NOTES: Bulldogs Return East For Final Regular Season Game

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KIRKSVILLE, Mo. – The 2019 regular season finale will see the Truman Bulldogs travel to Urbana University in Urbana, Ohio for a non-conference Division II matchup on Saturday afternoon at 1 p.m. (ET).

The Bulldogs remained in the AFCA Top 25 (at number 25) despite a tough road loss to #17 Indianapolis on Saturday evening. The Greyhounds scored 24 straight points in the second half to take command of the game and controlled the ball for nearly 40 minutes in the 44-28 loss. It was only the second loss of the season by the Bulldogs, who will be seeking their ninth win of the season for only the seventh time in school history when they take on the Blue Knights on Saturday.

Saturday's game will also mark "Game 44" for four Bulldog seniors that will end their career (unless of postseason activity). Quarterback Jaden Barr, running back Jordan Salima, defensive back Jordan Siegel and defensive end Sam Reeves will be playing in all 44 games possible over the course of four seasons. Linebacker Eric Yakle and defensive back Travis Myerson will be playing in their 41^st game and defensive tackle Jake Floyd will be making his 40^th appearance. Barr, Salima and Reeves will be etching their names in the Truman record books following the completion of their careers with several top honors apiece.

Urbana has a lot riding on the game as well. The Blue Knights were ranked ninth in the NCAA Super Region one poll with a 7-3 record and are hoping a win and a little help to earn an NCAA playoff bid. Urbana stumbled at home last Thursday dropping a 31-7 decision to Fairmont State. The Blue Knights were held to minus-seven yards rushing, had only nine first downs and had only 214 yards of total offense in the defeat. Up until then, Urbana had won four straight games to get themselves in the conversation for a postseason bid.

Truman/Urbana Series Notes:
This will be the first meeting between Truman and Urbana on the gridiron.

The Blue Knights are members of the Mountain East Conference. The 11-team league is a part of the NCAA Super Region One and has only one common game with a GLVC opponent. Wheeling Jesuit lost to McKendree 28-14 on October 5^th and are 0-10 on the season.

The Bulldogs have played three opponents from the state of Ohio, Akron, Central State and Malone with a combine record of 4-7. Malone was the last opponent from the state with the Bulldogs winning 35-3 in Kirksville in 2016.

The last trip to the Buckeye state was a memorable 1990 game in Columbus against Central State in which Truman won 43-42.

Bulldogs Remain In AFCA Poll:
Truman dropped two spots to #25 in the latest AFCA Division II Coaches poll with the loss to Indianapolis. This was the eighth week out of 10 polls that Truman received votes in the survey.

The Bulldogs are 1-4 as a ranked team since 2001.

Among National/Conference Leaders:

Truman is fourth in Division II in sacks allowed with six this season through 10 games and sixth in penalties per game at 4.8. They are ninth in redzone offense with a 90.9% success rate or scoring on 40 of 44 trips into the redzone.

The Bulldogs are also first in the GLVC in Kickoff returns (23.2/return), net punting (36.6/punt), sacks (2.70/game) and opponent third downs (31.7%).

Post Game Notes Against Indianapolis:

It was the sixth loss in seven tries against the Greyhounds and it was the most points scored by both teams against each other in the game.
Truman had a season-low 23 rush attempts, 10 fewest from previous low of 33 against Valparaiso and Lindenwood and fewest total plays (57), one short from the season opener at Drake.
UINDY posted the most rushing attempts (52) by an opponent this season eclipsing the previous high of 37 by Wayne State. They had the most offensive plays (76) by one more than Quincy and most total yards by a team this season (532).
The 532 yards by an opponent was the most against a Truman defense since Grand Valley State gained 565 in 2013. It was only the 12^th 500-yard game by an opponent against Truman since 2010 and first since 2016.
It was the first time this season that Truman did not have over 30 minutes of possession time, in fact, the 20:58 time of possession was the lowest by the Bulldogs since a 2012 game against Pittsburg State (20:09). Truman has had only five games since 2013 with under 25 minutes of possession time.
Jaden Barr moved to the top of the Truman career TDs responsible list with two rushing and one passing touchdowns on Saturday. Barr now has a school-best 79 touchdowns responsible for in his career.
Barr also moved into second place in pass completions at Truman with his 19-of-24 outing and is now at 623 all-time. That also ranks fifth among active Division II quarterbacks.
More Barr…he is now within 106 total offense yards from taking over the top spot from Eric Howe and 66 yards from hitting 9,000 for his career. Barr had 46 yards rushing and 202 yards passing Saturday.
It was the first time this year that Truman did not force a three and out and first game this year without forcing a turnover.
Reed McBroom had 15 tackles to lead the Truman defense and was the first Bulldog to record 15 or more tackles since Justin Mikeworth against Missouri S&T in 2017.

