Football 11/13/2013 8:10:00 AM

Game Notes: Bulldogs Need Win To Share League Title

Truman State University Bulldog Football Game Notes:

KIRKSVILLE, Mo. –The Truman Football team will look to earn a share of the Great Lakes Valley Conference title when they travel to the University of Indianapolis on Saturday for the final game of the 2013 regular season. Kickoff from Key Stadium is scheduled for 4:00 p.m. (EST).

The Match-Up:
The Bulldogs will get their crack at the defending league champs on Saturday with the Greyhounds grabbing their share of the GLVC title with a 33-7 victory over Quincy (Ill.) on Saturday. The Bulldogs had a chance for a "winner-takes-all" championship game but a 6-3 setback at the hands of Saint Joseph's (Ind.) College on
Saturday means Truman can only share the championship with the Greyhounds.

The Greyhounds enter Saturday's game with the top scoring offense (41.2/g), scoring defense (7.3/g) and total offense (399.7/g) in conference only stats while Truman is second in scoring offense (28.5/g), scoring defense (11.3/g) and have the number one defense (236.3/g).

The Bulldogs held Saint Joseph's College to their season low of 104 yards rushing after entering the game averaging over 230 yards on the ground. Indianapolis boasts the top rusher in the league in senior Klay Fietcher at 98.7 per GLVC contest.

Truman will have to contend with the conferences' top passing defense as Indianapolis allows just 120 yard passing per game but will try to counter with running back Garrett White and his team leading 94.0 yards per game in conference, good for second to Fietcher.

This will be the first ever meeting between Indianapolis and Truman on the gridiron. The Greyhounds played as an associate member in the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletics Association prior to the GLVC football sponsorship with the Bulldogs were members of the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association.

About The Bulldogs (7-3; 5-1 GLVC):
Truman had won five straight until a seven-turnover performance on Saturday against Saint Joseph's on Saturday. It was the first time since 1967 that Truman lost a game without allowing a touchdown , the last being a 9-0 loss at the hands of Central Missouri 46 years ago. It was the fewest combine points scored since a 3-2 Truman win against Missouri S&T in 1979.

Garrett White inched closer to Truman's first 1000 yard rushing season since 2003 with 94 yards on 22 carries on Saturday. White enters this week's game with 897 yards and a 6.3 yards per carry average as he has already gained the most yards rushing by a Bulldog since Jerard Leverson's 1012 yard total of 2003. White leads the team with nine rushing touchdowns and one receiving score.

Quarterback Conrad Schottel has completed 58% of his passes for 1706 yards with 12 touchdowns to six interceptions. Dallas Grier can move into second place in Truman receptions with two more and enters the game with 43 this season for 458 yards. Jared Haferbeir is second with 37 catches for 308 yards.

Linebacker Matthew Bell leads the defense with 79 total tackles with Nic Abbate topping the team with 5.5 sacks this season. Bell has 10 tackles for loss and an interception while Abbate has 16 tackles for loss and 48 total tackles.

Truman has 73 tackles for loss this season for 319 yards after recording 75 for 304 last season.

The Bulldogs also feature one of the top special teams units in Division II football. They are ninth in Kickoff returns at 25.4 per, second in net punting at 39.8 and third in punt return defense allowing a 1.00 yards per return. Junior Jacob Lamp averages 41.9 yards per punt, senior Derek Koon has made 49 career field goals and returners Aaron Hartfield and Tremaine Millender average over 30 yards per kick return.

About the Greyhounds (9-1; 6-0 GLVC)
Indianapolis has reeled off seven straight wins and has not been defeated in the 14 all-time GLVC games played. The Greyhounds were sitting at fourth in the latest NCAA regional poll with the top six earning an at-large berth in the Division II Championships. Indianapolis was 10-3 last season and won a first round game before falling to top-ranked Colorado State Pueblo.

First team all-conference running back Klay Fiechter gained nearly 1500 yards last season and has posted 1030 through 10 games this season. Fiechter has nine rushing touchdowns while Matt Ripp has scored 10.

Chris Mills played the first five games of the season before being replaced by Connor Barthel at quarterback. Mills was a first-team all-conference player last season with over 3000 yards passing and had thrown for 1100 yards before being sidelined. Barthel has stepped right in and thrown for 1128 and 11 TDs with a completion percentage of 77%.

Reece Horn is the top target with 62 catches for 772 yards and Greg Johnson has 31 receptions for 552 yards.

Defensively, the Greyhounds are allowing just 7.3 points per conference game while holding opponents overall to just over 250 yards of total offense. Todd Hacker leads the squad with 72 total tackles and 8.5 for loss while 20 total defensive players have a TFL this season. Koby Orris and Andre Smith lead the Greyhounds with four interceptions apiece.

Scott Miller handles all the kicking duties with a 33.7 punting average and a 10-of-14 field goal mark with a long of 42 yards.

