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Missouri State

Game Week 9 FB

Football Bears Look to Continue Momentum This Week at USD

October 31, 2022

Missouri State Bears (3-5, 1-4 MVFC) at South Dakota Coyotes (2-6, 1-4 MVFC)
Date and Time Saturday, Nov. 5, 2022 | 1:02 p.m. (Central)
Location DakotaDome (9,100) |  Vermillion, S.D. 
Tickets GoYotes.com | (605) 677-5959
Radio KWTO (101.3 FM) (Corey Riggs, Dennis Heim) | MSU Radio Network | Listen Live
Television ESPN3 (Jay Elsen, Andre Fields) | Watch
Series Series tied, 4-4 | Last Meeting: MSU 31, USD 23 (9/25/22) | Final Stats
Live Stats Live Stats
Game Notes Missouri State | South Dakota | 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 returns home on Saturday, Nov. 12 to play Youngstonw State on Senior Day |
Kickoff 2:00 p.m. |  Tickets

First and Ten
  • Fresh off a lopsided homecoming win, Missouri State returns to the road this week to square off with South Dakota (1 p.m., ESPN3) for an impactful MVFC contest at the DakotaDome in Vermillion. The Bears are looking for their first conference road win of the campaign while pushing for their third straight win over the Coyotes.
  • After their 64-14 win over Western Illinois last week, the Bears jumped 8 spots in the MasseyRatings.com FCS metrics this week to No. 28. MSU is one of seven MVFC teams in the top 30 of the Massey rankings, which chronicles all 130 NCAA Division I FCS programs. Massey also ranks MSU with the No. 3 strength of schedule.
  • The Bears held visiting Western Illinois to 1-of-11 on third down last week, giving Missouri State the best defensive third-down efficiency in the league (.354) this season, which also ranks 34th nationally.
  • Defensive end Kevin Ellis (Sr., Forth Worth, Texas) ranks 8th nationally in fumble recoveries (2), which also gives him a share of the MVFC lead. He is also 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.
  • Milestone Updates: Including his two seasons at Alabama State, Jahod Booker (Sr., Montgomery, Ala.) needs 135 receiving yards for 1,000 career (22g) and fellow transfer Jordan Jones (Sr., Smackover, Ark.) needs 118 receiving yards for 1,000 (45g) ... Montrae Braswell (Jr., Avon Park, Fla.) needs 2 passes defended for 40 career ... Grant Burkett (So., Joplin, Mo.) needs 1 punt for 150 in his career (29g) ... Jason Shelley needs 66 yards for 6,000 (MSU) career total offense ... Kevon Latulas (Sr., Port Arthur, Texas) needs 173 rushing yards for 1,000 career (22g) ... Naveon Mitchell (Jr., Richmond, Texas) needs 1 reception for 50 career (28g)
  • Running back Jacardia Wright (Decatur, Ill.) ranks 34th nationally in rushing touchdowns (7); 49th in rushing yards per game (72.6); and 49th in total rushing yards (581). He ranks 6th in the MVFC in rushing and is 119 yards shy of becoming MSU's first 700-yard rusher since 2014 (Calan Crowder).  
  • With a 44.5 season punting average, All-American Grant Burkett (So., Joplin, Mo.) ranks 7th nationally and 1st in the MVFC (for the second year in a row). Likewise, his 44.5 career punting average is tops among all active FCS players. Burkett's season performance has also led MSU to rank 12th nationally in net punting (39.58).
  • All-American kicker Jose Pizano (Jr., Lehi, Utah) has converted a school-record 63 consecutive extra points and sits as the FCS active career leader in field goal accuracy (.837), making 41-of-49 attempts in his career. He is coming off a school-record 16-point performance against Western Illinois, earning him MVFC Special Teams Player of the Week for the second time in his career. 
  • With 38 career touchdown passes (20g), Jason Shelley (Sr., Frisco, Texas) has matched Peyton Huslig (2017-19) for the No. 2 position on Missouri State's career list. Cody Kirby (2007-10) is MSU's all-time leader in passing TDs (47). Shelley (17) is one 200-yd passing game from catching Jeremy Hoog (1994-97) as MSU's career leader.
  • The Bears rank 23rd nationally in home attendance average (10,209), which is 4th in league behind SDSU (17,041), NDSU (17,010) and Youngstown State (10,601).
  • After last year's home win over USD, Bears' QB Jason Shelley (Sr., Frisco, Texas) was named MVFC Newcomer of the Week when he led the Bears to a come-from-behind win. Shelley accounted for 4 touchdowns -- 2 passing and 2 rushing -- and engineered three scoring drives early in the second half to ignite a 17-0 run. Shelley was 19-for-29 for 281 passing yards and also racked up 62 ground yards on 17 carries. His 12-yard TD run in the fourth quarter gave the Bears an eight-point cushion and helped complete the comeback.
  • After MSU's spring 2021 (3/13/21) win at the DakotaDome, Montrae Braswell (CB, Avon Park, Fla.) earned MVFC Defensive Player of the Week honors when he scored a pair of TDs in Vermillion. His 36-yard pick-six was MSU's first interception return for a TD since 2016, while his 100-yard kickoff return matched the longest in program history. Braswell also had 6 solo tackles in the 27-24 MSU win.
       
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
  • The Bears and Coyotes are fairly-recent Valley rivals, playing eight times since South Dakota joined the MVFC in 2012 and splitting those meetings, 4-4. Missouri State escaped Vermillion with a 27-24 victory on 3/13/21 in its most-recent matchup at the DakotaDome and won its second in a row against the Coyotes last season in Springfield (9/25/21), 31-23. MSU is 1-3 all-time in Vermillion.
  • In the spring of 2021, Missouri State got touchdowns from its offense, defense and special teams and racked up 6 sacks in the second half to pull out a thrilling 27-24 road win. Jose Pizano's 28-yard field goal with 7:51 remaining in the contest proved to be the game-winner, capping a nine-play, 42-yard scoring drive that included a 26-yard completion from Matt Struck to Damoriea Vick on third down. Pizano's kick came on the heels of a monumental blocked field goal by Eric Johnson who got a hand on a 44-yard attempt by USD's Mason Lorber to kill a potential go-ahead drive by the Coyotes with 12:21 to play. Jeremiah Wilson carried 14 times for 58 yards, and Tobias Little tallied 52 yards on 13 carries to lead the Bears who finished the afternoon with 158 ground yards on 40 attempts. Wilson tied the game, 24-24, with 3:41 to go in the third to cap an 11-play, 75-yard drive.
  • Last season, Jason Shelley passed for two touchdowns and ran for a couple more to help lead the Bears to a thrilling 31-23 come-from-behind win in the conference opener for both squads. The No. 18-ranked Bears racked up 439 yards of total offense with Shelley passing for 281 and adding a game-high 62 ground yards. The Bears fell behind 14-0 out of the gates after a pair of costly turnovers and eventually trailed 23-14 at the game's midway point. But the second half belonged to the home side with MSU's defense surrendering just three first downs and 136 total yards. With the game in the balance late in the fourth quarter, a Bears interception by Ferrin Manuleleua, who also recovered a fumble, gave the Bears the ball at the USD 27 with just over 6 minutes to go and a narrow one-point lead. Shelley wasted no time finding paydirt, taking 4 plays to give the Bears a 31-23 lead with 4:42 to go. | Final Stats
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