School wasn’t the only event that kicked off the week of Aug. 26, with the Drake University men’s football team taking the field for the first time of the season under a new head coach and starting quarterback lead.
The team took on the Upper Iowa University Peacocks on Aug. 28 at 6:30 p.m. with packed stands of new and returning Bulldog fans. Sophomore quarterback Chase Spellman led the Bulldogs with a 27-yard pass for a touchdown to wide receiver Hank Foley before securing his own 28-yard run to advance the score to 14-0 in the first quarter. In the second quarter, Foley caught a 46-yard pass from Spellman for his second touchdown of the game. With support of kicker Harry Balke for a 42-yard field goal to end the first half with a score of 24-0 for Drake.
After halftime, the Bulldogs came out of the locker room to finish what they started, and they did just that. The Peacocks managed to put a touchdown on the board with a 34-yard pass left open to move the score to 24-7 Drake. Spellman followed up Upper Iowa’s efforts by running six yards for his second touchdown into Drake’s endzone just six minutes later, to end the third quarter with a score of 31-7 Drake. In the fourth, Balke assisted with his second field goal of the night before running back Jaden Meizinger secured a 22-yard pass from backup quarterback Xavier Washington for the Bulldogs’ final touchdown of the night.
The game ended with a score of 41-7 Drake, and the Bulldogs’ coaching staff spoke on how the night panned out just as they had hoped.
“There was a lot of anxious energy today,” Head Coach Joe Woodley said to Drake Athletics. “But I had a lot of confidence in what I thought we would be able to do. A testament to our guys…we played complementary football today.”
Senior defensive lineman Duke Frye looked into the game going into his last first game day as a Bulldog.
“The win felt great. This team has been putting in so much work since last season, and it was awesome seeing it all come together last night,” Frye said. “The players and staff that surround this team are truly special, and I can’t wait to see what we do with the rest of this season.”
The team secured 479 total yards, with 278 of them being passing yards, and 25 total first downs throughout the game. Spellman had 233 of the yards with two touchdowns and 14 complete passes, while Washington had 45 yards, one touchdown and two complete passes to start off the season.
The Bulldogs will travel next to Brookings, South Dakota, to play the South Dakota State University Jackrabbits on Sept. 13 at 6 p.m., followed by a game against the University of South Dakota on Sept. 20 at 1 p.m. Drake will be back in Drake Stadium against Valparaiso University for Parents and Family Weekend with a noon kickoff on Oct. 4.
