GAME DAY LINKS --
McKENDREE at TRUMAN STATE -- Saturday, Nov. 11, 2017, 1 p.m.
Stokes Stadium -- Kirksville, Mo.

LISTEN LIVE (Bearcat Sports Network)
WATCH LIVE (Truman State Broadcast)
LIVE STATS
TRUMAN STATE PREVIEW WITH COACH BABCOCK

McKENDREE GAME NOTES
McKENDREE SEASON STATISTICS
TRUMAN STATE GAME NOTES
TRUMAN STATE SEASON STATISTICS

(LEBANON, Ill., Nov. 9)--The McKendree University will look to end its 2017 season in familiar fashion on Saturday when the Bearcats head north to Kirksville, Mo., for a meeting against Truman State University. Kickoff is set for 1 p.m. at Stokes Stadium. The contest will be broadcast live on the Bearcat Sports Network at www.glvcsn.com/mckendree, beginning with the pre-game show at 12:45 p.m. 

McKendree enters the Truman State contest riding a three-game win streak. A victory on Saturday would give the Bearcats a season-ending win streak of at least three games for the last four years. McKendree registered five-game win streaks at the end of the 2014 and 2016 campaigns while adding a three-game run at the close of the 2015 season. The Bearcats are 7-3 overall and are assured of a second-place finish in the Great Lakes Valley Conference standings with its 5-1 league ledger. 

Last Saturday, McKendree wrapped up its home schedule with a 42-14 victory over Quincy University. The Bearcats reeled off 29 unanswered points in the second half to rally from a 14-13 halftime deficit. On Senior Night, McKendree leaned on a trio of seniors making their final appearance at Leemon Field to register the win. Shayeen Edwards rushed for a career-high 181 yards on 30 carries with a seven-yard touchdown in the Bearcats' 23-point fourth quarter. Austin Weltha led the defensive effort with 12 tackles and a pair of interceptions, the second of which was returned 94 yards for a score. Derrick Curry also starred for McKendree with his 50-yard punt return for a TD early in the first quarter. The win over the Hawks helped the Bearcats improve to 10-0 all-time against Quincy at Leemon Field. 

Like McKendree, Truman State brings a three-game win streak into Saturday's game. The Bulldogs notched a 28-12 non-conference win at home last Saturday over Southwest Baptist in a non-conference match-up. Jaden Barr threw for 179 yards and a pair of touchdowns and added 101 rushing yards on 10 attempts for Truman State. Ben Chaney and Bryan Edwards each had a team-best nine tackles against Southwest Baptist, while Isaiah Hinton chipped in with a pair of quarterback sacks for the Bulldogs. Truman State sits at 3-3 in GLVC play. 

Saturday's game will mark the fifth meeting all-time against Truman State. Although the Bulldogs hold a 3-2 advantage in the series, the Bearcats have won the last two contests. In the 2016 season finale at Leemon Field, McKendree rolled to a 34-point lead and never looked back on its way to a 41-14 victory. Lucky Baar became the NCAA Division II career leader in sacks during the contest, while Derrick Curry set a program record with a 90-yard punt return in the opening moments of the third quarter. Preston Thompson rushed for a team-high 131 yards in the effort. 

McKENDREE/TRUMAN STATE GAME NOTES
2017 Records -- 
McKENDREE: The McKendree University Bearcats are 7-3 overall and 5-1 in the Great Lakes Valley Conference.
TRUMAN STATE: The Truman State University Bulldogs are 4-6 overall and 3-3 in the Great Lakes Valley Conference.

The Head Coaches --
McKENDREE: Mike Babcock is in his fifth season as the head coach of the  McKendree Bearcats (32-20 at McKendree and overall). 
TRUMAN STATE: Gregg Nesbitt is in his eighth season as the head coach of the Truman State Bulldogs (42-44 at Truman State and overall). 

The Series (Since 1996) --
Truman State holds a 3-2 edge in the all-time series with McKendree, although the Bearcats have won the last two contests. That includes last season's 41-14 McKendree win at Leemon Field:
   2011 -- Truman State 25, McKENDREE 10 (at Leemon Field)
   2013 -- Truman State 28, McKENDREE 21 (at Kirksville, Mo.)
   2014 -- Truman State 30, McKENDREE 17 (at Leemon Field)
   2015 -- McKENDREE 31, Truman State 3 (at Kirksville, Mo.)
   2016 -- McKENDREE 41, Truman State 14 (at Leemon Field)

