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Truman State University Athletics

Football

Football Notes: Truman vs. Langston (Saturday, Sept 9 - 7:00 p.m.)

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Truman Bulldogs (0-1; 0-0 GLVC) vs. Langston Lions (1-0)
Saturday, September 13, 2014 ~ Stokes Stadium, Kirksville, Mo. ~ 7:00 p.m.
 
KIRKSVILLE, Mo. – The Truman Bulldogs will look for win number one as they open up the home portion of their schedule with a Family Night game against Langston (Okla.) University on Saturday at 7:00 p.m. The Lions are nationally-ranked #23 in the NAIA poll while the Bulldogs are coming off an overtime loss at Drake, 13-7.

Game Preview: The Bulldog defense will be put to task as they will face an explosive offense on Saturday night. Truman's "D" has held opponents to two touchdowns or less in five of their last eight games played after holding Drake to 320 yards of total offense in a 13-7 overtime loss on Saturday night.

Defensive ends Nic Abbate and Devin Gillespie totaled 15 tackles while between the two had 3.5 sacks and four tackles for loss against the Drake Bulldogs. It was also the ninth straight game that the defense did not allow an opponent to rush individually for 100 yards or more.

Running back Garrett White moved into the top 15 in career rushing yards with 89 yards on 24 carries. Quarterback Devonte Black started his first game and completed 18-of-32 passes for 172 yards and scored the Bulldogs only touchdown with a one-yard quarterback sneak to tie the game at the end of the first quarter.

Langston rallied from a 35-14 deficit to down Lincoln (Mo.) University 49-48 in the Missouri Classic played at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City on Saturday.  Kendrick Roberson scored his second touchdown of the day with seven seconds left in the third quarter to put the Lions up 49-42 then blocked an extra point as Lincoln was going for the tie after scoring with 1:45 remaining in the game.

Quarterback Mark Wright completed 15-of-31 passes for 245 yards and three touchdowns while adding 98 yards on 20 rushes on the ground. His top target was Sheldon Augustine who had five receptions for 128 yards.
 
Langston put up 468 yards of total offense against the Blue Tigers and were the beneficiary of 14 Lincoln penalties for 146 yards.
 
Series With Langston:
This will be the first meeting between Truman and Langston on the gridiron.
 
Common Opponents:
 Truman plays in the NCAA Division II and Langston is a member of the NAIA Division I belonging to the Central Stats Football League.  Langston defeated fellow GLVC foe Lincoln 49-48 last week while the Bulldogs will host the Blue Tigers on Sept. 27 at Stokes Stadium.
 
Coaches:
Truman is guided by Gregg Nesbitt, in his fifth year as head coach of his alma mater. Nesbitt is 19-26 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.

Dwone Sanders is in his second year as head coach of the Lions and fourth year at the school. He guided the Lions to a 5-5 overall record last season and a 4-1 conference mark. He was the team's defensive coordinator in 2011 and 2012 and is a graduate of McNeese (La.) State.  
 
GLVC Preseason Poll:
At the GLVC Kickoff held on August 1, the Bulldogs were picked to finish second in the league by coaches. Truman garnered 56 total points to trail two-time defending champion, Indianapolis (Ind.) in the survey. The Greyhounds racked up eight first place votes while the Bulldogs were six points ahead of St. Joseph's (Ind.) College.
 
