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Football

Football Notes: Truman vs. Indianapolis - October18 (1:00 p.m.)

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Truman Bulldogs (4-2; 3-1 GLVC) vs. Indianapolis Greyhounds (5-1; 3-0 GLVC)
Saturday, October 18, 2014 ~ Stokes Stadium, Kirksville, Mo. ~ 1:00 p.m.
Promotions/Events:
All Tickets $2.00
 
KIRKSVILLE, Mo. – The Truman Bulldogs will host the two-time defending Great Lakes Valley Conference champions on Saturday when the University of Indianapolis visits Stokes Stadium for the first time.

Game Preview:  The Greyhounds enter Saturday's clash undefeated in 18 GLVC games played and bring the league's top scoring (34.0/game) and defense (14.8/game) into the rematch with the Bulldogs.

The two teams played the season finale last year with Indianapolis scoring a touchdown with 1:03 left to clinch the outright conference title over the Bulldogs 21-14. The games stats were nearly identical with Truman outgaining the Greyhounds 294 to 277.

The Bulldogs bring the second best scoring defense in the league at 16.5 per contest and the top rushing defense allowing 91.8 yard per game. Truman is number two in total defense with an allowance of 312.8 per game and is first in opponent third downs (30.7%) and redzone defense (54.5%).

Truman is looking to rebound after a 21-17 home loss to William Jewell on Saturday. The Bulldogs led 17-0 at the half but the Cardinals rallied with 21 straight second half points to spoil the Truman homecoming game. Garrett White was limited to a season-low 88 yards rushing while Kurt Loyd caught a career-high 11 passes.

White is second in the GLVC is rushing yards per game at 121.7 and fifth in scoring at eight points per game. He has gained 730 yards on the ground on 134 attempts for a 5.4 yards per carry average. Quarterback Devonte Black has completed 62% of his passes with seven touchdowns and three interceptions for 893 yards in his first year as a starter.

On the defensive side of the ball, Austin Zoda paces the squad with 40 total tackles and Devin Gillespie has 11 tackles for loss and five sacks. The 11 for loss is one away from entering the Bulldog single-season top 10 in that category.

The Greyhounds dismantled McKendree (Ill.) 52-7 at home last Saturday and have won four straight games.  Indianapolis put up 556 yards of total offense against the Bearcats while holding McKendree to a paltry 186 yards. Connor Barthel completed 17-of-22 passes with receiver Reece Horn nabbing nine ball for 175 yards and three touchdowns.

Horn has 19 catches for 375 yards and six scores in his last two outings and has put up 697 yards receiving on 39 catches, 10 for scores this season. Barthel has completed 68% of his passes for 1,337 yards and Matt Ripp leads the rushing attack with 89 attempts for 492 yards.

Defensively, Rob Dury has the majority of the tackles for the Greyhounds with 75 and 3.4 tackles for loss. Lee Campbell and Dillon Dallas share the team lead for sacks with 3.5 apiece.
 
Series With Indianapolis:
Last year's 21-14 victory by the Greyhounds was the only meeting to date between the two schools.

In the game, Garrett White rushed 27 times for 98 yards and scored both Bulldog touchdowns. Reese Horn caught five passes for 60 yards for Indianapolis and Connor Barthel was 19-of-30 for 182 yards in notable stats of returning players.
 
Coaches:
Truman is guided by Gregg Nesbitt, in his fifth year as head coach of his alma mater. Nesbitt is 23-27 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.

Bob Bartolomeo is in his fifth season as head coach and 11th year overall on the Indianapolis sidelines. He is 52-22-1 all-time as a head coach counting a two-year period at crosstown Butler (Ind.) University and is the two-time GLVC Coach of the Year.
 
Bulldogs In The GLVC:
  • Truman is in their second season as members of the Great Lakes Valley Conference and are 8-3 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 288-163 (+125).
  • In all-time GLVC game statistics, Truman has run for 2,032 yards (184.7/game, 4.4/rush) while allowing 720 opponent rushing yards (65.5/game, 2.0/rush). In total offense, Truman averages 372.0 per game and allows 264.2 per GLVC game.
  • The defense has sacked opposing GLVC quarterbacks 30 times for 202 while the Bulldog offensive line has garnered 18 sacks for 126 yards.
  • The lone negative stat, Truman has lost 16 of 23 fumbles while opponents have lost 10 of 16. Overall, Truman has had 26 turnovers in league play while gaining 18, a minus eight ratio.
  • In all three GLVC losses, Truman has outgained their opponents in total offense.  The most yards allowed and still lost was 277 against Indianapolis in 2013.
 
Milestone Watch
Garrett White has become the 13th Bulldog to rush for over 2,000 career rushing yards and sits eighth in rushing with 2,393 yards. He will next pass Sharron Washington (1963-66) for seventh with 43 yards and Andre Gillespie (1982-85) with 126 yards.

White has 28 rushing touchdowns and is tied with Lenvil Elliott (1969-72) for sixth all-time. He will next pass Washington with three 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 second all-time in tackles for loss with 36.0 1.5 behind former line mate Patrick Blackwell for the overall career lead.