The Coaches:
Gregg Nesbitt is in his fourth season as head coach of his alma mater. He is 19-24 overall on the Bulldogs sideline with the team going 14-2 during his tenure when leading at the half. Nesbitt played and lettered for the Bulldogs in the late 70s, returned to be an assistant coach in the early 90s and is now in his third stint as a member of the Truman community.

Bob Bartolomeo is also in his fourth season and has led the transformation of the Greyhounds to playoff contender. He was 10-3 last season and has a 32-13 record overall. He was UIndy's defensive coordinator for six seasons prior to taking over the head job in 2010.

The Series:
This is the first time Truman and Indianapolis will meet on the gridiron. The Bulldogs began play in 1900 and the Greyhounds followed in 1924.

Truman has played four teams from the Hoosier state with a 0-1 record against Butler, 2-0 mark against Evansville, a 1-0 record against the University of Indiana and a 3-1 mark over conference foe Saint Joseph's.
Indianapolis has played Lincoln (1-0), Missouri S&T (2-0) and William Jewell (2-0) from the Show-Me-State.

Race For The GLVC Title:
Indianapolis claimed a share of their second GLVC title with their 33-7 victory over the Quincy Hawks coupled with the Bulldogs 6-3 loss to Saint Joseph's last Saturday.

With a Truman win, the Bulldogs would share the conference title with the Greyhounds while a loss would give the championship outright to Indianapolis.

Indianapolis was 8-0 in GLVC action last year to win the first league title while Truman has won 26 Missouri Intercollegiate Athletics Association championships since 1924.

NCAA Regional Rankings:
The next to last regional rankings released by the NCAA Football Championships committee show that Colorado State Pueblo and Ohio Dominican are the top two teams in Super Region 4. Saginaw Valley (Mich.) and Indianapolis are three and four followed by Grand Valley (Mich.) State and Tarleton (Tex.) State in the five and six spots.

On the outside looking in are West Texas A&M at seven, Chadron (Neb.) State at eight, Midwestern (Texas) State at nine and Ferris (Mich.) State at 10. The top six in the final rankings earn a spot in the Division II playoffs with the top two earning byes and seeds three and four hosting first round games.

There are no automatic qualifiers in the Division II playoffs however the NCAA does have an "Earned Access" program. If a conference team is ranked in the top eight but not in the six in the final regional rankings, that team would bump one of the top six teams that has multiple representations from a single conference.

Bulldogs Earn GLVC Player Of Week Honors:
Truman has had a GLVC Football Player of the Week seven times in 10 weeks of action. Jacob Lamp is a two-time GLVC Special Teams Player of the Week while Tremaine Millender and A.J. Harfield has also been the special teams winner. Conrad Schottel and Garrett White have earned the offensive award and Austin Zoda was the defensive winner on October 26.

The seven weekly award winners are the most by the program since leagues started giving out the award in 1994. Truman had six MIAA selections in 1996 with five going to Harlon Hill winner Jarrett Anderson.

What's Hot:

Truman is 545-388-34 (.581) all-time since 1900. The .581 winning percentage is the best by any NCAA I Football playing school in the state of Missouri. Next highest is Northwest Missouri State at (.567). The 545 wins are second to the University of Missouri's 639 and 22 more than the Northwest Bearcats.
The 2013 Bulldog team is one of 35 in the history of the program to win at least seven games in a season. The last was an eight-win 2001 team. 15 Truman teams have won eight games in a season and six have the school record with nine single-season victories.
Truman has had five kick returns go for over 50 yards this season. Tremaine Millender has a 100 and 54 yard return, Aaron Harfield has a 68 and 59 yard return and Garrett White has a 52 yard return. 10 kick returns take up the 22 Truman plays that have gone for over 30 yards.
10 of the 44 punts by Jacob Lamp have been returned for a total of 10 yards while two others have been muffed resulting in fumble recoveries for the Bulldogs. Truman is second nationally in net punting average at 39.8 and third in punt return defense at 1.0 yards per return. The longest return this season is 10 yards by Saint Joseph's.
The Bulldogs were 11th in the nation in fewest penalties per game but fell 10 spots to 21st following Saturday's 10 foul outbreak.
The Truman defense has forced 16 turnovers that have led to 48 Bulldog points (50%). The Bulldogs have forced a turnover in all but three games since Kellen Nesbitt took over as defensive coordinator in 2010.
Dallas Grier is currently in third place all-time in Truman receptions and receiving yards entering Saturday's game. Grier passed Fontaine Walker in receptions and now has 204 for his career with eyes on second place Rich Otte's 206 catches from 1989-1992. Grier's 2,631 yards receiving moved him past Russell Evans's total of 2,387 from 1983-86. He is 263 yards away from Otte's career yards for second place.