Drake Game Highlights:
  • The Battle of the Bulldogs was the seventh overtime game in Truman history and first since 2009 and first on the road. Truman is 4-3 in overtime games.
  • Truman was 7-of-18 in third down conversions and had over 32 minutes of possession time. Drake converted just one third down (on their first possession of the game) until the fourth quarter and finished 4-of-15.
  • Garrett White led Truman in rushing for the fifth straight game with 89 yards on 24 carries. (3.7/per rush) Devonte Black added 24 yards rushing on 15 attempts with a long of nine.
  • Truman's longest play from scrimmage was a 24-yard shovel pass to Derek Hammann. The transfer also had the longest play overall for the Bulldogs with a 34-yard kick return.
  • Black used seven different receivers on the night with White catching four balls for 29 yards and Hammann, Chico Orlando and Joey Schenck each nabbing three.
  • The Bulldogs forced the only turnover during the game as Dominic Greenlee forced a fumble that was recovered by Nic Abbate.
  • Five different defensive linemen were credited with sacks led by Abbate's two. Abbate and Devin Gillespie (two apiece) had four of the team's eight tackles for loss.
  • The Bulldog defense forced six three and outs out of 13 Drake drives. The Drake Bulldogs gained 127 of their 320 yards on their first and last drives of the game.
  • Truman was flagged nine times for 60 yards after averaging just over five fouls a game last season. The costliest foul brought back a 55-yard touchdown reception by Joey Schenck in the third quarter.
  • Jacob Lamp set a career-high with nine punts in a game. Lamp averaged 36.0 with three inside the Drake 20 and one touchback.
  • Drake's Drew Ormseth had three punt returns for 28 yards including a long of 18. The Truman special team's allowed 10 total punt return yards all of last season.
One Possession Games:
The Bulldogs have had seven of their last 12 games (4-3 Record) in which the final score was within eight points or less. 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).
 
Returning All-Conference:
The Bulldogs placed seven on the Great Lakes Valley Conference first-team and 12 total in their inaugural season in the league. Four first-teamers return with running back Garrett White, defensive lineman Nic Abbate, linebacker Matthew Bell and punter Jacob Lamp. Two other all-conference returners, both second-team, are linebacker Connor Nagel and defensive back Austin Zoda.

White is currently 15th on the Bulldog career rushing chart with 1,752 yards and ninth on the career yards per carry list at 5.56. He will need 60 yards to pass Karega Scott for 14th.

White is currently tied with Matt Ticich (2006-08) with 20 rushing touchdowns, which is ninth in Truman history.  His 24 total touchdowns is currently 10th on the Truman list, one back of Mike Richardson (1962-65) and four behind Alfonso Pugh and Andrew Blakley (1999-02).

White is 499 yards from cracking the Bulldog Top 10 in All-Purpose yardage. Dallas Grier (2010-13) holds that spot with 3,149 yards. His 25.8 yards per kick return (24 total) ranks third all-time in Bulldog history with a minimum of 15 returns.

White is looking to become the seventh Bulldog to lead team in rushing for three seasons. Last was Matt Ticich (06-08). Others to lead three or more seasons, Dale Mills (58-60), Lenvil Elliott (69,71-72), Steve Powell (74-77), Chad Guthrie (90-92) and Jarrett Anderson (93-96).

Abbate is fourth on the Bulldog career tackles for loss list with 32. Abbate's 16.5 last year was second for an individual for a season, a half behind Patrick Blackwell's 2012 total of 17. Abbate is a half tackle for loss behind Judd Lienhard (1998-02). Blackwell holds the career record with 37.5.

Abbate is two sacks (15) from entering the top 10 in that category. He trails Les Hammers' 17 and Tony Ippolito (1975-78) and Roy Pettibone's (1979-82) 18 on the list. Abbate had 5.5 last season earning him first-team all-GLVC.

Bell led the Bulldogs with 83 total tackles last season while right behind Abbate with 10 tackles for loss and five sacks. He averaged 7.5 tackles per game in 2013 and was third in GLVC games with a 0.71 sacks per game average.

Lamp currently holds the best yards per punt average by a Bulldog at 41.9 with 55 punts. His 42.0 average last season was the fourth best performance all-time. He was 19th among Division II punters and helped the Bulldogs to the third best net punting average in the nation.

Truman allowed 10 yards on punt returns on 48 attempts in 2013. The only school across all Divisions that allowed fewer return yards was Charlotte (N.C.) with seven in 53 punts. The Bulldogs net punting average was 39.3, third in Division II and among the top 25 across all four divisions (FBS, FCS, II, III).

Lamp earned the GLVC Special Teams Player of the Week award three times last season.

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 545 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 970th game in Truman Football history. The Bulldogs' .580 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.
 
#Retweetables
The 'Dogs have won their last two home openers and are 8-6 in home lid lifters since 2000.
Truman is 5-2 in their last seven non-conference home games.
The Bulldogs have won 236 games at Stokes Stadium (.629 winning pct.) and 299 home games overall (.619 overall).
 
