Oct. 12, 2015
- The Missouri State Bears enter their 2015 Homecoming matchup with the fourth-ranked Illinois State Redbirds looking for their fourth-consecutive homecoming victory, as well as their first Missouri Valley Football Conference win of the season
- The Bears are 25-19 in homecoming games since 1971; Saturday's game will mark MSU's third meeting with Illinois State on homecoming, with the Bears winning their 1987 and 1989 contests against ISU and the Redbirds taking the 2009 homecominig game
- Illinois State will be the second ranked opponent the Bears have faced in 2015 after squaring off a school-record seven times against ranked foes last fall; MSU is 21-79 all-time against ranked opponents
- Sophomore Deion Holliman leads the nation in combined kick return yardage (640) and ranks third in punt return average (22.4) after eclipsing the MSU single-game record for return yards in each of the last two weeks; Holliman was an honorable mention selection for STATS, Inc.'s National Special Teams Player of the Week on Monday
- Holliman is one of only two Bears -- along with Steven Rush (2003) -- to record at least 100 yards in kickoff returns on three separate occasions in a single season during the Division I era
- Sophomore tailback Calan Crowder enters Saturday's game just five rushing yards shy of the 1,000 mark for his MSU career; Crowder set a Bears freshman record with 766 yards last fall and leads the club with 229 this season
- MSU has made its way into the end zone in each of its 11 trips to the red zone this season, converting nine touchdowns and a pair of field goal tries, matching two other FCS squads for the top percentage in the country
- Sophomore receiver Malik Earl hauled in four receptions for a career-high 106 yards last Saturday at SIU; Earl has recorded at least three receptions in each of MSU's five contests this season and ranks ninth overall among MVFC receivers in receptions per game (3.8)
- Junior linebacker Dylan Cole currently ranks third in the Valley and 16th nationally in tackles per game (10.6) after leading the Bears in tackles in each of their five games this season
- The Bears have scored in 75 consecutive games dating back to Nov. 15, 2008; MSU has suffered just two shutouts since 1991, putting points on the board in 259 of its last 26 contests over the same stretch
Bears Set for Homecoming Clash With No. 4 Redbirds
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Honoring a campus tradition that dates back to 1921, the Missouri State Bears (1-4, 0-2 MVFC) will entertain the nationally-ranked Illinois State Redbirds (4-1, 2-0 MVFC) Saturday (Oct. 17) afternoon at Robert W. Plaster Stadium. The contest will open a challenging stretch that will see the Bears match up against five potential top 25 opponents in their final six games.
Despite suffering back-to-back setbacks to Indiana State and Southern Illinois to start the Valley season, head coach Dave Steckel's Bears have been able to generate some offense over the first two weeks of conference play, posting 28 and 26 points, respectively. Return specialist Deion Holliman has been a spark for MSU, earning MVFC Special Teams Player of the Week honors after logging 274 return yards at Southern Illinois last Saturday. He leads the nation in combined return yardage (640) and ranks third in punt return average (22.4 ypr.).
Illinois State enters the week ranked No. 4 in the FCS Coaches Poll. The defending FCS national runners-up are coming off a 31-29 road win at No. 7 Youngstown State last weekend and share a three-way lead in the MVFC standings. Quarterback Tre Roberson finished with 130 passing yards and 90 yards on the ground to lead ISU to its second-straight win over a top-10 opponent. Running back Marshaun Coprich brings the Valley's top rushing average (128.0 ypg.) into Saturday's contest, while Anthony Warrum is the third-leading receiver in the league with an average of 75.8 receiving yards per contest.
Missouri State has won six of its last eight homecoming games, a campus tradition in Springfield that dates to 1921. MSU is 25-19 in homecoming games since 1971. In their last eight homecoming games, the Bears have averaged 36.4 points and over 435 yards of total offense per outing.
Saturday's game will mark the third homecoming match-up for MSU vs. Illinois State, with the Bears winning their 1987 and 1989 contests against ISU and the Redbirds taking the 2009 homecoming game.
Missouri State has scored on all 11 of its trips into the red zone, including nine touchdowns, so far in 2015. The Bears are one of just three NCAA Division I FCS squads (along with Saint Francis (Pa.) and Gardner-Webb) to capitalize on each of their red zone opportunities this year.
Deion Holliman's impressive night in Carbondale this past Saturday will go down as one of the top single-game efforts by a Bears' return specialist, as the sophomore brought back nine kickoffs for a total of 238 yards. Holliman, who was named MVFC Special Teams Player of the Week for his performance vs. Southern Illinois, also logged a 36-yard punt return to set a Missouri State Division I record for combined return yards (274) in a game, just one week after breaking the record with 182 yards against Indiana State.
Over the last decade, there have been just 15 games in which a Bear has logged 100 kickoff return yards, and Holliman has posted three of those in successive weeks. Additionally, he is the first Bear since Steven Rush in 2003 to post back-to-back 100-yard return efforts. Holliman has consistently displayed the skills that make him a home run threat every time he touches the football throughout his MSU career. But the Camden, Ark., product finally broke free and went the distance Oct. 3 vs. Indiana State, bringing back a 58-yard return for a touchdown to mark the longest punt return for a Bear in nine years and the ninth-longest in school history.
