Football 11/9/2016 8:07:00 AM

NOTES: Football Clashes With McKendree In Regular Season Finale

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KIRKSVILLE, Mo. – The Truman Bulldog Football team will have a lot riding in their regular season finale on Saturday afternoon at McKendree. The two teams kick off at 1 p.m. from Leemon Field in Lebanon, Illinois.

The first thing Truman will look to avenge last year's 31-3 letdown on Senior Day in Kirksville at the hands of the Bearcats. Next, lock up their first outright conference championship since 1985 and third, position themselves inside the top 7 in the final NCAA Regional rankings for their first Division II Tournament appearance since 1994 and fourth overall.

Truman moved up to fifth in the latest regional rankings put out by the NCAA on Monday. The top seven after Saturday's regular season finale earn a spot in the Division II Football Playoffs that begin next week.

The Bulldogs claimed a share of the GLVC title and 27^th conference championship with a 23-3 victory at Saint Joseph's on Saturday afternoon. It was the first piece of a league title by a Truman Football team since the 1988 season. Truman owned the ball for almost 13 minutes in the fourth quarter against the Pumas while sacking the SJC quarterback seven times during the victory.

In addition to all of that, it will be the 1,000^th game played for the Truman Bulldogs in the history of the program. Truman has won 564 games, second most of any NCAA school in the state of Missouri and 10^th among all Division II schools in wins. Truman's overall record is 564-401-34 (.581).

Jaden Barr continued his strong play at quarterback for Truman. Barr scored a pair of second half rushing touchdowns and threw another to Joey Schenck while controlling the pace of the game. In the last two games, Barr and the offense has had the ball 24 out of the possible 30 minutes in the final stanza. Barr has accounted for 26 touchdowns this season (16 passing and 10 rushing), which is the most since Matt Ticich was responsible for 30 in 2007.

McKendree is one of the hottest teams in the GLVC after a 35-17 win over Quincy for their fourth straight victory. Like Truman, the Bearcats feature a stingy defense that does not allow many yards or points. McKendree is first in Division II sacks, third in tackles for loss and ninth in opponent third down success.

A.J. Wentland has been the key for the McKendree defense. The senior has over 400 career tackles with a team-leading 132 this season (10.5 for loss and 2.5 sacks). The Bearcats have 49 quarterback sacks this season (4.9/game) for a total of 301 yards while allowing only 15 sacks for 80 yards.

Last year in Kirksville, McKendree outgained the Bulldogs 415 to 175 in their 31-3 victory over Truman. Senior quarterback Isaac Fisher led the attack with 78 yards on the ground and 196 through the air, he was 26-of-38 on the afternoon. Wentland registered 13 tackles and the defense held Truman out of the redzone for the entire game.

UP NEXT:
The NCAA Division II Football bracket will be announced on Sunday at 4 p.m. on NCAA.com. A Truman win would give the Bulldog resume a shot at their first tournament appearance in 22 years. Also, the GLVC will announce the all-conference team next week.

WHAT'S AT STAKE SATURDAY:

A victory would give the Bulldogs their first outright conference title and first undefeated conference slate since they went 5-0 in 1985.
Truman has won seven conference games for only the fifth time in school history and one more win would tie the 1990 team record with eight league wins (8-1).
The Bulldogs have had 20 undefeated conference seasons in their history since 1924.
Truman has had nine overall wins in a season six previous times (1933, 1961, 1971, 1982, 1990 and 1992). The eight victories currently is a program high dating back to 2001.

SEASON Superlatives

Jaden Barr is sixth in single-season history with 26 touchdowns responsible for. It is the most since Matt Ticich had 30 in 2007. Ticich had five rushing TDs and 15 passing.
Barr is two rushing touchdowns away from the record by a Truman quarterback held by Dusty Burk with 12 in 2002.
Jordan Jorgenson has already broken the school record for punt return yards with 377, previous was held by Alfonso Pugh with 310 in 2008. He is second in punt returns with 30, the most since Albert Coker's 23 in 2008 with the record held by Eric Holm of 38 in 1978.
Joey Schenck is tied for 10^th with seven receiving touchdowns, the most since Coker in 2008 and four from the single-season high of 11 by Larry Tisdale in 1985.
Ben Chaney's 141 interception return yards is third most in a single-season and most since Robert Gayden had 138 in 2012. The Truman record is 173 by Gary Evans in 1975.
Sam Reeves is tied for fifth in tackles for loss in a season with 14 and 10^th in quarterback sacks with 9.5. Patrick Blackwell has the TFL record of 17 in 2012 and Al Fulton has the sacks record of 12 in 1972.
As a team, Truman's 467 punt return yards is second most in school history trailing the 2002 total of 490. They are four punt returns from the most in a year with 35, the record is 39 in 1978.
The Bulldogs have broken the tackle for loss record in each of the past five seasons and have the top spot again this year with one game to go with 86. The previous high, set last year, was 79.
The team sacks record was also eclipsed with 33 this year. The previous high was 28 in 2012.
The 940 yards rushing by an opponent for a season is the sixth fewest overall and the least since 1,072 in 1981.
The rushing yards per game average of 94.0 is the fifth fewest average overall and fewest since 83.5 in the 1982 season.
The seven opponent rushing touchdowns is the fewest allowed since the 1961, 1972 and 1981 campaigns. The Bulldogs allowed 10 rushing TDs last year.
The Bulldogs have had only two lost fumbles this season, both occurring in the first two games of the year. The record for fewest in a season is currently three in 1997.