McKendree -- Last Time Out --
The Bearcats reeled off 29 unanswered points in the second half to rally for a 42-14 victory on Senior Night last Saturday at Leemon Field against Quincy University. Shayeen Edwards rushed for a career-high 181 yards on 30 carries, which included a seven-yard touchdown run in McKendree's 23-point scoring outburst in the fourth quarter. Reece Metcalf completed 18-of-28 pass attempts for a season-best 252 yards. He connected five times each with Derrick Curry and Josh Revay in the victory. Curry also added a 50-yard punt return for a touchdown in the first quarter. Austin Weltha had a team-leading 12 tackles along with two interceptions, the second of which was returned 94 yards for a touchdown late in the contest. Michael Tucker added 10 stops while Blake Benoist chipped in with eight tackles. 

Truman State -- Last Time Out --
The Bulldogs registered a 28-12 home victory last Saturday against Southwest Baptist University in a game that was a non-conference affair. Quarterback Jaden Barr was 17-of-23 through the air for 179 yards with two touchdown passes, while he rushed for a game-high 101 yards on 10 attempts to lead the offensive attack for Truman State. Dante Ruffin and Jordan Jorgenson each had four catches and a touchdown against the Bearcats. Ben Chaney and Bryan Edwards each had a team-best nine tackles in the win, while Isaiah Hinton added a pair of quarterback sacks for Truman State. 

The Last Meeting -- McKendree vs. Truman State --
On Nov. 12, 2016 at Leemon Field, McKendree roared to a 34-point lead on its way to a 41-14 victory over Truman State in the season finale for both squads. Lucky Baar registered the final sack of his career in the second quarter, which made him (at the time) the all-time leader in quarterback sacks in NCAA DIvision II history. Baar finished his career with 46 1/2 sacks in four seasons. Derrick Curry added a school-record 90-yard punt return for a touchdown early in the second half for the Bearcats, who notched their second straight victory over the Bulldogs. Preston Thompson rushed for 131 yards and a score, while Reece Metcalf threw for 157 yards and a pair of touchdowns on the day. A.J. Wentland wrapped up his career with a team-best 12 tackles as he set (for the third year in a row) the Bearcats' single-season record for tackles at 145. 

BEARCAT TRACKS --
THAT'S A WRAP: McKendree has posted a record of 15-6 in the final game of the regular season since 1996. The Bearcats have won four consecutive regular-season finales and 12 of their last 13 dating back to the 2004 campaign. 

BEARCATS vs. THE SHOW-ME STATE: McKendree has a record of 21-10 against teams from the state of Missouri since 1996. The Bearcats are 8-6 on the road against teams from the Show-Me State in that span. Since the beginning of the 2014 season, McKendree has won 16 of its last 19 contests against Missouri programs, including a 4-0 mark in 2017. 

NUMBER 1 IS NUMBER 2: Shayeen Edwards has moved up into second place on the Bearcats' career rushing list. He enter's today's regular-season finale against Truman State with 2,403 yards. Here is the Bearcats' top five in career rushing yards: 
1) Daryle Jones -- 3,187 yards
2) Shayeen Edwards -- 2,403 yards
3) George Smith -- 2,378 yards
4) Brandon Murphy -- 2,239 yards
5) Drew Cofty -- 2,041 yards

CARRYING THE LOAD: In addition to moving up the Bearcats' career rushing yards list, Shayeen Edwards is within striking distance of the program mark for rushing attempts. Edwards is currently second on the McKendree career list for rushing attempts with 537. Only Daryle Jones (574) had more carries in a Bearcat uniform than Edwards. 

NOT "SHAY" ABOUT PILING UP YARDS: With his 118-yard performance against Lincoln, Shayeen (pronounced "SHY-heen") has now registered 11 games with at least 100 rushing yards over the last two years. That streak has been put together over the Bearcats' last 16 games, dating back to the Southwest Baptist game in 2016. His 181 yards against Quincy University was a career-high. 

WELTHA'S MOVING ON UP: Austin Weltha has moved into fourth place on the Bearcats' career list for tackles. Weltha enters today's game against Truman State with 266 tackles in a McKendree uniform. Mike Garavalia is currently third on the Bearcats' career chart with 277 tackles. 

SPEAKING OF WELTHA: With his 12 tackles against Quincy, Austin Weltha has boosted his season total to 108. He has become just the third player in program history with at least 100 tackles in a season. The other McKendree players to reach triple-figures in tackles in a single season are A.J. Wentland (2014, 2015 and 2016) and Brandon Nigro (2011).

