SPRINGFIELD -- Missouri State's quarterback tandem of Trevor Wooden (So., High Springs, Fla.) and Mitchell Jenkins (RFr., Springfield, Mo.) combined to complete 60 percent of their pass attempts and provided 242 yards of excitement on Saturday morning in the Bears' second of four spring scrimmages at Plaster Field.
The 89-play scrimmage took nearly two hours to complete, but provided the Bears with needed reps for their youthful crop of skill players. Wooden and Jenkins utilized 13 different receivers, while six different ball carriers combined for 115 ground yards.
The uncontested surprise of the day came from walk-on sophomore Dorian Buford, a McCluer North product from St. Louis. He notched team-highs with five receptions and 84 yards, including long plays of 37 and 18 yards.
The only touchdown of the day came on a 50-yard hook-up between Wooden and senior wideout Jermaine Saffold (Grandview, Mo.). The effort claimed the honor as the longest play of the scrimmage, outstretching a 45-yard run by Vernon Scott (So., Muskogee, Okla.).
All told, the offensive unit collected 357 total yards.
Defensively, walk-on Pat Fornadel (Jr., Pittsburgh, Pa.) had a sack and a key fumble recovery to kill a red-zone drive, while Martin Montgomery (So., Pine Bluff, Ark.) also registered a sack. The defense did a great job of keeping the ball in front of the primary tacklers, holding the offense to just 2.4 yards per carry on the ground and allowing just four pass plays longer than 15 yards.
The kicking game saw little action, but Austin Witmer (So., Grand Island, Neb.) was 2-for-2 in field goal attempts with makes from 32 and 33 yards plus an extra point. Walk-on Mason Hutson (RFr., St. Louis, Mo.) missed a 26-yard field goal attempt.
After three weekday practices, the Bears will be back on the grid next Saturday at 10 a.m. for their third scrimmage of the spring as they put the final pieces in place for the April 16 Maroon and White Game. All spring games are free and open to the public.
Statistics
Rushing (47-115)
Vernon Scott 6-45, Trevor Wooden 11-23, Chris Douglas 5-19, Mikael Cooper-Falls 11-15, Stephen Johnston 3-12, Mitchell Jenkins 9-11, Team 2-(-10).
Passing (42-25-1, 242, 1 TD)
Trevor Wooden 21-11-1, 129 yds., 1 TD; Mitchell Jenkins 21-14-0, 113 yds., 0 TD.
Receiving
Dorian Buford 5-84, Jermaine Saffold 3-70, Dan Reichert 3-28, Vernon Scott 3-1, Matt Thayer 2-18, Julian Burton 2-17, Stephen Johnston 1-13, Eric Brown 1-7, Joey Mendel 1-5, Adrian Taylor 1-4, Adrian Williams 1-4, Ian Starnes 1-(-2), Mikael Cooper-Falls 1-(-7).
Field Goals
Austin Witmer 2-2 (long 33), Mason Hutson 0-1.