YOUNG PUPS:
The Bulldogs have had eight true freshmen make their debuts this season. They are running back Jordan Salima, receivers Drew Slager and Cam Nisbet, full back Hayden Holt, offensive lineman James Mitchell, defensive lineman Jake Floyd and defensive backs Lawrence Woods and Jordan Siegel.

The top four leaders in total offense, Barr, Salima Andy Satulla and Malique Robbins and five of the seven all-purpose yardage leaders are in either their first or second year playing.

Of the 63 players that have taken the field this season 60% or 38 are listed as true freshmen, redshirt freshmen or sophomores.

BLOCK PARTY:
The Bulldogs are second in Division II with five blocked punts this season. Central State (Ohio) leads the nation with six. Truman has blocked five kicks four previous times in a season, last being 2009.

Two belong to redshirt freshman Taylor Manes (against Grand Valley St and Southwest Baptist) and one each by junior Jordan Brown (Midwestern St.) sophomores Jake Hays (Indianapolis) and Mitch Nicholls (Quincy).

CAREER MILESTONE WATCHES:
Senior defensive back Austin Zoda is eighth on the all-time tackles list with 309. He can pass Ricky Ruff (1986-88) with one, Tim Stull (1981-84) with two and Ludd Lienhard (1998-02) with six. Zoda is sixth in unassisted tackles with 162, one back of Dan Shelby (1980-82).

Senior Joey Schenck has 124 pass receptions and is ninth on the Truman career list. Next of the radar is John Busby's 125 catches from 1981-85. Schenck has 1,263 receiving yards, 25th among all receivers.

Junior Ben Chaney is fifth on the career interception return yards list with 160. Next up is Willie Byrd with 168 from 1973-76.

Junior place kicker Nick Dolezal has 18 career field goals which is ninth on the career list. Next up is 24 by Dave Austinson from 1981-82.

TARGETING:
Schenck has been targeted 57 times by Bulldog quarterbacks making 34 catches for 410 yards. Drew Slager has been thrown to 56 times; making 35 catches for 586 yards and two touchdowns.

A total of 15 receivers and backs have had passes their direction this season with 13 making receptions.

The 16 touchdown passes this season, all by Jaden Barr, is the most since the 2012 campaign.

PATH TO THE NCAA:
The second regional ranking was released on Monday and the Bulldogs are 6^th in Super Region 4 (see page 5 for explanations). The top seven in the region in the final poll will be selected for the NCAA Division II Tournament on November 13.

The Bulldogs have a 8-2 overall and Division II in-region record. Truman last made the NCAA Division II tournament in 1994.

MONEY PLAYS:
Slager leads Truman with 27 "Money" receptions. Those are plays that result in either a first down or touchdown. So 27 of Slager's 34 catches have resulted in first downs or touchdowns this year with 16 coming on third downs.

Jordan Salima and Jaden Barr have 35 rushes apiece that have resulted in first down or touchdowns.

GLVC GAMES:
Truman is 21-9 since joining the GLVC in 2013 and has outscored opponents by 256 points. The Bulldogs have held opponents to 94.6 yards rushing per game and have had 40 sacks more than opposing defenses.

In the first half of league games, Truman has outscored GLVC foes by 294 points (483-189) and has allowed 54 first quarter points in the 30 league games (1.4 points per quarter).

Of the nine GLVC losses, four have come in the final two weeks of the regular season.

This year, Truman has outscored their GLVC brethren 223 to 108 including a 55-14 spread in the first quarter. The Bulldogs have had 17 rushing TDs in conference games and allowed only one.

THIRD DOWNS:
This season, Truman has converted on third downs 43% of the time, up from 35% last season. In the first quarter of games, the success rate is 50% (21-of-42) while opponents in the first quarter is at 33% (12-of-36).

The offense has had 27 "three and outs" through 10 weeks, last year through the same span last year, the Bulldogs had 40 three and outs.

