The Truman Bulldogs will welcome one of the nation's hottest teams for Homecoming on Saturday as the nationally-ranked and lone unbeaten in the MIAA Emporia (Kan.) State University Hornets come to Stokes Stadium. The 70th Homecoming game on the Truman campus will kickoff at 2:00 p.m.
The Bulldogs (4-3; 3-3 MIAA) will be looking to shake off a 35-24 loss at #19 Washburn (Kan.) University last Saturday. Trailing 14-10 at the half, the Bulldogs and Ichabods endured an 81-minute weather delay before the start of the third quarter. After Truman was forced to punt on the opening drive, Washburn marched down the field in nine plays to open up a 21-10 and then scored on a 69-yard pass on their next play from scrimmage to go up 28-10. The turnover bug plagued the Bulldogs as they had four interceptions with two returned for touchdowns.
Emporia (7-0; 7-0 MIAA) pitched their first conference shutout since 2000 in a 13-0 win over Lindenwood (Mo.) University for their homecoming game last Saturday. A pair of Derek Jonas field goals gave the Hornets a 6-0 lead heading into the fourth quarter before Tyler Eckenrode tossed a two-yard TD pass to Ray Ray Davis for an insurance score. The Hornets held the Lions to just 282 yards of total offense while Eckenrode was 21-of-36 for 257 yards passing.
This is the 27th meeting between the Bulldogs and Hornets as Emporia is just one of two MIAA schools with a winning record over Truman. The Hornets are 16-10 against the 'Dogs including last year's 52-18 win. Emporia scored 21 points in the first quarter and added 14 more in the second to down the Bulldogs a season ago. Eckenrode was 19-of-28 for 194 yards but a trio of running backs each gained over 60 yards during the game. Truman was led by
Anthony Brown's 145 yards receiving on nine catches.
Bulldogs In Homecoming Games:
Truman is 43-24-2 in Homecoming games played since the first one in 1939. The first game was a 21-7 loss to Central Missouri.
The longest homecoming winning streak was 10 straight from 1992-2001. Truman is 3-2 in their last five Homecoming games, falling last year to Washburn (Kan.) 42-14 but defeating Missouri Southern in 2010 23-6.
Truman is 3-0 in Homecoming games against Emporia State with the last coming in 2007, a 33-30 overtime win in which the Bulldogs scored 14 points in the fourth quarter and won it on a 32-yard field goal by Mickey Masucci.
Bulldogs Quick Glance:
Truman (4-3; 3-3 MIAA) has already matched their victory total from last season and have been led by junior quarterback
Conrad Schottel and junior receiver
Dallas Grier. Schottel has thrown from 1561 yards and 12 touchdown passes while Grier has 46 catches for 677 yards and four scores. Senior
Will Mosquera has had 111 rushing attempts for 391 yards and sophomore
Garrett White has added 63 carries for 326 yards.
Defensively, senior
Richie Schumacher leads the team with 65 tackles and senior
Patrick Blackwell has six sacks and 11 tackles for loss. The Bulldogs have picked off 11 passes and recovered eight fumbles through seven games.
Truman won their first three games to start the season defeating Southwest Baptist 24-14, Lincoln 42-12 and non-conference Northwestern Oklahoma State 63-21 before dropping consecutive games at Central Missouri 38-17 and Fort Hays State 37-23. They bounced back with a 16-7 win over Nebraska-Kearney but lost to Washburn last week 35-24. Truman's past opponents have a record of 15-34 heading into this week's games.
Hornets Quick Glance:
Emporia State (7-0; 7-0 MIAA) is tied for 18th in the American Football Coaches Association Top 25 poll and are led by senior quarterback Tyler Eckenrode. With 15 touchdown passes and 2096 yards, Eckenrode is first in the MIAA in total offense at 324 yards per game. Eckenrode is flanked by receiver Shjuan Richardson (48 catches, 756 yards) and running back Derwin Hall (72 attempts, 335 yards). Richardson leads the MIAA in receiving yards per game at 108.0.
Defensively, Ben Carlson leads the Hornets with 55 tackles with Aaron Matthews registering a team-high 3.5 sacks. The Hornets have allowed just 18.3 points per game and 319 yards of total offense per game. They are also second in the MIAA in turnover margin at +7 with 13 interceptions and six fumbles recovered.
Emporia has rolled to their first 7-0 start since 1988, before joining the MIAA and are the only undefeated team in the 15-team conference. Emporia's past opponents have a 10-38 overall record heading into this week's games.
About the Bulldogs:
Head Coach
Gregg Nesbitt is in his third season on the Truman sideline after two straight 4-7 campaigns. The Bulldogs return 47 juniors and seniors, 59 total letterwinners and 18 starters from 2011. Of the starters returning, five are on offense, 10 on defense and both punter and place kicker are back.
