Oct. 25, 2014 Final Stats | Quotes
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NORMAL, Ill. - A pair of long fourth-quarter scoring drives sealed a 21-7 come-from-behind win for No. 9 Illinois State over visiting Missouri State (4-4, 1-3 MVFC) here Saturday as the Redbirds remained unbeaten at 7-0 on the season and 4-0 in the Missouri Valley Football Conference.
Quarterback Tre Roberson accounted for 254 of ISU's 402 yards of total offense, but his fourth-quarter play calling was the difference. A 2-yard passing touchdown from Roberson to James O'Shaughnessy with 5:40 remaining put the game out of reach just six-and-a-half minutes after he converted a 7-yard scoring carry to dissolve a 7-6 MSU lead.
The Bears, who trailed 6-0 at the half, took the lead on a 30-yard pass from Kierra Harris to freshman Deion Holliman with 9:47 left in the third. MSU's converted a third-and-two situation into a score as Harris initially stuck his head into the line as if to rush for the yard marker, but he quickly retreated and threw a strike to a wide open Holliman in the end zone.
The completion capped a 10-play, 90-yard drive on MSU's first drive of the second half, the club's second-longest scoring drive of the season.
But Illinois State rallied with 12:14 to go in the game as Roberson engineered his first of two 80-yard touchdown drives in the final period. The eight-play scoring series took just over three minutes to complete, and after the pass to O'Shaughnessy, the Redbirds tacked on a two-point conversion to lead 14-7.
Harris finished 15-for-22 for 134 yards through the air, but was under duress much of the night. The Redbirds sacked Harris four times for 38 yards and kept his rushing totals to a -24 on 9 attempts.
Phoenix Johnson posted his second straight 70-yard rushing game for Missouri State, going 74 yards on 15 carries after starter Calan Crowder left the game in the first half after collecting 45 yards on just 8 carries.
In the first half, Illinois State wasted no time getting on the board early, as Roberson connected with Scott Kuehn on a key third-and-nine play from the Bears' 28 on the opening drive of the night. Nick Aussieker's extra point missed wide left, making it a 6-0 game just over four minutes into the game.
The Bears would collect just 95 total yards in the first half from there, but did manage two trips into the red zone. The first came on MSU's opening drive as Crowder accounted for 37 yards on the first series, and Harris was sharp on a 16-yard completion to Julian Burton before Phoenix Johnson carried the ball to the 20.
But a personal foul on a third-and-five play pushed the visitors back, and a subsequent sack of Harris took the Bears out of field goal range to the 38, forcing a punt.
Midway through the second quarter, the Bears caught a break after Illinois State fumbled a Chris Sullens punt at the ISU 17. Cedric Miller recovered the loose ball at the 24, and Ryan Heaston gained 15 yards on first down to the Redbirds' 9-yard-line.
But the drive stalled there, and a third-down holding penalty pushed the Bears back to the 19, where Marcelo Bonani's 36-yard field goal attempt was blocked, keeping Missouri State off the scoreboard in the first 30 minutes.
Burton secured a game-high 7 receptions for 46 yards to extend his streak to 28 consecutive games with a reception, the fourth-longest streak in program history.
The Bears, who were looking for their first win over a top-10 opponent since 2005, accounted for 15 first downs on the night on 252 yards total offense. MSU was also flagged for 10 penalties for 102 yards, including six infractions against the offense.
Missouri State wraps its two-game conference road swing next week at Indiana State (5-3, 2-2) for a 12 Noon kickoff at Memorial Stadium in Terre Haute.
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