OTHER NUMBERS:

The Bulldogs are ranked first in the GLVC in the following stat categories: Blocked Kicks (5), Blocked Punts (5), Fewest Penalties (50), Fewest Penalties per game (5.0), Fumbles Lost (2), Rushing Defense (94.0/game), Scoring Defense (18.3) and Turnovers Lost (9).
Truman is one of three teams in Division II with nine turnovers this season and one of two teams with two fumbles lost.

The Bulldog defense has allowed only five individual opponents in conference to rush over 100 yards since joining the GLVC in 2013 (a span of 36 games). Last year, Bubba Jenkins of Southwest Baptist has the most by an opposing back with 125 yards.
Truman is eighth in Division II in Redzone defense, 15^th in Rushing Defense and 13^th in fewest penalties. Of the 50 flags against the Bulldogs this year, 17 were in the first two weeks.

St. Joseph's Post Scripts:

Both teams had nine yards rushing at the half but Truman finished with 186 on the game and the Pumas 32.
SJC had 221 yards of total offense with 137 coming in the first half.
Five of the seven sacks by the Bulldogs occurred in the second half.
Truman controlled the ball for nearly 13 minutes in the fourth quarter and attempted three passes in the second half.
Game time was a crisp 2:26, the fastest this season.
Malique Robbins had 47 of his 52 rushing yards in the second half.
The win moved Gregg Nesbitt into fifth place alone with 38 wins at Truman.
The Bulldogs improved to 8-0 and 32-7 in Coach Nesbitt's tenure when leading at the half and have scored first in eight of the 10 games.

PLAYER NOTES:
Running Backs:
Freshman Jordan Salima leads team with 659 yards on 192 rushing attempts. He has five rushing touchdowns and one TD receiving…he had one, 100-yard rushing game (125 vs. Lincoln) and is averaging 19.5 carries per game…third in receptions with 26 for 221 and two touchdowns…he has 13 kick returns for 381 yards (29.3/return) with a long of 76…was the GLVC Special Teams Player of the Week following the September 17^th game against Missouri S&T and the GLVC Offensive Player of the Week following the September 24^th game against Lincoln…currently ranked 50th in Division II in All-Purpose Yards/game (132.3) and 10th in Kick Returns (31.1).

Sophomore Andy Satulla has 192 yards on 52 attempts (3.7/carry) with two touchdowns…has three catches for 28 yards…longest rush of the season was 25 against Lincoln and most yards on the day was 54 also against the Blue Tigers…had a career best 172 yards last season against St. Francis and scored four touchdowns against William Jewell to earn GLVC Offensive Player of the Week honors.

Sophomore Malique Robbins has 53 carries for 199 yards and a long run of 18 against Saint Joseph's…had a season-high 52 yards on nine carries against the Pumas…has seven receptions for 52 yards…has 12 kick returns for an 18.2 yards per return average and a long of 40…single game high is 17 rushes for 77 yards against Lincoln.

Quarterbacks:
Redshirt freshman Jaden Barr has started nine games (8-1 record) and has completed 142 of 244 passes (58%)…in the first quarter of games, Barr has completed 52-of-77 passes (67%)…he has 117 rushing attempts for 308 yards and a long of 24…has 10 rushing touchdowns and 16 passing TDs…single game highs, passing 270 yards (vs. William Jewell) rushing 78 (vs. Indianapolis)…longest pass is 60 yards against Missouri S&T…currently leads Truman in scoring with 60 points, the last QB to lead a season in scoring was Matt Ticich in 2006 and it has only happened two times since 1958 (Dusty Burk – 2002).

Sophomore Randy Schroeder has started seven games including the season opener against Midwestern State…his career high is 274 yards in a single game last year against Southwest Baptist on 23 completions and longest pass was 61 yards also against SBU.

Receivers:
Senior Joey Schenck has been targeted 57 times with 34 receptions for 410 yards and seven TDs…longest reception this year is 42 yards against William Jewell…season high is 101 yards on nine catches against Southwest Baptist…ninth in career Top 10 in career receptions (124) and has 1,265 yards and 13 career touchdown receptions…has three career 100+ yard receiving games with a high of 157 against William Jewell in 2015.

Freshman Drew Slager has 35 catches for a team-leading 586 yards…is averaging 16.7 yards per catch and has 27 receptions for either a first down or touchdown…has 18 receptions on third down…have four catches over 40 yards including a long of 60 against Missouri S&T…season high is 90 yards against SBU and most catches is six against Malone and William Jewell.

Senior Dalton Powell has seven catches for 124 yards (17.7/catch) and a touchdown…Powell has been thrown to seven times in the last three games.

A total of 13 receivers have been targeted this year. Among the other notables are Jordan Salima with 26 catches for 221 yards and two touchdown,s junior Kyle Spratt with 10 receptions for 107 yards and two touchdowns, junior Jordan Jorgenson with 13 catches for 124 yards and a touchdown, freshman Cam Nisbet with three receptions for 40 yards and a long of 26 and three others by Andy Satulla and sophomore C.J. Brown.

