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Missouri State

Sean Fitzgerald

Season Finale in Terre Haute Up Next for Football Bears

November 14, 2022

Missouri State Bears (4-6, 2-5 MVFC) at Indiana State Sycamores (2-8, 1-6 MVFC)
Date and Time Saturday, Nov. 19, 2022 | 12:02 p.m. (Central)
Location Memorial Stadium (12,764) |  Terre Haute, Ind.
Tickets TicketMaster.com | (877) ISU-TIXS 
Radio KWTO (101.3 FM) (Corey Riggs, Dennis Heim) | MSU Radio Network | Listen Live
Television ESPN+ (Luke Martin, Jim Leisure) | Watch
Series Missouri State leads 21-14  | Last Meeting: MSU 37, INST 7 (10/16/21) | Final Stats
Live Stats Live Stats
Game Notes Missouri State | Indiana State | MVFC | MSU Media Guide
Follow Athletics Facebook | Athletics Twitter | Football Facebook | Football Twitter | Instagram | Petrino Weekly Presser | #MSUBears | #BearsUnite | #WakeTheBears | @MoStateFootball

First and Ten
  • Missouri State will conclude the 2022 season Saturday when the Bears travel to Indiana State for a Noon (Central) kickoff at historic Memorial Stadium in Terre Haute. The game will air live on ESPN+.
  • The Bears are 2-0 in regular-season finale games under coach Bobby Petrino. The last time MSU concluded a campaign in Terre Haute was in 2008, a 27-24 overtime victory for Missouri State.
  • Missouri State's senior day win over Youngstown State last week secured the team's second straight winning season at home, and marked the fourth time in five seasons the Bears have been .500 or better at Plaster Stadium.
  • Seven of the last 10 meetings between the Bears and Sycamores in Terre Haute have been decided by 6 points or less, including three overtime games. Since 2000, Missouri State is 5-5 at Memorial Stadium with wins in their last two trips there.
  • All-American kicker Jose Pizano (Jr., Lehi, Utah) has converted a school-record 66 consecutive extra points.He has also converted 7 field goals in a row and made 25 of his last 28 attempts. Pizano is the FCS active career leader in field goal accuracy (.846), making 44-of-52 attempts in his career and ranks 24th nationally in FG percentage (.786) and 36th in FG per game (1.10) this year. 
  • Bears offensive linemen Ian Fitzgerald (Jr., Hawthorn Woods, Ill.) and Ryan Suliafu (Jr., Ontario, Calif.) would both be making their 30th consecutive start if they take the field on MSU's opening drive at Indiana State. 
  • Defensive end Kevin Ellis (Sr., Forth Worth, Texas) currently has 19.5 career sacks (51g) and is on the verge of becoming the 10th MSU player to reach 20 career sacks (and first since DeLaun Fowler in 1995). Ellis' 36.0 career tackles for loss places him 4th all-time in Bears history.
  • Milestone Updates: Including his two seasons at Alabama State, Jahod Booker (Sr., Montgomery, Ala.) needs 75 receiving yards for 1,000 career (24g) ... Montrae Braswell (Jr., Avon Park, Fla.) needs 2 passes defended for 40 career ... Kevon Latulas (Sr., Port Arthur, Texas) needs 71 rushing yards for 1,000 career (24g) ... Jason Shelley (Sr., Frisco, Texas) needs 166 passing yards from 6,000 at Missouri State (22g).
  • MSU special teams have once again proven to be the team's secret weapon in 2022. The Bears rank 11th in the nation in net punting (38.19), 27th in punt returns (11.91) and 35th in kickoff returns (21.64).
  • For Jason Shelley's collegiate career (42 games at Utah, Utah State and MSU), he needs 13 pass attempts for 1,000 ... 41 passing yards to 7,500  ... 2 passing touchdowns for 50 ... 2 rushing touchdowns for 20.  
  • Bears assistant coach Ronnie Fouch was a standout quarterback for the Sycamores from 2010-11. He threw for 4,316 yards and 38 touchdowns in two seasons in Terre Haute. Fouch threw for 311 yards to beat the Bears in Terre Haute in overtime his junior year, 38-35 (10/16/10). He earned his degree in Criminology from ISU in 2012 and later earned a trip to the Chicago Bears mini-camp in 2012.
  • Ty Scott (WR, Estill, S.C.) and Montrae Braswell (CB, Avon Park, Fla.) are both listed among the top 30 FCS NFL Draft Prospects for 2023, according to Craig Haley for The Analyst. That list includes 12 players from the Missouri Valley Football Conference.
  • Jason Shelley was announced on Nov. 9 as one of 30 FCS players on the College Football Performance Awards (CFPA) National Performer of the Year Trophy mid-season watch list. He is one of 25 quarterbacks and one of six Missouri Valley Football Conference players on the list. The 2022 CFPA FCS National Performer of the Year will be announced January 13.
  • On the heels of a key 56-yard kickoff return vs. Youngstown State last week, Montrae Braswell (Avon Park, Fla.) ranks 2nd in the nation in kickoff return average (30.3) and is the No. 2 active career leaders in FCS (30.0). He was also named MVFC Special Teams Player of the Week.
  • Jason Shelley started the season with 107 consecutive pass attempts without an interception, and is currently on a string of 130 in a row since his opening-drive turnover at UNI. He has completed 65 percent of his pass attempts during his current streak and ranks 12th nationally in fewest interceptions this season (5).
       
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 136-71 (.657) in his 17th season as a head coach and is 17-15 (.531) at Missouri State, including a 10-5 ledger at Plaster Stadium and 7-10 road record. As Bears head coach, Petrino is 13-8 in MVFC games (8-3 at home). Petrino is also 2-0 all-time against Indiana State (1-0 at MSU).
  • 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
  • Missouri State leads the all-time series against the Sycamores, 21-14, with the Bears owning wins in four of the last five meetings. MSU is 13-5 all-time at Plaster Stadium against Indiana State, in addition to an 8-9 ledger in Terre Haute. The Bears have not played in Terre Haute since 2018.
  • In the last meeting between the squads (11/23/19) and the final game of the Dave Steckel era at MSU, visiting Indiana State rode a five-touchdown afternoon by Dominique Dafney to a runaway 51-24 victory, handing the Bears their seventh-straight setback to end the 2019 season. Dafney racked up 244 yards and four touchdowns on 20 carries to go along with a 19-yard scoring reception to lead a Sycamore offense that totaled 492 yards. In his 33rd straight start, Bears QB Peyton Huslig capped his career with 249 yards on 27-of-42 passing, while Myron Mason tallied a season-best 94 rushing yards on his  20 carries for the home side. The decision not only marked the second-most points ever scored by the Sycamores in the series, but also snapped a three-game MSU win streak in the Valley rivalry.
  • Last season in Springfield (10/16/21), Missouri State got a stellar defensive performance, some critical special teams plays and got the offense rolling when it counted as part of a 37-7 homecoming win. The Bears held Indiana State to just 1-for-11 on third down and surrendered just one score late in the fourth quarter to secure their largest margin of victory since 2018. MSU forced the visitors into seven punts in their first nine possessions, in addition to a fourth-down stop and the end of the first half. On the offensive side, coach Bobby Petrino's squad racked up 21 first downs and 442 total yards in an efficient performance that featured scoring drives in six-of-seven possessions during a critical juncture of the game. Jason Shelley became the first Missouri State quarterback to rack up 200 passing yards in his first six career games as he finished 11-for-21 for 225 yards, no interceptions and three touchdowns. Ty Scott was the Bears' top receiver with 3 catches for 106 yards and a pair of scores. | Final Stats
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