William Jewell Game Highlights:
  • The loss was just the third by the Bulldogs in the last five years when they took a lead into the halftime break (18-3).  The last was against Saint Joseph's (Ind.) when they led 3-0 and lost 6-3 in the next-to-last game of the 2013 season.
  • Of Jewell's 14 drives, 12 were for six plays or less and six were three and outs.  There three touchdown drives (83, 46, 63) accounted for 189 of their 262 yards of total offense (72%). The 83-yard drive was the longest against the Bulldogs this season and only took three plays at 53 seconds.
  • In the pivotal third quarter, William Jewell outgained the Bulldogs 149 to 36, had three punt returns for 37 yards and had one foul for 10 yards while Truman had five for 40. The Bulldogs owned the ball for 9:13 seconds but averaged 2.6 per play to the Cardinals 8.8 per play.
  • The Cardinals finished with 33 punt return yards, in the previous 10 GLVC games played by Truman; they allowed eight punt return yards total.
  • Garrett White finished with 106 all-purpose yards with 88 on the ground and 18 through the air. He moved up two spots to eighth on the all-time career rushing list with 2,393 yards.
  • Kurt Loyd's 11 receptions was a career-high and the first receiver this season to catch more than 10 passes in a game this season. His previous high was six against McKendree (Ill.) last year.
  • Devonte Black completed 17-of-28 for 130 yards and Zach Tobin completed his first seven passes before two incompletes for 65 yards.
  • The Bulldogs had eight tackles for loss with Nic Abbate getting 1.5 to take sole possession of second place on the all-time charts. He is now 1.5 behind his former line mate Patrick Blackwell for the career lead (37.5).
  • Truman held William Jewell to just the second lowest offensive output of the season (54 yards rushing, 262 yards of total offense).
  • It was second game this season that Truman did not force a turnover.
  • The six sacks allowed was the most by an opponent since Central Missouri has six on September 20, 2012 (24 games). The Bulldog offensive line has given up 10 sacks in the last two games.
 
Thrillers:
The Bulldogs have had 10 of their last 17 games, including four of six this season, (6-4 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 975th game in Truman Football history. The Bulldogs' .581 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 16.5 points per game through six 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 2.8 yards per rush this season with 551 yards and seven rushing touchdowns.
  • Quarterbacks have completed 121-of-206 (58%) passes against the defense for 1326 yards (221.0 per game average). They have completed seven touchdown pass.
  • The defense has not allowed 400 yards of total offense in 12 of their last 13 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 50 games played and went 33 straight from 2010-2013 forcing a turnover.  
  • Opponents are successful 31% of the time on third downs converting 27 of-88 attempts and 38% on fourth down with six of 16 attempts.
  • Austin Zoda leads in tackles with 40 through the six games. Zoda leads the team with 24 solo stops.
  • Devin Gillespie leads the team with 11.0 tackles for loss and 5.0 sacks this season.
  • The team has 13 sacks for 81 yards and 44 tackles for loss for 168 yards.
  • The Bulldogs have not allowed a 100-yard rusher in 14 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 203.2 yards per game and 4.4 yards per rush this season. Last year, Truman averaged 153.5 yards and in 2011 averaged 115.5 yards on the ground.
  • Truman has 2177 yards of total offense with 362.8 per game and 5.0 per play. They have converted 39% on third down going 34-of-88 and are 7-of-12 on fourth down conversions.
  • Garrett White leads the team with 134 rushes for 730 yards. He has eight 100-yard rushing games for his career and eight runs from scrimmage over 40 yards.
  • Devonte Black has completed 62.5% of his passes in his first year as a starter for the Bulldogs. He has thrown for 893 yards and rushed for another 229.
  • Black's top receiving target has been Kurt Loyd with 23 catches for 237 yards and four touchdowns. Loyd averages 10.3 yards per reception.
  • Chico Orlando is second with 18 receptions for 164 yards and followed by Derek Hammann 14-158) and Joey Schenck (11-105)
  • The offensive line has allowed 18 sacks for 112 yards after allowing 11 all of 2013.
 
Special Forces Notes:
  • Jacob Lamp is averaging 39.2 yards in 31 punts in 2014 with 11 inside the 20 and a season-long 70-yard boot against Langston (Okla.).
  • Lamp, for his career is averaging 40.4 yards on 86 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 53.7 yards per kickoff on 27 attempts and is 3-for-7 on field goals made with a long of 36. Howard is 6-of-7 on extra point attempts.
  • Nick Dolezal has made 7-of-10 extra point attempts and a field goal of 29 yards.
  • Between Truman and their opponents, five of 13 field goal attempted has been successful.
  • Derek Hammann has returned 10 kickoffs for 182 yards (18.2/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.).
Upcoming:
Truman will be off next week due to the odd number of conference teams. It is the first time since 1997 that the Bulldogs will have a 10-game schedule.
The Bulldogs will return to action, on the road, on November 1 against Southwest Baptist (Mo.) University.
 
 
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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
Zach Tobin

#12 Zach Tobin

QB
5' 8"
Junior

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
Zach Tobin

#12 Zach Tobin

5' 8"
Junior
QB