NOTES: 'Dogs & 'Hounds To Tangle In Showcase Game Saturday

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KIRKSVILLE, Mo. – Two teams that are nationally ranked and in the hunt for a NCAA Division II playoff bid will clash on Saturday night as part of the D-II Showcase series. The #23 Truman Bulldogs (8-1; 5-1 GLVC) will travel to #17 University of Indianapolis (7-1; 5-1 GLVC) for a 6 p.m. kick.

UINDY and Truman are 1-2 in 13 different stat categories in the GLVC including scoring (offense and defense) total (offense and defense) and rushing (offense and defense). They are 1-2 also in third down conversation rate and time of possession with the Bulldogs leapfrogging UINDY for the top spot.

The Greyhounds dropped one spot to fifth in the latest NCAA Super Region 3 rankings while the Bulldogs continued to get the Rodney Dangerfield "no respect" treatment. Two-loss teams Missouri Western and Fort Hays State from the MIAA are eighth and 10^th in the poll while #6 Grand Valley State has the same In-Region record (6-1) as the Bulldogs. The top seven in the final regional poll will earn a Division II playoff spot. Truman was last in the Division II playoffs in 1994.

The Bulldogs have won three straight and closed out the home schedule with a 5-0 record after a 45-17 thrashing of McKendree on Saturday. Truman ran a season-high 60 times for 304 yards while running back Jordan Salima added three more rushing TDs to his resume in the victory. Salima finished with 132 rushing yards while quarterback Jaden Barr was an efficient 8-of-10 for 127 and a touchdown pass.

The Greyhounds lost for the first time in 2019 when they fell 34-27 to Lindenwood (Mo.) on Saturday. Lions quarterback Cade Brister threw for a school-record 531 yards with three receivers going over 100 in the win. UINDY QB T.J. Edwards was 17-of-32 for 179 yards and was the leading rushing with 82. The Greyhounds led 10-0 in the second quarter but Lindenwood reeled off 28-straight points to build a lead that UINDY couldn't overcome. UINDY has not lost consecutive games since September of 2016.

Truman/Indianapolis Series Notes:
The Greyhounds have had the upper hand in this young series with a 5-1 advantage and have won the last two and all games played at Key Stadium in Indianapolis.

This will be the third time, out of seven games, that the two teams have met in November.

Last year in Kirksville, the Bulldogs grabbed an early 7-0 lead on a 1-yard pass from Jaden Barr to Jake Ellis and led 7-3 after one. The Greyhounds scored 21 points in the second quarter and forged ahead for a 31-7 win and their sixth GLVC title in seven years. UINDY held Truman to 216 yards of total offense.

Bulldogs Back In AFCA Poll:
Truman climbed two spots to #23 in the latest AFCA Division II Coaches poll with the win over McKendree. This was the seventh week out of nine polls that Truman received votes in the survey.

Saturday's win was the first time that Truman won a game as a ranked team. The three previous times ranked, twice in 2001 and earlier in 2019 all resulted in losses following the ranking.

Among National/Conference Leaders:

The Bulldogs are in the top 20 in eight national statistic categories. Their highest ranking is fifth in sacks allowed with only five allowed in nine games. They are eighth in both time of possession (33:29) and kick returns (26.8/return). Truman is 16^th in redzone offense at 90% and has converted with points in their last 30 trips, with 26 touchdowns. They are 17^th in scoring offense at 39.7 points per game, which is on pace for the highest average in school history and 19^th in both net punting (37.3 per punt) and opponent third-down (29.1%).