• The Bulldogs have played 953 games all-time. The Bulldogs are 538-381-34 (.582) all time.
• Truman is 4-2 in overtime games. All six games have been played at Stokes Stadium with the last being on Oct. 24, 2009 against Emporia State (Truman lost 30-24).
• The Bulldogs have finished .500 or above in 70 of the 104 seasons of football played at the University and have had five wins or more in 62 seasons.
• Truman is the winningest NCAA program all-time in the state of Missouri with the .582 win percentage. The University of Missouri has the most wins with 627 with the Bulldogs second with 538.
• Truman's 538 wins is eighth all-time in Division II.
Bulldogs In The MIAA/NCAA Statistics:
The Bulldogs are second in the MIAA in sacks and tackles for loss with 3.6 sacks per game and 8.1 tackles for loss per game. The 3.6 sacks/game is ninth in NCAA Division II stats. Truman's 25 sacks are most among MIAA schools however Pittsburg State has one less sack (24) and one less game played.
Truman is fifth in the conference with 11 interceptions while Emporia State and Northwest Missouri lead the league with 13 apiece.
Individually,
Patrick Blackwell leads the league with six sacks and is tied for 16th nationally.
Michael Elliott is fifth nationally in interceptions per game with five but trails Lindenwood's Pierre Desir by one for the outright INT lead.
Dallas Grier is second in receptions per game at 6.6, second in receiving yards per game at 104.5 and fourth in punt return average at 12.5.
Conrad Schottel is sixth in the MIAA in total offense per game (220.9) and fifth in passing yards per game (223.0).
Truman/Washburn Footnotes:
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The Bulldogs were just 2-of-15 on third down attempts during the game but a perfect 4-for-4 on fourth down tries.
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A.J. Hartfield had 112 yards on five kick returns with a long of 41-yards. That return is the longest this season for the Bulldogs.
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Hayden Groves of Washburn recorded the most yards rushing this season by an opponent of 162 yards on 31 attempts.
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The four interceptions by the Bulldogs were the most since last year's game against Pittsburg (Kan.) State. It was also the first defensive score against the Bulldogs this season and first dating back to the 2011 season opener against Northwest Missouri.
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The 14 tackles by Richie Schumacher moved him into ninth all-time in total tackles as he passed Craig O'Sadnick (1970-73) and John Naeve (1997-00) both with 304 on the career list.
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With his 27-yard field goal, Derek Koon tied Scott Bresaw (1989-91) and Jeff Klee (1996-99) for third all-time with his 31st career make. Koon has a team leading 163 career points.
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Dallas Grier had four receptions for 43 yards moving his over the 1,800 career receiving yards mark.
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Truman was just 2-of-15 on third down's which was a season-low but were a perfect 4-of-4 on fourth downs on the day.
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Truman's 151 yards rushing was the second highest in conference games this season behind the 173 posted against Lincoln University.
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It was also the first game this season that Truman lost the turnover margin with four interceptions to one fumble recovery.
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The total delay time was 123 minutes.
Up Next:
The Bulldogs will have the daunting task of hosting the defending Division II national champions in Pittsburg (Kan.) State University next Saturday at 1:00 p.m. Truman nearly defeated the Gorillas last season in Kirksville as they took a 26-20 lead with 53 seconds left but a quick 65-yard drive in 37 seconds gave PSU a 27-26 win. The Gorillas have won the last two meetings by just four points after Truman's 28-21 win in 2009.
Offensive Notebook:
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Senior Will Mosquera is leading the team in rushing with 391 yards on 111 carries (3.5/rush). He has four rushing touchdowns with a 55.9 yards per game average. Sophomore Garrett White has 63 rushes for 326 yards and seven touchdowns.
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Junior quarterback Conrad Schottel has completed 54% of his passes (133-of-246) with 12 touchdowns and nine interceptions. He has an efficiency rating of 116.1and has thrown for 1561 yards.
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Junior Dallas Grier has been the top target with 46 catches for 677 yards. Redshirt freshman Chico Orlando has caught 17 passes for 231 yards and three touchdowns. Junior Paul Taylor also had three TD receptions and sophomore Jared Haferbier has 17 catches for 139 yards.
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The Bulldog offensive line has allowed 17 sacks for 104 yards and 42 tackles for loss for 158 yards.
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Through seven games, Truman is averaging 29.9 points per game, up from 23.0/game 2011 and from 22.1 in 2010.
