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Missouri State

FB Game Week 8

Grid Bears Prep for Homecoming Clash with Western

October 24, 2022

Missouri State Bears (2-5, 0-4 MVFC) vs. Western Illinois Leathernecks (0-7, 0-4 MVFC)
Date and Time Saturday, Oct. 29, 2022 | 2:02 p.m. (Central)
Location Robert W. Plaster Stadium (17,500) | Springfield, Mo.
Promotions Homecoming | Track & FIeld / XC Reunion
BearFest Village Tailgating Starts at 11:00 a.m. 
Game Information Stadium Procedures | Shop BearWear | Tailgating & BearFest Village | Weather | FCS Top 25 Polls
Program Digital Program
Tickets MissouriStateBears.com | (417) 836-7678 | Stadium Box Office Opens at 10 a.m. on Game Day
Radio KWTO (101.3 FM) (Corey Riggs, Dennis Heim) | MSU Radio Network | Listen Live
Television ESPN+ (Don West, Tom Mast) | Watch
Series Missouri State leads 19-18-1 | Last Meeting: MSU 30, WIU 24 (2/27/21) | Final Stats
Live Stats Live Stats
Game Notes Missouri State | Western Illinois | MVFC | MSU Media Guide
Follow Athletics Facebook | Athletics Twitter | Football Facebook | Football Twitter | Instagram | Petrino Weekly Presser | #MSUBears | #BearsUnite | #WakeTheBears | @MoStateFootball
Up Next Missouri State will travel to South Dakota on Saturday, Nov. 5 at 1:00 p.m. |  Tickets