Post Game Notes Against McKendree:

The Bulldogs took an early 7-0 lead as they scored on their first possession of the game. They have scored first in all nine games this season and have scored in their first possession in six games (five TDs, one FG).
Led in possession time for the ninth time this year with 36:45.
Converted on all six third down attempts in the first half and finished 9-of-14 for the game.
Improved to 57.1% on third down (44-of-77) in six league games this year.
Had over 20 first downs (24) for the sixth straight game, had over 20 in five games last season.
Posted a season-high 60 rush attempts and ran for over 300 yards for the third time this season.
Jordan Salima followed up his four TD performance last week with three more against McKendree and has vaulted to fifth in both career rushing touchdowns (32) and overall TDs (37).
Salima finished with his 11^th career 100-yard rushing game with 132 yards and moved to third on the all-time Bulldog list with 763 rushing attempts in his 42^nd game.
Jaden Barr was 8-of-10 for 127 yards with his last attempt being his 1,000 in a Truman uniform. He also moved up to second place in TDs responsible for (one rushing, one passing) on the career list and is now two back of the all-time record of 78.
Barr clawed pass Matt Ticich for second place in career total offense and is now less than 400 yards away from the top spot in 2019 Hall of Famer Eric Howe (9.040).
Travis Myerson led the defense with 10 total tackles and the Bulldogs had eight for loss and two sacks.
Sam Reeves added another sack to his record, which now sits at 39 for his career and 56.5 tackles for loss.
Griffin Becker had a punt block for the Bulldogs on special teams and Jaylen Jefferson added his third kick return over 30 yards with a 55-yard return in the second half.
Josh Scheiderer improved to 46-of-46 on PATs and is now within seven makes of tying the single-season mark of 53 by Dave Austinson in 1982.
Eric Yakle picked off his second pass of the season and 13^th by a Bulldog this year.

Behind Enemy Lines…

The Greyhounds have been the standard barrier for GLVC football with six league titles out of the past seven years.
They were ranked in the top 10 in the AFCA Division II poll, peaking at number eight, prior to their loss at Lindenwood last week.
Since 2014, the Greyhounds are 29-3 at home and have won 15 straight GLVC games played at Key Stadium. Their last conference home loss came to William Jewell 27-24 in 2014.
Junior Al McKeller is the leading rushing in the GLVC at 111.9 per game and sophomore Toriano Clinton is sixth at 63.4.
QB T.J. Edwards, a transfer from Southwest Baptist, is fifth in the conference in total offense per game at 247.1.
The UINDY offense averages 47.1 points per game with 509 yards per game in total offense (269.6 rushing; 239.4 passing).
The defense allows a conference-low 15.5 points per game with 317.5 yards per game in total defense (54.9 rushing; 262.6 passing).
The Greyhounds are second behind the Bulldogs in time of possession per game (32:54) and first in third downs at 48%.
Joe Lambright (46), Connor Steeb (44) and Alex Parsons (43) lead the defense in tackles with Parsons and Lambright having a combine 21 tackles for loss.

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 39.7 points per game for scoring is tops in school history. The current record is 36.2 points set in 1958.
The 398.9 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 219.4 yards on the ground, most since 1996 (260.9). Record is 319.8 set in 1962.
The team averages 507.5 all-purpose yards, most since 2007 (533.7) and behind the school record 562.5 in 1986.
The Bulldogs have 28 rushing touchdowns, sixth most in a season and most since the 2002 campaign of 27. The school record is 41 set in 1962.
The team is averaging 5.27 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 66.4% 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 67.0% completion percentage is currently tops over Chris Livingstone's 65.2%. Barr has 227 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 46 and is seven back of the single-season record of 53 held by Dave Austinson in 1982.
Taylor Cornish is currently seventh in punting average at 41.05 yards per punt.

Up Next:
The Bulldogs will hit the road for the season finale in a non-conference regional game against Urbana University. The Blue Knights have won four straight (7-2) and were ranked sixth in the Super Region 1 NCAA Division II rankings entering the week. It will be the first meeting between the two schools. Kickoff from Urbana, Ohio is 1 p.m. (ET).

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Players Mentioned

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

#27 Griffin Becker: DB; 5' 11"; Senior

#83 Jake Ellis: TE; 6' 7"; Junior; National Letter of Intent

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

#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

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

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

Players Mentioned

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

#27 Griffin Becker
: 5' 11"; Senior
: DB

#83 Jake Ellis
: 6' 7"; Junior; National Letter of Intent
: TE

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

#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

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

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