The Truman Football team reflects on bowl-winning season despite their rocky beginnings

Though the Bulldogs season ended with a playoff victory, the journey there wasn’t smooth sailing. The team dropped its first 3 games, two of which in blowout fashion. Starting the year 0-3 in a historically tight conference isn’t a recipe for success. However, the team would flip a switch in the fourth week and never look back.

The Bulldogs won 7 of their last 8 games en route to a berth in the America’s Crossroads Bowl, a game which Truman State has participated in 3 times since its inception. Though the team was on a heater, they really didn’t reach another level until the last leg of the season. Over the last 3 games, the Bulldogs outscored the opposition 141 to 10. The offensive onslaught was led by numerous players including, but not limited to, quarterback Dylan Hair, running back Denim Cook, and wide receiver Jackson Overton.

Things culminated in the final regular season game, a home matchup with Southwest Baptist University. Dylan Hair threw for 6 touchdowns, matching a university record set by Jake Czeschin in 2004. Wide receiver Joseph Spaulding hauled in 3 of those scores, tight end Christopher Kerr crossed 1,000 career receiving yards, and Jackson Overton continued his dominant season with a 10 catch performance; one reception shy of tying the single season receptions-per-year mark.

While the offense was balling out, the defense had a good time as well. The Bulldogs held their final 3 opponents each under 250 yards of total offense. They were spurred by defensive stars Brock Jones, Thomas Spaulding, and Ulysses Ross. Jones recorded 68 tackles on the season, the most by any Bulldog. Spaulding was one of only 3 Bulldogs to record more than 1 quarterback hit and recover a fumble. Ross notched 2.5 sacks which tied him for most on the team with freshman Tucker McDowell.

Senior Linebacker Ross was satisfied with how his final season in a Bulldog uniform turned out.

“It was very exciting to see the growth of the team,” Ross said. “Coming into this year we had a fairly young roster and so we weren’t really certain [how things would go]. But just to see the work that [everyone] put in week in and week out to get better was amazing. Reaching the bowl game just capped off a great season.”

With the offense and defense clicking, the team secured a bowl game spot and rolled into Hobart, Indiana with all the confidence in the world. The end result… Another win. Truman put out another dominating performance, this time over Tiffin University and took home the victory 29-10. Denim Cook paved the way with 152 yards on the ground and 2 scores. He brought home the Offensive Player of the Game award.

“I just wanted to go out there and help the team get another ring,” Cook said of his performance. “I had sprained my ankle the week before [the game against Southwest Baptist] and so having three weeks off was good for me. It wasn’t 100%, but it was enough to help the team get another ring.”

Cook helped the Bulldogs get out to a lead, but thanks to defensive back Shane Johnson, Truman never trailed in the game. Leading by 9 in the 3rd quarter, Johnson picked off the Tiffin quarterback and took the rock all the way back for a 58 yard pick-six. That score all but sealed the win for Truman and for his efforts, Johnson was named the Defensive Player of the Game.

It was a successful season for the Bulldogs. Despite starting out rough, the team scorched their way through the second half of the season and grabbed their 4th bowl game victory in the last 6 years. 20 players will graduate in the spring, but the standard will remain the same for next season, and the Bulldogs have all the pieces to put together another memorable run.

“I’ve seen the young guys make tons of strides this year and they can be just as good as the guys that are starting now,” Ross said. “Keep your head up, keep working, and just enjoy the game.”

Ross is one of the seniors, bidding the program goodbye. Cook says that he plans to return to the program next season for his senior campaign.

“We started off 0 and 3 and that just wasn’t a pretty start. But we bounced back and won eight of our last nine games. We showed what type of coaches we have and what kind of team we are. [Fans] should expect more of that.”