Gregg Nesbitt

After 14 seasons at the helm of Truman football, and more than 40 years of coaching, mentoring and leading countless players, Gregg Nesbitt stepped down in February.

Nesbitt began his collegiate football journey at Stokes Stadium, as he was the leading rusher for the team in 1979. After rebuilding his hometown Hannibal Pirates from 1984-89, he returned to Kirksville and joined Eric Holm’s staff, helping lead the Bulldogs to two NCAA Division II playoff appearances and a 23-9 overall record.

Upon returning to the high school ranks, Nesbitt guided Columbia’s Hickman High School for 13 seasons cumulating in the 2004 Class Six state championship.

In 2010 Nesbitt was named the 22nd head coach at Truman and helped navigate the Bulldogs’ transition from the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association to the Great Lakes Valley Conference. In 2016, the Bulldogs claimed a share of the GLVC football championship, the first league title for the school since 1988 and 27th overall. The team won a school-record 10 games in the 2019 season and were the inaugural America’s Crossroads Bowl champions. In 2021, Cody Schrader led all three NCAA divisions in rushing yards and earned first-team All-America honors as the Bulldogs won nine games. The team has since posted consecutive 9-2 seasons and was consistently ranked in the top 25 by the American Football Coaches Association.

Kellen Nesbitt

Longtime defensive coordinator and assistant coach Kellen Nesbitt was named interim head coach for the 2024 season. Under his guidance the Truman defense has been one of the top units in all of NCAA Division II. They have been first or second in the GLVC in both rushing yards and points allowed in nine of the 11 seasons and ranked in the top 25 of Division II schools in rushing yards allowed in eight of the past nine campaigns.

Kellen has coached 82 Bulldog players to all-conference defensive honors since 2010, including 34 first-team selections and four players – Austin Zoda, Isaiah Estes, Sam Reeves and Tremaine Millender – that were four-time all-conference honorees. He coordinated the special teams for the Bulldogs, which have been known for exceptional play in all three phases of the kicking game. Lawrence Woods was named an All-American and a GLVC Special Teams Player of the Year following the 2018 season.

Prior to joining his father’s staff at Truman in 2010, Kellen coached three seasons at his alma mater, the University of Central Missouri, as defensive backs coach. He was a four-year letterwinner for the Mules with more than 120 career tackles. He was the Special Teams Player of the Year in 2004 and earned the school’s Markey Football Scholarship in 2006.