Troy University's football team plays yet another "biggest game ever" on Thursday in San Jose, Calif., in the Silicon Valley Football Classic.
Just four seasons into its Division I-A life, the Trojans will play in a post-season bowl game.
Quarterback D.T. McDowell will play in a post-season bowl game in just his ninth college game - his sixth as a starter. Don't expect the true freshman from Stone Mountain, Ga., to get overwhelmed by the national spotlight and the crowd at San Jose State University's Spartan Stadium, however.
McDowell's first college start came in a little place called Death Valley, LSU's Tiger Stadium, in front of the largest crowd to ever witness a Troy football game in 83 years of playing the sport.
The 19-year-old came to Troy from the minor-league baseball fields of Arizona, where he played in the California Angels organization. He played a few snaps in the Trojans' season-opening upset win at Marshall, sat out the upset over Missouri at Troy the next week and saw spotty action behind Aaron Leak before his start at LSU.
"D.T. was a quick study and it looked like we needed to get him going early," Troy head coach Larry Blakeney said, "but everything started piling up on him. He was having a hard time trying to master it.
"We figured out he wasn't Superman, but he was a good player and a good kid. He has continued to work and there was a decision that needed to be made one way or another and I made it to move forward with him at quarterback. We'd had two four-point losses on the road and we weren't getting it done.
"That position gets more criticism than it deserves and more credit, but it was obvious that our team needed a change on offense."
Despite four straight wins under McDowell at one point, Troy's offense has struggled all season and ranks 113th out of 117 teams in the NCAA. The Trojans run for 167 yards a game - good for 46th in the country - but gain just 116.45 yards a game through the air. Only three teams fare worse in the passing game.
McDowell has completed 36 of 84 passes for 463 yards with three interceptions and four touchdowns. He has 80 yards rushing.
McDowell believes he has improved through the Trojans' 7-4 season headed into the 10 p.m. (CST) game against Northern Illinois (8-3).
"You've got to have a lot of poise, you've got to be patient and learn how to block stuff out," McDowell said. "You've got to learn how to adjust to your faster receivers, to the defense. You've got to know what you're throwing, where the route's coming, where the backers are. It's a lot to learn . . . I told my offensive line I appreciate them being patient with me and adjusting to me."
McDowell said his baseball experience has helped him on the football field - not in hand-eye coordination but in his mental approach.
"I learned a valuable lesson in baseball. One of my managers told me, `You know, failure is the key to life.' I went 0 for 10 the first three games, came back and finished with the highest batting average on the team."
Just four seasons into its Division I-A life, the Trojans will play in a post-season bowl game.
Quarterback D.T. McDowell will play in a post-season bowl game in just his ninth college game - his sixth as a starter. Don't expect the true freshman from Stone Mountain, Ga., to get overwhelmed by the national spotlight and the crowd at San Jose State University's Spartan Stadium, however.
McDowell's first college start came in a little place called Death Valley, LSU's Tiger Stadium, in front of the largest crowd to ever witness a Troy football game in 83 years of playing the sport.
The 19-year-old came to Troy from the minor-league baseball fields of Arizona, where he played in the California Angels organization. He played a few snaps in the Trojans' season-opening upset win at Marshall, sat out the upset over Missouri at Troy the next week and saw spotty action behind Aaron Leak before his start at LSU.
"D.T. was a quick study and it looked like we needed to get him going early," Troy head coach Larry Blakeney said, "but everything started piling up on him. He was having a hard time trying to master it.
"We figured out he wasn't Superman, but he was a good player and a good kid. He has continued to work and there was a decision that needed to be made one way or another and I made it to move forward with him at quarterback. We'd had two four-point losses on the road and we weren't getting it done.
"That position gets more criticism than it deserves and more credit, but it was obvious that our team needed a change on offense."
Despite four straight wins under McDowell at one point, Troy's offense has struggled all season and ranks 113th out of 117 teams in the NCAA. The Trojans run for 167 yards a game - good for 46th in the country - but gain just 116.45 yards a game through the air. Only three teams fare worse in the passing game.
McDowell has completed 36 of 84 passes for 463 yards with three interceptions and four touchdowns. He has 80 yards rushing.
McDowell believes he has improved through the Trojans' 7-4 season headed into the 10 p.m. (CST) game against Northern Illinois (8-3).
"You've got to have a lot of poise, you've got to be patient and learn how to block stuff out," McDowell said. "You've got to learn how to adjust to your faster receivers, to the defense. You've got to know what you're throwing, where the route's coming, where the backers are. It's a lot to learn . . . I told my offensive line I appreciate them being patient with me and adjusting to me."
McDowell said his baseball experience has helped him on the football field - not in hand-eye coordination but in his mental approach.
"I learned a valuable lesson in baseball. One of my managers told me, `You know, failure is the key to life.' I went 0 for 10 the first three games, came back and finished with the highest batting average on the team."
