2019 Drake Bulldogs football team
The 2019 Drake Bulldogs football team represents Drake University in the 2019 NCAA Division I FCS football season. The Bulldogs compete as members of the Pioneer Football League and are led by first-year head coach Todd Stepsis. They play their home games at Drake Stadium in Des Moines, Iowa.
| 2019 Drake Bulldogs football | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Conference | Pioneer Football League |
| 2019 record | 6–5 (6–2 PFL) |
| Head coach | Todd Stepsis (1st season) |
| Offensive coordinator | Brad Pole (1st season) |
| Defensive coordinator | Allen Smith (1st season) |
| Home stadium | Drake Stadium (Capacity: 14,557) |
| 2019 Pioneer Football League standings | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Conf | Overall | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Team | W | L | W | L | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| San Diego $^ | 8 | – | 0 | 9 | – | 3 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Dayton | 6 | – | 2 | 8 | – | 3 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Drake | 6 | – | 2 | 6 | – | 5 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Davidson | 5 | – | 3 | 8 | – | 4 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Stetson | 4 | – | 4 | 7 | – | 4 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Marist | 4 | – | 4 | 4 | – | 7 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Morehead State | 3 | – | 5 | 5 | – | 7 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Butler | 2 | – | 6 | 3 | – | 9 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Jacksonville | 1 | – | 7 | 3 | – | 9 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Valparaiso | 1 | – | 7 | 1 | – | 11 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Previous season
The Bulldogs finished the 2018 season 7–4, 6-2 in PFL play to finish in a tie for second place.
Preseason
Coaching changes
In January 2019, it was announced that with the resignation of 5-year head coach Rick Fox, that defensive coordinator, Todd Stepsis would be promoted to head coach.[1]
Preseason coaches' poll
The Pioneer League released their preseason coaches' poll on July 30, 2019. The Bulldogs were picked to finish in third place.[2]
| Predicted finish | Team | Votes (1st place) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | San Diego | 79 (7) |
| 2 | Dayton | 66 (2) |
| 3 | Drake | 64 |
| 4 | Marist | 52 |
| 5 | Davidson | 48 |
| 6 | Stetson | 44 |
| 7 | Butler | 37 |
| 8 | Jacksonville | 30 |
| 9 | Morehead State | 15 |
| Valparaiso | ||
Preseason All–PFL teams
The Bulldogs had eleven players selected to the preseason all–PFL teams.[3]
|
Offense Second team Steve Doran – WR Grant Snow – OL |
Defense First team Nathan Clayberg – DL Gavin Dineen – DL Kieran Severa – LB Jabari Butler – DB Will Warner – DB Second team Erin Morgan – DL Connor Willis – LB Sean Lynch – DB |
Special Teams First team Danny Donley – K |
Schedule
| Date | Time | Opponent | Site | TV | Result | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| August 31 | 4:00 p.m. | at North Dakota* | MC22/Pluto TV | L 7–47 | 8,545 | |
| September 7 | 6:00 p.m. | Truman* | MC22 | L 7–10 | 2,529 | |
| September 14 | 1:00 p.m. | at No. 3 South Dakota State* | ESPN+ | L 10–38 | 11,565 | |
| September 28 | 12:00 p.m. | at Marist | Red Fox Network | W 41–17 | 3,918 | |
| October 5 | 2:00 p.m. | Valparaiso |
| MC22 | W 35–6 | 3,060 |
| October 12 | 12:00 p.m. | at Butler |
| YouTube | W 42–7 | 2,578 |
| October 26 | 1:00 p.m. | Morehead State |
| MC22 | W 36–17 | 2,134 |
| November 2 | 4:00 p.m. | at San Diego |
| WCC Network via Stadium | L 7–49 | 1,556 |
| November 9 | 1:00 p.m. | Jacksonville |
| MC22 | W 28–14 | 1,670 |
| November 16 | 1:00 p.m. | Dayton |
| MC22 | L 29–46 | 1,767 |
| November 23 | 12:00 p.m. | at Davidson | Davidson All Access | W 31–28 | 1,243 | |
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Game summaries
at North Dakota
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bulldogs | 0 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 7 |
| Fighting Hawks | 10 | 2 | 21 | 14 | 47 |
| Overall record | Last meeting | Result |
|---|---|---|
| 0–2 | 2015 | L, 18–21 |
Truman
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Truman Bulldogs | 0 | 3 | 7 | 0 | 10 |
| DU Bulldogs | 0 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 7 |
| Overall record | Last meeting | Result |
|---|---|---|
| 3–2 | 2014 | W, 13–7 |
at South Dakota State
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bulldogs | 0 | 3 | 0 | 7 | 10 |
| No. 3 Jackrabbits | 10 | 7 | 14 | 7 | 38 |
| Overall record | Last meeting | Result |
|---|---|---|
| 8–4 | 2017 | L, 10–51 |
at Marist
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bulldogs | 13 | 14 | 0 | 14 | 41 |
| Red Foxes | 0 | 3 | 7 | 7 | 17 |
| Overall record | Last meeting | Result |
|---|---|---|
| 7–0 | 2018 | W, 13–10 |
Valparaiso
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crusaders | 0 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 6 |
| Bulldogs | 0 | 21 | 14 | 0 | 35 |
| Overall record | Last meeting | Result |
|---|---|---|
| 23–3 | 2018 | W, 42–25 |
at Butler
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| DU Bulldogs | 7 | 14 | 21 | 0 | 42 |
| BU Bulldogs | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 |
| Overall record | Last meeting | Result |
|---|---|---|
| 19–8–1 | 2018 | W, 36–6 |
Morehead State
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Eagles | 7 | 3 | 0 | 7 | 17 |
| Bulldogs | 3 | 12 | 7 | 14 | 36 |
| Overall record | Last meeting | Result |
|---|---|---|
| 9–3 | 2018 | W, 43–6 |
at San Diego
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bulldogs | 0 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 7 |
| Toreros | 7 | 28 | 14 | 0 | 49 |
| Overall record | Last meeting | Result |
|---|---|---|
| 11–14 | 2018 | L, 10–27 |
Jacksonville
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dolphins | 7 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 14 |
| Bulldogs | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 28 |
| Overall record | Last meeting | Result |
|---|---|---|
| 14–3 | 2018 | W, 41–9 |
Dayton
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flyers | 7 | 18 | 7 | 14 | 46 |
| Bulldogs | 14 | 8 | 0 | 7 | 29 |
| Overall record | Last meeting | Result |
|---|---|---|
| 9–26 | 2018 | W, 28–17 |
at Davidson
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bulldogs | 7 | 14 | 3 | 7 | 31 |
| Wildcats | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 28 |
| Overall record | Last meeting | Result |
|---|---|---|
| 8–1 | 2017 | W, 17–6 |
References
- Reister, Scott (31 Jan 2019). ""Dream come true" for new Drake coach". KCCI.com. Retrieved 23 May 2019.
- "Defending Champion San Diego again edges Dayton in PFL Preseason Coaches’ Poll". Pioneer-Football.org. Retrieved August 10, 2019.
- "Four-Time First-Team selections Christian and Smith Highlight 26th All-PFL Teams". Pioneer-Football.org. Retrieved August 10, 2019.
- "2019 Drake Bulldogs Football Schedule". FBSchedules.com. Retrieved 23 May 2019.
- "2019 Football Schedule". Drake University Athletics. Retrieved 11 September 2019.