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On the ground, the Bulldogs are averaging 131.7/g and have 922 yards rushing through seven games. Passing, the Bulldogs are averaging 235.9/g (1651 yards) with an average of 370.7/g (2595 yards) in total offense. Last season, the team gained 1,389 yards on the ground (126.3/g), 2,422 yards passing (220.1) for a total offensive mark of 3,811 (346.4/g).
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The longest plays from scrimmage are a 66-yard pass from Conrad Schottel to Dallas Grier against Nebraksa-Kearney and a 55-yard rush by Garrett White against Lincoln (Mo.) University. Last year it was a 69-yard rush by J.B. Clark against Missouri Southern and a 61-yard pass from Clark to Kurt Loyd against Central Missouri.
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The Bulldogs, though seven games, have turned the ball over 15 times (nine interceptions and six fumbles lost). Opposing teams have scored seven times following a Bulldog turnover. Last season, Truman turned the ball over 24 times with 16 interceptions and eight fumbles. Of those turnovers, opposing teams scored 11 times (10 touchdowns and one field goal).
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Truman has converted in the redzone this season 69% of the time with 20 touchdowns and five field goals out of 36 trips. Last year, the Bulldogs scored 80% of the time. They were 28 of 35 with 16 touchdowns.
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The Bulldogs have started nearly a third of their total drives (32 of 113) on the plus side of the 50 yardline. They have scored 14 touchdowns and one field goal (47%) when starting a drive in their opponent's territory and their average field position is their own 41.
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The offense has converted 31% of their third downs in 2012 from the 34% last season.
Defensive Notebook:
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Senior Richie Schumacher leads the Bulldogs with 65 total tackles while 11 Truman defenders have over 20 tackles through seven games.
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The Bulldog defense has 25 sacks for 179 yards and 57 tackles for loss for 252 yards. Last season, Truman had 21 sacks for 145 yards and 56 tackles for loss. Senior Patrick Blackwell leads the team with six sacks. His 19.5 career sacks is seventh all-time in Truman history.
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Truman allows 23.4 points per game through seven this season after allowing 32.5/g last year.
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The team has allowed 1029 yards rushing (147.0/g), 1651 yards passing (235.9/g) and 2680 yards of total offense (382.9). In 2011, the Bulldogs allowed 2,188 yards on the ground (198.9/g) , 2,703 yards passing (245.7/g) for a total defensive mark of 4,891 (444.6/g).
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The Bulldogs have allowed 15 plays from scrimmage over 30 yards this year the longest being a 69-yard pass by Washburn and 67-yard rush. In 2011, the Bulldogs allowed 24 plays from scrimmage of 30-yards or more.
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The Bulldogs defense has forced 19 turnovers, 11 interceptions and eight fumble recoveries. The offense has scored touchdowns on five of the 19 turnovers forced with another coming on a defensive pick-six against Central Missouri. Last season they forced 27 turnovers with nine interceptions and 18 fumble recoveries.
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Opponents have been in the redzone 22 times out of 112 drives this season but have converted for touchdowns in 17 trips (86%). Last year, opponents were successful 72.3% of the time with 34 of 47 with 28 touchdowns. The average field position for the opposing is their own 25.4 yard line.
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The opposing offenses are 37% successful on third down after going 39% in 2011.
Special Teams Notebook:
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Junior Derek Koon is 5-of-12 in field goals in 2012 with a long from 37 and three blocked. For his career, he is 31-for-47 in field goals with a long 42 yards against Fort Hays State and Central Missouri in 2011. He has also converted on 70-of-80 extra point attempts.
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Koon made 12 straight field goals to start the 2011 season, breaking the school record of Scott Bresaw's 10 set in 1990 and tied Bresaw's 1990 single-season record of 15 field goals made. Koon also broke Josh Barcus' (Pittsburg State) MIAA record for consecutive field goal. Koon's streak snapped when he missed a 51-yard field goal against Missouri Southern. That record was broken by Missouri Western's Greg Zuerlien also during the 2011 season.
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Senior Eric Phillips has had 46 punts in 2012 for an average of 39.8/punt. His long this season is 58 yards while his career long is 75 against Southwest Baptist in 2011. Last year, Phillips was second in the nation in punting with an average of 42.9/punt.
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Phillips has had five punts this season downed inside the opponents' one-yardline and 22 finishing inside the opponents 20 with four touchbacks.
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The Bulldogs have blocked two punts this season and four in the last two years.
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Dallas Grier has 14 punt returns for 175 yards (12.5/ret) with a long of 39.
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Garrett White (9) and Aaron Hartfield (8) lead the team in kickoff returns. White averages 26.2 per return and Hartifeld 21.2. Hartfield has the longest return of 41 yards against Washburn.
