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THE GAME
The Missouri State Bears wrap up a their longest home stand of the season Saturday (Sept. 29) when they entertain one of the Missouri Valley Football Conference's front runners, the No. 9 Illinois State Redbirds, in the first league game of 2018 for both squads.
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Saturday's will be broadcast live on ESPN+, with Don West and Corey Riggs describing the action. The game will also be carried on the Missouri State Radio Network, as Art Hains and Dennis Heim will once again have the call.
- Missouri State holds an all-time mark of 214-168-12 (.558) at Plaster Stadium.
- The Bears are 14-19 in MVFC openers since joining the league in 1985, with 22 of their 33 openers coming against ranked opponents.
- MSU has gone 6-16 vs. ranked foes and 8-3 vs. non-ranked opponents in MVFC openers.
- Ranked ninth in this week's FCS Coaches Poll, the Redbirds represent the 13th ranked opponent for the Bears in a Valley opener over the last 14 seasons; the Bears have squared off against at least four ranked foes in each of the last eight seasons.
- Saturday will mark the sixth time in seven seasons MSU has opened its league slate at home.
SERIES NOTES
- The Redbirds hold a 21-16-1 all-time edge in the series with MSU, including a 10-8-1 advantage in Springfield.
- Saturday's game will mark the fourth time since 2010 the Bears and Redbirds will have squared off in their Valley opener; last year, ISU took home a 34-9 decision over MSU at Plaster, after the Bears claimed a 37-10 win in 2013 in Springfield, and the Redbirds pulled out a 44-41 double-overtime victory in 2010 in Normal.
- ISU has held the Bears to nine points or fewer in each of their four straight wins in the series; the Redbirds have averaged 32.5 points during their streak as well.
THE BEARS
- The Bears (2-1) return 36 letterwinners and 15 total starters from last year's 3-8 squad.
- MSU's defense, which welcomed back nine starters, is led by first-team preseason All-MVFC pick Angelo Garbutt and second-team choice Darius Joseph.
- McNeece Egbim paces the Bears with 23 tackles through the first three contests, while Claudio Martin leads the MVFC in sacks (3.0), despite playing in just two games so far.
- Jason Randall scored two more touchdowns in the Bears' win over NAU, upping his season total to four rushing TD's, which ranks third in the MVFC and 23rd nationally; he has scored at least one touchdown in six of MSU's last seven games overall, dating back to Oct. 28, 2017 vs. Indiana State.
- The MSU defense ranks eighth in all of FCS football in total takeaways (8), thanks to six fumble recoveries (which rank fifth in the nation).
- Peyton Huslig's average completion of 15.56 yards ranks 13th nationally.
- Brendan Withrow is averaging 44.5 yards per punt this season, with a Valley-best six boots inside the opponents 20-yard line.
THE REDBIRDS
- Illinois State knocked off FBS foe Colorado State by a 35-19 score last Saturday and enters the MVFC season with a perfect 3-0 mark on the year.
- The Redbirds bring the No. 6 scoring defense (9.7 ppg.) and No. 9 scoring offense (43.0 ppg.) in the nation into Saturday's game.
- ISU is 13-for-13 in the Red Zone this season, and junior running back James Robinson ranks seventh nationally with his average of 8.3 yards per carry.
LAST TIME OUT...
Missouri State posted its second-straight home victory with a resounding 40-8 decision over then-No. 20 Northern Arizona on Sept. 15. The Bears extended their non-conference home win streak to six consecutive games in securing their second 2-1 start under head coach Dave Steckel.
- Jason Randall rushed for a career-best 181 yards and two touchdowns, marking his second 100-yard rushing effort as a Bear; he has scored at least one touchdown in six of MSU's last seven games overall, dating back to Oct. 28, 2017 vs. Indiana State.
- Led by MVFC Defensive Player of the Week Tyler Lovelace's two takeaways, the Bears defense forced six turnovers in a game for the first time in 11 years.
- MSU's stout defensive effort included three fumble recoveries and three interceptions for the afternoon; the Bears defense forced six turnovers in a single game for the first time since 2007, while holding the Lumberjack offense scoreless over its final 12 possessions of the contest.
