Football Opens 2023 Football Season Saturday at The Vet

Saturday, September 2

Troy, Ala.

6 p.m.

Troy University

Stephen F. Austin

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Football Opens 2023 Football Season Saturday at The Vet

8/31/2023 11:24:00 AM | Football

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By: Troy Athletics Communications

TROY, Ala. – Coming off one of the best seasons in school history, Troy Football opens its encore campaign Saturday evening, hosting Stephen F. Austin in Veterans Memorial Stadium on DeMarcus Ware Day at The Vet. Kickoff is set for 6 p.m., and the game will be broadcast on ESPN+.

Troy won its final 11 games of the 2022 season en route to its seventh Sun Belt Conference title and a victory over a ranked UTSA squad in the Cure Bowl. The Trojans' winning streak is second only to National Champion Georgia entering the season.

"A lot of hard work goes into playing 12 regular season opportunities, and our guys have put in a ton of work dating back to January," head coach Jon Sumrall said. "We're very excited to open up at home against a quality opponent in Stephen F. Austin, who has established a winning tradition."

Troy legend and now Pro Football Hall of Famer DeMarcus Ware will be in attendance Saturday to have his No. 94 jersey number retired in a special ceremony at halftime. Ware will also lead Troy through Trojan Walk at 3:45 p.m. and serve as an honorary captain for the coin toss. Fans can purchase tickets for $9.40 (in honor of his jersey number) through Friday.

Despite the lengthy winning streak, Troy is a new-look team from the 2022 squad, especially on the defensive side of the football, where the Trojans lost 224 career starts from last year's squad, including 207 from five players – Carlton Martial, KJ Robertson, Will Choloh, TJ Harris and Craig Slocum.

Troy enters the 2023 season having held eight of its last 12 opponents under the century mark in rushing; the eight sub-100-yard games ranked fourth nationally last season. New defensive coordinator Greg Gasparto has plenty of weapons on that side of the football, paced by a deep defensive line led by Javon Solomon, Luis Medina, A.J Pierce, Buddha Jones and Richard Jibunor.

Offensively, sixth-year senior Gunnar Watson leads the Trojans, coming off an MVP performance in the Sun Belt Championship Game last season and nearing the 7,000-yard mark for his career, while Kimani Vidal is back after rushing for more than 1,000 yards in 2022.

Notable
• Troy finished the 2022 season ranked No. 19 in the AP Top 25 and No. 20 in the USA Today/Coaches Poll. It marked the first time in program history that Troy was ranked in a final poll. Additionally, Troy finished No. 24 in the CFP Poll, the Trojans' first-ever ranking in that poll.

• Troy finished 6-0 in close games at the half last season (score differential is five points or less).

• From 2005-21, Troy was 11-73 when trailing at the half and 5-52 when scoring less than 21 points ... last season, Troy was 5-1 when trailing at the half and 5-1 when scoring less than 21 points.

• Troy won its FBS games by an average of 10.7 points per game last season, with six wins coming by one score or less. The Trojans won four straight games by one score -- Texas State (17-14), South Alabama (10-6), Louisiana (23-17), Army (10-9).

• Troy allowed the fifth-fewest plays of 20-plus yards last season (38), the sixth-fewest 20-plus yards runs (7) and the 13th-fewest 20-plus yard passes (31).

• Troy's roster features 18 transfers from four-year institutions at the FBS or FCS level. Of those, 12 joined the Trojans this offseason. Additionally, 15 of the 18 are on the depth chart for week one (two of the three are injured).

• Troy's win over No. 22 UTSA in the Cure Bowl snapped a streak of seven straight losses against ranked foes; Troy's previous win against a ranked team was at No. 22 LSU in 2017.

• Senior safety Dell Pettus has started 47 straight games entering the season, which is the longest active streak in the country.