ONE MORE ON WELTHA: Thanks to his 94-yard pick-six against Quincy, Austin Weltha tied two McKendree single-season records. It was his fifth interception of 2017, which is tied for the team record for INT's in a season, matching Rory O'Connell (1996, 1997 and 1999), Mark Williams (2002) and Jamison Wilson (2012). In addition, it was Weltha's third pick-six of the year, tying the team record previously established by O'Connell in 1997. 

MANY HAPPY RETURNS: Derrick Curry's 50-yard punt return for a touchdown against Quincy marked his fourth career punt return for a score (all of which have come over the last 12 games). Curry extended his own career return that he established earlier this year. 

GETTING DEFENSIVE: With two interception returns for touchdowns against Quincy, McKendree now has scored eight defensive touchdowns in 2017. That total leads all NCAA Division II programs. 

PICK 'EM: The McKendree defensive unit has registered 17 interceptions in 2017. The Bearcats are just one shy of the program record for interceptions in a season. The 2002 squad picked off 18 passes during its run to the NAIA national semifinals. 

GETTING HIS KICKS: Freshman Josh Lazaro kicked a season-high three field goals in the Bearcats' win over Quincy. Lazaro has now made at least one field goal in each of McKendree's last five contests, dating back to the UIndy game on Oct. 7 at Leemon Field. 

21 AND OVER: McKendree sports a 131-26 record (.834) when scoring at least 21 points in a game since the beginning of the 1996 season. 

UNI-TRACKER: McKendree used five different uniform combinations during the 2016 season. Below are the records for the Bearcats while wearing each combo. We will again track the McKendree football record in 2017 while wearing certain combinations. McKendree's 2016 record in the uniform combination is in parentheses:
**Graphite Jersey/Purple Pants: 1-1 (2-0)
**Graphite Jersey/Graphite Pants: 3-0 (4-0)
**White Jersey/Purple Pants: 1-1 (0-2)
**White Jersey/Graphite Pants: 2-0 (1-1)
**White Jersey/White Pants: 0-1 (1-0)

DEFENDING THE HOME TURF: McKendree's win over Quincy was the Bearcats' fourth home victory of the season. McKendree has now won at least four games at Leemon Field in each of the last three seasons. 

ROAD WARRIORS: The Bearcats' win at Missouri S&T marked the team's third road triumph of the 2017 season. That gives McKendree at least three wins away from Leemon Field for the third time in the last four years. 

LONGEST PLAYS IN TEAM HISTORY --
Since 1996
RUSH: 90 yards by Brandon Murphy vs. Iowa Wesleyan, 2000*
PASS: 85 yards by Dan Loudenslager to Zach Atkins vs. Georgetown, 2008*
KICKOFF RETURN: 100 yards by Brandon Murphy vs. Olivet Nazarene, 1997*; 100 yards by Ryan Keen vs. Tiffin, 2013*
PUNT RETURN: 90 yards by Derrick Curry vs. Truman State, 2016*
INTERCEPTION RETURN: 100 yards by Lawrence Davis vs. William Penn, 2007*
FIELD GOAL: 51 yards by Jordan Fark vs. University of the Cumberlands, 2010
PUNT: 78 yards by Monte Wolke vs. West Liberty, 2016
* -- Touchdown

THIS DATE IN BEARCAT FOOTBALL HISTORY --
Nov. 11, 2000
McKendree saw its 2000 season come to an end with a 20-13 loss at Saint Ambrose University. The Bearcats held a 13-7 lead heading into the fourth quarter before the Fighting Bees rallied with a pair of touchdowns in the final 7:48 of play to rally for the win. Allen Walter led the Bearcats with 58 rushing yards on 17 carries, while Brandon Murphy added 47 yards on 10 attempts. Mario Dixon registered a team-leading 10 tackles for McKendree, while Ryan Davenport added eight stops. Ronnie Stuart and Terrence Clark each had two sacks against Saint Ambrose. 

Nov. 11, 2006
McKendree set a program record for points in a game with its 69-0 victory over Iowa Wesleyan College. The Bearcats rolled to a 49-0 lead at the half and cruised to the win in its 2006 season finale. McKendree scored on its first nine possessions, including all seven in the first half. Nine different players also found the end zone for McKendree. The Bearcats rolled up 492 yards of total offense, including 466 on the ground. George Smith led the rushing attack with 106 yards on just seven carries, while Dominique Jones closed his Bearcat career with 95 yards on 12 attempts, giving him 1,344 yards at McKendree. Defensively, the Bearcats limited the Tigers to just 71 yards of total offense and just two first downs on the day.