Team Statistical Trends:

Offensively, Truman is averaging 27.3points per game with a season-high of 45 against William Jewell in week six. The Bulldogs average 154.4 yards on the ground and 190.1 through the air for a total offense average of 344.5. The 27.3 points average is the most by the Bulldogs since they averaged 28.7 per game in 2007.
Defensively, Truman is allowing 20.3 points per game with 123.9 yards rushing and 220.9 passing for a total defensive number of 344.8. It is the fewest points allowed average since the team gave up 18.2 in 1994.
Truman has allowed seven redzone opportunities in the first six conference games while offensively, the Bulldogs have had 28 chances with 24 scores during league play.
Truman has started 32 of their 128 drives on the opponent's side of the field and has scored in 17 of those possessions (53%). Opponents have started 12 drives in Truman territory out of 133 possessions and have scored touchdowns on six occasions.
The Bulldogs average starting position is their own 39 while opponents have started nearly 14 yards back on their own 25. Truman has started just 11 drives this season inside their own 20 yard line whereas opponents have started 37 of 133 drives inside their own 20.
Truman is 65% successful on third down when facing less than five yards while opponents are 55% successful when facing the same situation. Longer than five yards, the conversion percentage drops to 22% for both teams.

Individual Statistical Trends:

Garrett White and Aaron Hartfield have seen the bulk of the carries for the Bulldog running game. White has 142 attempts for 897 yards and a 6.3 per carry average while Hartfield has 83 rushes for 385 yards and a 4.6 per carry mark.
Hartfield had a season-high 27 carries against McKendree in week seven while White posted a season/career high 158 yards in a week nine victory over Kentucky Wesleyan. He has the longest rush from scrimmage this season with an 80 yard touchdown run against William Penn in week three and three over 50 yards.
Last year, White had 585 yards rushing on 118 carries.
Conrad Schottel has completed 58% of his passes for 1706 yards and has 27 career touchdown passes. Sophomore Zach Tobin is 9-of-17 and redshirt freshman Devonte Black is 9-of-15 in a spot duty this year.
Dallas Grier has hauled in 14 career touchdown passes over his four seasons and is averaging 57.2 per game and 10.7 per catch this season. Has had nine 100-yard receiving days with 106 against Central Missouri being his season-high this season. Grier has seven games in his career when he caught 10 or more passes and had 10 in week four against Central Missouri and in week 10 against Saint Joseph's.
Jared Haferbier is second to Grier with 37 receptions and yards with 308 yards while Brett Nagel, Chico Orlando and Kurt Loyd have28, 24 and 19 catches apiece.
Nic Abbate has 16.0 of the team's 73 tackles for loss this year and 29.5 for his career. He is fourth in career tackles for loss since the 1998 season trailing leader Patrick Blackwell's 37.5. Matthew Bell is second with 10.0 tackles for loss and five sacks.
Derek Koon has made 49-of-73 career field goal attempts and is Truman's career leader in makes. His long is 46 yards during the 2012 season and has attempted four kicks of 50 yards or more. Koon is 106 of 118 on extra point attempts and has 253 career points.
Koon is third among active Division II field goal kickers with 49 made and is one away from cracking the top 10 in that category.
Dallas Grier has eight punt returns for 79 yards this season for an average of 9.9 and a long of 39. During his return career, Grier has 26 for 284 yards.
Tremaine Millender and Aaron Hartfield have 18 kick returns this season with Millender averaging 38.8 yards with a long of 100 and Harfield averaging 29.2 and a long of 68. Millender has 34 career returns for 27.7 yard per return average and two touchdowns.
Jacob Lamp has 44 punts this season for a 41.9 yards per punt average. Lamp has a long of 74 in week seven against Missouri S&T and has 12 total over 50 yards with 21 being spotted inside the opponent's 20 yard line.

This Date In Bulldog History:
The Bulldogs are 6-4-1 on games played on this date all-time.

This is the latest game Truman has played in the calendar year since a 27-23 victory over Missouri Western in 2002. Geoff Jensen scored on three TD receptions, including a 75-yard throw from Dusty Burk and hung on for the win over the Griffons at Stokes Stadium.

Chad Guthrie's school and conference record 20th touchdown of the 1991 season was just enough as the Bulldogs averted a late two-point conversion by Missouri S&T in a 17-16 victory in the season finale. That record would be eclipsed in 1996 by Jarrett Anderson and 27 TDs.

The Bulldogs clinch the 1985 MIAA Championship with a 39-24 victory over Southeast Missouri State in a game played at Busch Memorial Stadium in St. Louis. It was part of a two year series between the Bulldogs and Red Hawks played in St. Louis.

Other notable games on this date include a 9-7 Hickory Stick win over Northwest Missouri in 1968, a 19-0 victory over Saint Louis University in 1934 and an 11-5 loss in the first season of Bulldog football (1900) to Kirksville High School.

Up Next:
Following the conclusion of the regular season, the Great Lakes Valley Conference will announce the all-league team next week and the team will have its annual banquet on December 7. Spring practice will begin in early April and the first game of the 2014 season will take place on September 6 at FCS Drake (Iowa).

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