The Bulldogs have 16 receiving touchdowns this year, up from seven a year ago.

Offensive Line:
Three seniors are among the five starters on the offensive line including returning all-conference honoree in center Brad Wellman. He is joined by left tackle Colby Dohrman and right guard Kyle VanNess. Wellman has started the last 42 games at center.

Sophomore Nick Verbeck (Left Guard) and junior Matt Kaysinger (Right Tackle) fill out the starting line up on the line.

The line has allowed 21 quarterback sacks for 126 yards and 79 tackles for loss for 271 yards. The Bulldogs are fourth in the GLVC in sacks allowed with 2.2 per game.

Defensive Line:
Redshirt freshman Sam Reeves leads Truman with 14.0 tackles for loss and 9.5 sacks…was the GLVC Defensive Player of the Week following a three sack performance against Saint Josephs…has 49 total tackles with a single-game high of eight against Southwest Baptist…He was one win away from qualifying for the Division II National Wrestling tournament at 197 pounds.

Junior Isaiah Hinton has 7.5 sacks and 9.5 tackles for loss…he had two sacks in Truman's win over SBU for 10 yards lost, including a fumble recovery…has single-game highs of six stops in three games this year.

Senior Kyle Leckrone has made 24 stops starting at tackle…he has 1.5 sacks and 2.0 tackles for loss.

Junior Brett Judkins has 28 tackles including 7.5 for loss and 3.5 sacks in 10 games…he had a key sack on third down against the University of Indianapolis late in the fourth quarter.

Sophomore Jon Scheeler has 33 total tackles with 9.0 for loss and 5.5 sacks…has had a sack in six of the 10 games this season…has been credited with three quarterback hurries.

Senior Austin Zoda is the team leader in tackles with 68 this year and is in the Truman Top 10 in that category. Zoda has 309 career stops…his single game high this season is 10 vs. Southwest Baptist and William Jewell and his career high is 15 against Grand Valley St. as a freshman…he has 12 career games of 10 or more tackles.

Junior Ben Wellman is fourth on the team with 52 tackles…he had his second 10+ tackle game in season opener against Midwestern St. (10)…Wellman has two QB hurries and 4.0 tackles for loss.

Junior Jordan Brown started as a true freshman and has played in 32 career games…is second on the team in tackles with 59…he has the most active tackles for loss for his career with 21.0…he has three interceptions with two being returned for scores…had three TFLs against Malone in week 2 and a season-high 11 stops in week 1 against Midwestern State.

Junior Ben Chaney has five career interceptions and the longest scoring play for the Bulldogs this season…Chaney's 97-yd INT return against Missouri S&T was the second longest return in school history…his two INTs this year have resulted in 141 return yards.

Junior D'Anthony Knight is tops on the team with 14 pass breakups…he has also been credited with a fumble force and recovery and picked off a pass against Indianapolis with an 18-yard return.

True freshman Lawrence Woods has made 19 tackles in nine games with a team leading three interceptions…he is also a key gunner on punts…a two-sport athlete will join the wrestling team following the season.

Redshirt Freshman Taylor Manes is eighth in Division II and leads the GLVC with two blocked punts this season…he is the 16^th player in Truman history to block multiple kicks in a season with the last being Richie Schumacher in 2012…Marc Carson has the record of 3 in 1988.

Senior T.J. Fine has 24 total tackles at corner back and picked off his first career pass in the endzone to kill a William Jewell scoring threat in week 8…has appeared in 41 games with 144 career tackles and is the active leader in 20 pass breakups.

Sophomore punter Brock Rohler is averaging 39.6 yards per punt (51 attempts) with a long of 61 at Missouri S&T…was the GLVC Special Teams Player of the Week following Truman's win over Lincoln in which he put all five of his punts inside the 20 yard line and 3 inside the 10…Rohler has 12 punts inside the 10 yardline this year…averages 56.1 yards per kickoff with six touchbacks.

Junior place kicker Nick Dolezal has converted on 7-of-11 field goal attempts with a long of 35 this year…he has made 30-of-32 point after attempts…for his career, he had made 18 of 25 FGs with a long of 43 and 57-of-64 PATs…his 18 FGs is ninth on Truman's career list and his 57 PATs is 10^th on Truman's career PAT list.

Junior Jordan Jorgenson has returned 30 punts for 377 yards (12.6/return) with a long of 48 (against Malone)…Jorgenson also has two returns for 36 yards (against Lincoln and Southwest Baptist) and another for 18 yards (Missouri S&T)…his 377 return yards are the most by a Bulldog returner after passing Alfonso Pugh's 310 in 2002.

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