Behind Enemy Lines…

The Blue Knights have already secured their first winning season since a 7-4 record in 2013 and looking to match their 2012 record of 8-3 with a victory on Saturday. Urbana was 5-6 the last two seasons.
Quarterback Eddie Stockett has started all 10 games and completed 58.6% of his passes for 1,981 yards and 16 touchdowns.
Stockett top two pass receivers are Rafael Floyd with 40 catches for 499 yards and Jesse Bray with 32 grabs for 536 yards and a high of five TDs.
WR Sanders is the leading running back with 740 yards on 123 carries and 12 touchdowns while Isaiah Young had 125 attempts for 468 yards.
The offense averages 377.2 yards total per game with 174 on the ground and 203 through the air. They have the number three rush offense in the Mountain East Conference.
Chris Richardson and Duray Hall have over 80 tackles to top the Blue Knights defense this season. LA Kelly has a team high 9.5 tackles for loss with Hall recording eight TFLs.
Urbana is the number three rushing defense in the MEC with allowing 107.3 per game and the number two pass defense at 195.6 per outing. Total-wise, they are the top unit in the league at allowing 303.2 per game.

Season Numbers To Watch:
As the season comes toward the end, here are a few statistics worth keeping an eye on.

Truman has won eight or more games 17 times, last coming in 2016. They have won nine games six times, last in 1992. They have never won 10 games in a season.
It was their 29^th season in which they did not lose at home, first since 1994.
The current 38.5 points per game for scoring is tops in school history. The current record is 36.2 points set in 1958. The Bulldogs need to score at least 14 points on Saturday to claim the record barring postseason games.
The 391.2 yards of total offense average is the highest since 419.4 in 2001. The school record in 471.4 set in 1985.
The Bulldogs have averaged 209.5 yards on the ground, which would mark the second straight year of averaging over 200 yards rushing per game. Last year, Truman averaged 213.5.
The team averages 503.0 all-purpose yards, most since 2007 (533.7) and behind the school record 562.5 in 1986.
The Bulldogs have 31 rushing touchdowns, tied for fourth with the 1982 squad. The school record is 41 set in 1962. Third on the list is 35 in 1995 and second is 37 in 1996.
The team is averaging 5.26 yards per rush, which is currently the sixth best in a season. They averaged 5.07 last year while the record is 5.64 in 1964.
The current completion percentage of 65.1% is the second best in a season, the top mark is 67.5% in 1965. The team has topped 60% or greater in five campaigns since 1958.
Individually, Jaylen Jefferson has the top yards per carry with a minimum of 20 for the season at 8.74. T.J. Jackson owns the record at 8.73 on 71 carries in 1964. Jefferson has 31 attempts this year for 271 yards.
Jaden Barr's 65.5% completion percentage is currently tops over Chris Livingstone's 65.2%. Barr has 261 attempts to Livingstone's 132, Eric Howe is next on the list at 63.9% on 357 attempts.
Josh Scheiderer is second in PATs in a season with 50 and is three back of the single-season record of 53 held by Dave Austinson in 1982.
Taylor Cornish is currently ninth in punting average at 40.7 yards per punt.

Up Next:
The NCAA Playoff selections will be announced on Sunday afternoon and bowl selections shortly after that. The top GLVC team not selected for the playoffs will represent the conference in the first America's Crossroads Bowl in Hobart, Indiana. The game will pit a GLVC school against a member of the GMAC on December 7^th.

There are five Division II bowl games with the addition of the America's Crossroads Bowl. The Mineral Water Bowl (Excelsior Springs, Missouri), Heart of Texas Bowl (Copperas Cove, Texas), Live United Bowl (Texarkana, Arkansas) and Corsicana Bowl (Corsicana, Texas) are the other Division II bowl games.

The GLVC All-Conference team will be released next week.

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Players Mentioned

#33 Justin Mikeworth: LB; 5' 11"; Junior

#15 Jaden Barr: QB; 5' 11"; Senior

#93 Jake Floyd: DL; 5' 10"; Senior

#4 Jaylen Jefferson: RB; 5' 9"; Junior; National Letter of Intent

#38 Reed McBroom: LB; 5' 10"; Junior

#20 Travis Myerson: DB; 6' 1"; Senior

#9 Sam Reeves: DL; 5' 8"; Senior

#2 Jordan Salima: RB; 5' 10"; Senior

#99 Josh Scheiderer: K/P; 5' 11"; Sophomore

#1 Jordan Siegel: DB; 5' 10"; Senior

#34 Eric Yakle: LB; 6' 0"; Senior

#98 Taylor Cornish: P; 6' 4"; Sophomore

Players Mentioned

#33 Justin Mikeworth
: 5' 11"; Junior
: LB

#15 Jaden Barr
: 5' 11"; Senior
: QB

#93 Jake Floyd
: 5' 10"; Senior
: DL

#4 Jaylen Jefferson
: 5' 9"; Junior; National Letter of Intent
: RB

#38 Reed McBroom
: 5' 10"; Junior
: LB

#20 Travis Myerson
: 6' 1"; Senior
: DB

#9 Sam Reeves
: 5' 8"; Senior
: DL

#2 Jordan Salima
: 5' 10"; Senior
: RB

#99 Josh Scheiderer
: 5' 11"; Sophomore
: K/P

#1 Jordan Siegel
: 5' 10"; Senior
: DB

#34 Eric Yakle
: 6' 0"; Senior
: LB

#98 Taylor Cornish
: 6' 4"; Sophomore
: P