First and Ten
  • Missouri State returns to Robert W. Plaster Stadium this Saturday when the Bears entertain MVFC rival Western Illinois at 2 p.m. (ESPN+) on Homecoming weekend in Springfield. Both teams are seeking their first conference victory of the 2022 campaign while the Bears are also pushing for a victory on homecoming for the second year in a row.
  • Missouri State's home attendance average (10,042) ranks 28th nationally in the FCS and 4th in the MVFC. Not counting the 2020-21 COVID season, the Bears are averaging 10,879 for their last five homecoming games, including 14,336 last season vs. Indiana State.
  • Defensive end Kevin Ellis (Sr., Forth Worth, Texas) is on the verge of becoming the 10th MSU player to reach 20 career sacks and the first since DeLaun Fowler (1992-95) to do so. The MSU co-captain currently has 19.5 career sacks (49g), while his 34.0 career tackles for loss places him 5th all-time in Bears history.
  • Last week at UNI, Ty Scott (Jr., Estill, S.C.) became the 11th Missouri State receiver to accumulate 100 career receptions. The preseason All-American currently ranks 37th nationally in receiving yards (533) and 39th in receiving yards per game (76.1). In just 19 career games at MSU, Scott has racked up 101 receptions for 1,643 yards and 12 touchdowns, ranking among the Bears' all-time top 10 in all three categories.
  • Milestone Updates: Including his two seasons at Alabama State, Jahod Booker (Sr., Montgomery, Ala.) needs 155 receiving yards for 1,000 career (21g) and fellow transfer Jordan Jones (Sr., Smackover, Ark.) needs 118 receiving yards for 1,000 (45g) ... Montrae Braswell (Jr., Avon Park, Fla.) needs 3 passes defended for 40 career ... Grant Burkett (So., Joplin, Mo.) needs 3 punts for 150 in his career (29g).
  • Missouri State's primary returners are making waves nationally. Punt returner Naveon Mitchell (Jr., Richmond, Texas) leads the MVFC in punt return average (21.8) and is 2nd in the league in punt return yards (109), while D'Vontae Key (So., Raytown, Mo.) ranks 28th nationally and 4th in the MVFC with a 22.7 kickoff return average.  
  • With a 45.0 season punting average, All-American Grant Burkett (So., Joplin, Mo.) ranks 5th nationally and 1st in the MVFC (for the second year in a row). Likewise, his 44.6 career punting average is tops among all active FCS players. Burkett's season performance has also led MSU to rank 9th nationally in net punting (39.68).
  • All-American kicker Jose Pizano (Jr., Lehi, Utah) has converted a school-record 56 consecutive extra points and sits as the FCS active career leader in field goal percentage (.826), making 38-of-46 attempts in his career. Ironically, Pizano has not attempted a field goal at home this season.
  • Quarterback Jason Shelley (Sr., Frisco, Texas) (35) is one behind Jeremy Hoog (1994-97) and Mitch Ware (1976-79) for third on MSU's career touchdown passes list and just 3 behind Peyton Huslig (2017-19) for the No. 2 position. Cody Kirby (2007-10) is MSU's all-time leader in passing touchdowns with 47. Shelley (16) is also one 200-yard passing game away from Kirby (17) for No. 2 in MSU history with Hoog (18) as the club's career leader.
  • In home games this season Jacardia Wright (So., Decatur, Ill.) is averaging 88.7 rushing yards per game and leads the Bears in scoring (24) with 4 touchdowns. He ranks 4th in the MVFC in rush attempts (105) and 7th in the league in rushing yards per game (71.3).
  • Missouri State continues to boast one of the FCS' toughest schedules, ranking 3rd in the Massey Ratings SOS metrics (42.44), just behind South Dakota (44.61) and Eastern Washington (42.64). The Bears also rank 10th in opponent victories (26) and 15th in opponent W-L percentage (.578) among all FCS programs this season.
  • LB Ferrin Manuleleua (Sr., Manteca, Calif.) is coming off his second straight double-figure tackle game after bringing down 10 ball carriers at UNI last week and 10 vs. SIU in the last home game. Manuleleua now has 5 career games with at least 10 tackles and ranks 8th in the MVFC with 7.71 tackles per game this season.
  • Safety Todric McGee (RFr., Wichita, Kan.) had a breakout week at UNI, recording a team-high and career-high 12 tackles, including 6 solo stops (also a game high) and earned the team defensive player of the game.   
Coach Bobby Petrino
  • Bobby Petrino is in his third season as Missouri State's head football coach after joining the Bears program on January 16, 2020. He is currently 134-70 (.657) in his 17th season as a head coach and is 15-14 (.517) at Missouri State, including an 8-5 ledger at Plaster Stadium and 7-9 road record. As Bears head coach, Petrino is 11-7 in MVFC games (6-3 at home). Petrino is 2-0 all-time against Western Illinois (1-0 at Missouri St.). 
  • He picked up his 75th career conference victory on Oct. 2, 2021 at Illinois State and his 130th all-time win on Nov. 6, 2021 at Southern Illinois.
  • Petrino's second season in Springfield in the fall of 2021 was even more impressive than his debut campaign. The Bears finished 14th in both the AFCA and Stats Perform final polls, while rolling to a 6-2 league record and runner-up finish in the MVFC. In addition, the Bears made a second straight appearance in the NCAA FCS Playoffs, while Petrino tied for 11th in the final voting for the Eddie Robinson Award for FCS National Coach of the Year.
  • The Bears boasted a dozen all-conference players in 2021 with QB Jason Shelley earning MVFC Offensive Player of the Year and MVFC Newcomer of the Year laurels. Five other MoState players earned All-America distinction in 2021.
  • During his debut in 2020-21, Petrino helped lead the Bears to a 5-1 mark in Valley play to earn a share of the MVFC regular-season title. His efforts not only landed him the prestigious Bruce Craddock MVFC Coach of the Year Award, but also led the Bears to their first NCAA FCS playoff appearance in 30 years.
  • In August 2021, ESPN ranked Petrino No. 77 on its Top 100 college football coaches of the last 50 years.
  • Petrino previously served as head coach in two stints at Louisville as well as Arkansas and Western Kentucky. He spent 14 seasons at the FBS level and led his programs to 11 bowl appearances with seven teams ranked in the top 25 at season's end.
  • The Helena, Mont., native is in his 34th year of collegiate coaching overall, having guided his programs to AP top-six final rankings three times (2004, 2006, 2011) and directing some of the nation's top offensive programs along the way. His clubs have finished in the top five nationally in scoring offense three times, while his 2004 club at Louisville led the country in scoring (49.8 ppg). He has developed 34 NFL Draft selections during his illustrious career, including four in the first round, and Heisman Trophy winner Lamar Jackson.
  • Petrino and his wife Becky have four children: Kelsey, Nick, Bobby and Katie — and eight grandchildren. Nick Petrino is Missouri State's offensive coordinator, while sons-in-law Ryan Beard (defensive coordinator) and L.D. Scott (defensive line) are also on the MSU coaching staff this season.  
Series History
  • In a series that dates back to 1981, the Bears lead the Leathernecks, 19-18-1. Missouri State is 7-10-1 at home all-time against WIU.
  • Even though the teams did not play last season, the Bears have won the last two meetings in the rivalry, both in Macomb, with a 30-24 victory there in the most-recent meeting on Feb. 27, 2021.
  • In that most-recent meeting, a 22-yard touchdown pass from Jaden Johnson to Isaac Smith with 6:39 to play gave visiting Missouri State the lead for good and sealed a 30-24 comeback victory. Smith's grab capped the game-winning, 92-yard scoring drive for MSU and came on the heels of a 74-yard strike from Johnson to Damoriea Vick one play earlier that took the visitors from the shadow of their own goal line all the way to the WIU 22. The Bears tacked on a 33-yard field goal by Jose Pizano less than three minutes later to give them a six-point cushion down the stretch. Pizano's third field goal of the afternoon came after a momentum-shifting interception by Kevin Ellis moments earlier. Ellis closed out the game with a forced fumble on a sack of WIU quarterback Henry Ogala, and the ensuing fumble was recovered by Eric Johnson in the game's closing moments. Ellis also finished the contest with 6 total tackles and a pair of sacks. | Final Stats

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