

6' 2"
Senior
TE
Joey Schenck

#15 Joey Schenck

6' 4"
Sophomore
WR
Chris Stanton

#30 Chris Stanton

5' 9"
Sophomore
DB
Garrett White

#28 Garrett White

6' 0"
Senior
RB