. – Cody Schrader capped off his sensational sophomore season by rushing for 219 yards on 28 carriers and scored three touchdowns as the Truman Football team repeated as America’s Crossroads Bowl champions with a 34-17 win over Hillsdale (Mich.) College on Saturday afternoon.
Both teams used their first possessions of the game to consume 10-plus play drives but both had to settle for field goals. Josh Schiederer gave Truman the lead with a 26-yarder to cap a 12-play 63-yard drive and Julian Lee hit from 34 yards to finish a 10-play 40-yard drive with 3:51 left in the quarter.
The Hillsdale defense denied the Bulldogs on a goal-to-goal situation and Schiederer trotted out and converted from 18-yards to put Truman up 6-3 for the only points of the second quarter.
Hillsdale grabbed the lead on the first possession of the third stanza. Isaac TeSlaa got behind the defense for a 56-yard td reception from Garrit Aissen and the Chargers went up 10-6.
Truman responded right back with a nine-play 63-yard drive that after two plays from the one, Schrader powered in for his first of three touchdowns on the day.
Jake Closser picked off Aissen and returned the ball 20 yards to set up Truman’s next scoring drive. Schrader would run for 17, 7 and 2 before Matt Hall was found in the back of the end zone by Nolan Hair and a 20-10 lead.
The Bulldog defense forced a punt to start the fourth quarter and Truman used the chunk plays to march down the field. Jacob Morris caught a 13-yard pass, then Jaylen Jefferson ran for 21 yards on the next play. Schrader had runs again of 10, 23 and a final one of 23 to go over 2,000 yards on the season and into the end zone for a 27-10 Truman lead.
Ben Watson, who was named the bowl’s Most Valuable Defensive Player, picked off Aissen in the end zone to thwart a Hillsdale scoring attempt.
The Chargers got a strip-sack and fumble recovery by Alex Anschutz, who rumbled 88-yards for a touchdown to make it 27-17 with 2:48 left.
Truman recovered the onside kick and on the first play from scrimmage, Schrader broke off a 44-yard touchdown run on his final rush of the season to give him 2,074 yards and 25 rushing touchdowns.
Schrader was named the Offensive MVP of the game.
The Bulldogs finish the 2021 season with a 9-3 record.