One thing that William Chrisman football coach Matthew Perry was confident about before the season was his defense.

It was hard not to be with 10 starters returning and a Division I recruit in Daniel Carson anchoring the defensive line.

The Bears showed why their defense had some hype before the season when they shutout crosstown rival Truman 20-0 to claim the Wagon Wheel Trophy for the second year in a row.

It was the first time Chrisman had shut out Truman since the inception of the trophy in 1989. The Patriots blanked the Bears five times in that span. Chrisman also shut out Truman for the first time since 1972, in rivalry that has lasted since 1965.

The Bears defense forced three turnovers, had six sacks and limited Truman to just 64 total yards. Linebacker Emori Thomas was a big part of that as he had two sacks and an interception.

“I have to give credit to (defensive coordinator) Willie Horn; our defense is good,” Perry said. “Our D-line is really physical and big. Our linebackers do a great job and I think Emori Thomas had about 25 tackles today.

“Emori Thomas is a football player. I love the kid to death. He just makes so many plays. You look at him you think he doesn’t impress you with the way he looks. But when he’s on the field, he goes 100 miles per hour and he’s always around the football. He’s what high school football is all about.”

Added Thomas: “It’s beautiful (to shut out Truman). And to do it during my senior year with the people I started with. It makes it even more sweet. Our defense is like a brotherhood. We’re together.”

The big defensive line made things extremely difficult for Truman, which only had one double-digit-yard run. There were a handful of times that the Patriots had trouble snapping the ball to quarterback Don Edmondson, who was sacked four times because of low or mishandled snaps.

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