Missouri State

MARK CHRISTENSEN
Football, 1986-89
Inducted February 4, 2006

Mark Christensen was a four-year football letterman from 1986 to 1989 at Missouri State during the first four seasons Jesse Branch coached the Bear gridders. A standout offensive lineman, Christensen and his Bear teammates matured together in the early years after the formation of the Gateway Football Conference. Missouri State claimed its first Gateway title when Christensen served as a team co-captain during the 1989 campaign. A native of Libertyville, Ill., Christensen came to MSU and redshirted his first year and then was a starting guard the next four years as he became one of the top blockers in the conference. He was an all-conference second team selection as a sophomore and gained all-Gateway first team honors in both his junior and senior seasons. He was selected a third team All-American by the Associated Press as a junior in 1988. He received Kodak All-American selection his senior season as well as earning All-American first team recognition from The Sports Network in 1989. Branch guided his ballclubs to steady improvement, with the Bears moving from a 3-7 record in 1986 to marks of 5-6 and 5-5 the next two campaigns. The Bears then broke loose with a 10-3 record in 1989. That ballclub raced to a 6-0 start and won the Gateway title with a 5-1 league record. The Bears finished the regular season 9-2 and drew a home game against Maine in the school's first-ever NCAA I-AA playoff game. Missouri State got a late field goal for a 38-35 win over the Black Bears and advanced to the quarterfinals where the Bears lost at Stephen F. Austin. Christensen's blocking was a key as the Bears led the conference in team rushing all four season he was in the line.