Defensive Notes:
  • The Bulldogs allowed 20.4 points per game last season, the lowest average since the 1994 campaign of 17.6 per game. The unit allowed 29 touchdowns after giving up more than 40 nine of the past 10 years.
  • Opponents averaged 3.2 yards per rush last season, the lowest since the 1982 season of 2.3 yards per carry. The opposing teams gained 1334 yards and scored 11 rushing touchdowns after the team allowed over 2000 yards and 20 touchdowns the previous two seasons.
  • Truman held opponents to under 100 yards rushing last season in five of the 11 games and twice (Quincy and Kentucky Wesleyan) had a negative rushing total.
  • The team allowed 89 total points (12.7) in the seven GLVC games played, however the University of Indianapolis allowed just 58 (8.3). The Bulldogs were the top defensive team in the league in terms of yards allowed in conference games at 242.9 with the Greyhounds at 250.9.
  • The unit generated 27 sacks for 185 yards and 75 tackles for loss totaling 324 yards. The 75 tackles for loss tied the 2012 team total and the 2000 team total for tops in school history while the pass sacks was one off of the school record set in 2012.
  • The 338.6 yards allowed per game last season was nearly 100 yards fewer allowed that the 2012 campaign.
  • Matthew Bell and Austin Zoda are the top two returning tacklers from last season. Bell notched 83 with 10 for loss and five sacks while Zoda recorded 71 with two interceptions.  The Bulldogs return four of their top five tacklers from 2012.
Offensive Notes:
  • The team averaged 4.3 yards per rush and 153.5 per game last season, the highest totals since the 2010 campaign. Garrett White nearly became the first 1000-yard rusher for the team since 2003 but came up five yards short at 995.
  • White's 10 touchdowns rushing were the most by a Bulldog since quarterback Dusty Burk scored 12 times in 2002 and most by a running back since Karega Scott's 11 in 1997.
  • The 26.1 scoring average was the highest in five seasons for the Bulldogs and up from 24.0 points per game in 2012. Truman had 20 touchdowns rushing and 14 through the air.
  • Devonte Black and Zach Tobin are the two returning quarterbacks with completions last season. Black completed 9-of-15 passes for 93 yards and a touchdown while Tobin was 9-of-17 for 95 yards. Black added 21 rushes for a net total of 80 yards.
  • A.J. Hartfield was second on the team in rushing with 410 yards on 90 attempts and added five touchdowns.
  • Jared Haferbier is the top returning receiver with 68 catches for 614 yards and a touchdown. He was second behind Dallas Grier last season with 37 catches for 308 yards.
  • Chico Orlando nabbed 26 balls for 237 yards and had a team-high four touchdown receptions out of the tight end position.
  • The offensive line allowed just 11 sacks in 2013 for 74 yards with five coming in the team's victory against William Penn (Iowa) on September 28.  The Bulldog line allowed three sacks during the seven conference games.
 
Special Forces Notes:
  • The Bulldogs were first in Division II in punt return defense, third in net punting average, seventh in kick returns and 53 in kick return defense.  They had two punt blocks, one resulting in a touchdown and had a kickoff return for a touchdown last season.
  • Jacob Lamp was first in the GLVC and 19th in Division II with a 42.0 yards per punt average. Lamp pinned opponents inside their own 20 on 23 occasions and had a long punt of 74 yards. He was a three-time GLVC Special Teams Player of the Week.
  • Kickoffs and extra points will be handled by a pair of redshirt freshman in Roger Howard and Nick Dolezal. Howard earned all-conference and all-division honors for El Toro High School in California while Dolezal was a Class 1 first-team all-state kicker for three championship teams in Iowa.
  • Howard and Dolezal will replace All-American Derek Koon, who set new school records with 49 field goals made including 15 during the 2011 season.
  • Truman averaged 25.1 yards per kick return last season, which was the third best in school history and seventh in Division II.
 
Upcoming:
Truman heads out to face Missouri S&T next Saturday on the road. It will be the home opener for the Miners, who have played at Chadron (Neb.) State and Midwestern (Texas) State in their first two games.  The Miners will have traveled 2,740 miles in the two road trips while the Bulldogs will travel 2,358 miles in all five of their road games this season.

Kickoff is scheduled for 6:30 p.m.
 
 
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