- The victory gave the Bears their first win over a ranked opponent since a 45-24 road victory at Indiana State on Oct. 1, 2016, while the 32-point final spread represented their second-largest margin of victory over a ranked foe.
- Ranked at No. 20, the Lumberjacks represented the Bears' highest-ranked victims since an Oct. 19, 2013 win over No. 15 South Dakota State, which also marked MSU's last home win over a ranked opponent.
- With 144 yards through the air, Peyton Huslig (2,510 passing yards) passed Brodie Lambert for the No. 13 spot on the Bears' career passing yardage list.
MSU TO HONOR 1978 MIAA CHAMPS
Missouri State will honor its 1978 MIAA championship squad Saturday. Coach Rich Johanningmeier's squad finished the 1978 season with an 8-3 record and MIAA conference title after a 6-0 run through the league. The Bears, who rushed for more than 3,000 yards on the season, clinched the conference title on the road with a 38-6 win at SEMO in the season finale.
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PUNTING WITH A PURPOSE
Missouri State entered the week ranked fourth nationally in net punting (43.43) and third in punt return defense (-0.83). Only Kennesaw State (45.6), Harvard (45.3) and Southeastern Louisiana (44.7) rank ahead of the Bears in net punting on the season, while Missouri State's standout punter Brendan Withrow ranks ninth nationally in punting average with 44.5 yards per attempt, including six of his 14 attempts downed inside the 20.
LIMITED LAUNDRY
After ranking in the top 10 nationally last season in fewest penalties (7th) and fewest penalty yards (9th), the Bears have continued that trend into the 2018 campaign. Coach Dave Steckel's troops have committed just 5.0 penalties per game this year, which ranks 18th nationally. Additionally, the Bears' 38.7 penalty yards per game ranks 16th among all FCS squads.
DOING IT WITH DEFENSE
Missouri State forced six Northern Arizona turnovers and held the Lumberjacks to 3-of-15 on third down in the club's first home win over a ranked opponent since 2013. The six takeaways represented the most by a Bears defense since an Oct. 27, 2007 home victory over Indiana State. The defensive surge also saw MSU break up six passes and tally 5.0 tackles for loss in the rout, grabbing three interceptions and 2.0 sacks as well. Linebacker Angelo Garbutt and safety Jared Beshore led the Bears with eight total tackles, while McNeece Egbim and Zack Sanders added seven apiece.
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MVFC LOVIN' LOVELACE
Sophomore linebacker Tyler Lovelace also enjoyed a big day vs. NAU, picking up Missouri Valley Football Conference Defensive Player of the Week recognition on Sept. 16. Lovelace personally accounted for two of the Bears' six takeaways in the 40-8 home victory over the 20th-ranked Lumberjacks. Lovelace also had a pair of solo stops and three total tackles on the day.Â
Lovelace came up with a fumble recovery late in the first half that set up an MSU touchdown four plays later, putting the Bears up 23-6 at the half. He also picked off an NAU pass in the first quarter to halt its drive in MSU territory and collected 18 return yards on the play.
Lovelace is the first Missouri State player to earn Valley Defensive Player of the Week honors since Dylan Cole earned the distinction on Oct. 2, 2016.
BEARS STRONG IN THE NON-CON
Missouri State's win over Northern Arizona saw the Bears continued a recent surge in the non-conference season. MSU has enjoyed a history of success in non-conference play at home since joining the Division I ranks in 1982, going 58-20 overall against non-league foes at Plaster.
The Bears will take a six-game home win streak versus non-conference opponents into the 2019 season, including shutout wins in two of those outings. MSU has out-scored its last six home non-league opponents by a combined 236-66 margin, posting a 57-0 win over Southwestern College (Sept. 1, 2016), a 21-13 victory over Chadron State (Sept. 12, 2015), a 38-0 white-washing of North Dakota (Sept. 13, 2015) and a 28-21 decision over Murray State (Sept. 16, 2017) prior to their 2018 wins over Lincoln and NAU. The Bears have now logged at least one non-conference home win in 28 of their last 32 seasons dating back to 1987.
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