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Missouri State

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Bears, Bison Set to Clash Saturday at Plaster

October 03, 2023

Missouri State Bears (1-3, 0-1 MVFC) vs. North Dakota State Bison (3-1, 0-1 MVFC)
Date and Time Saturday, Oct. 7, 2023 | 2:02 p.m. (Central)
Location Robert W. Plaster Stadium (17,500) | Springfield, Mo.
Promotions Sunglasses Giveaway (First 500 Fans / 500 Students) | Mental Health Awareness Game
Students Free Sandwiches/Brownies on "The Clif"
Tickets MissouriStateBears.com/tickets | (417) 836-7678 | Stadium Box Office Opens at 10 a.m  
Radio KWTO (101.3 FM) (Art Hains, Corey Riggs) | Bears Radio Network | Varsity App
Television ESPN+ (Scott Warmann, Jacob Seidel, Kelly Burk) | Watch
Tailgating / Pregame Tailgating & BearFest Village (Opens at 11:00 a.m.) | Free Food to First 200 Fans at Hy-Vee Station
Game Information Shop BearWear | Weather | FCS Top 25 Polls
Program Digital Program
Series NDSU leads 12-2  | Last Meeting: NDSU 27, MSU 20 (10/23/21) | FInal Stats
Live Stats Live Stats
Game Notes Missouri State | NDSU | MVFC | MSU Media Guide
Follow Athletics Facebook | Athletics Twitter | Football Facebook | Football Twitter | Instagram | Beard Weekly Presser | #MSUBears | #BearsUnite | #OutHitOut Hustle | @MoStateFootball

First and Ten
  • Missouri State returns to Robert W. Plaster Stadium this Saturday to host North Dakota State (2 p.m., ESPN+) in a key Missouri Valley Football Conference matchup. This week's game will feature National Mental Health Awareness Week promotions while both clubs look to secure their first conference win of the season. 
  • The Bears boast the No. 2 passing offense in the FCS ranks, averaging 328.0 yards per game, which also leads the MVFC. Two weeks ago against Utah Tech, MoState racked up a school-record 462 passing yards and followed that with 305 yards last week against SIU. MoState also ranks 5th in pass efficiency (167.52) and 7th in yards per completion (14.74), both of which lead the MVFC. 
  • The Bears rank 32nd nationally in scoring offense (31.8) this season and have scored two or more touchdowns in 14 straight home games, dating to March 13, 2021. MoState is 11-3 at home in that span (8-2 in MVFC games), while scoring 30 or more points in 11-of-14 contests. 
  • The last time the Bears and Bison squared off (10/23/21 in Fargo), Missouri State led or shared the lead for 55 minutes, 3 seconds before NDSU came from behind with a TD pass with 4:57 remaining in the game. Jason Shelley passed for 242 yards in that contest which marked the most by any Bear in the series against the Bison.
  • Including the team's six future opponents this season, the Bears rank No. 4 among all FCS teams in Strength of Schedule, according to MasseyRatings.com. Overall, MSU is No. 30 in the Massey team rankings.
  • Bears safety Todric McGee (So., Wichita Kan.) ranks 20th nationally in solo tackles per game (5.8) and 20th in total tackles per game (10.0). He ranks 2nd in the MVFC in solos and 3rd in total tackles per game.
  • Wide receiver Hunter Wood (Jr., Springdale, Ark.) has recorded 3 receiving TDs in the last two games to jump to 29th nationally in receiving scores (3), which is tied for second-best in the MVFC.
  • Behind All-America punter Grant Burkett (Jr., Joplin, Mo.), the Bears rank 15th nationally in net punting (40.60) and 11th in punt return defense (2.0). Burkett is the FCS active career leader in punting average (43.9). His 41.36 punting average this season ranks 5th in the MVFC.  
  • NDSU defensive coordinator Jason Petrino is a first cousin of former Bears head coach Bobby Petrino and first cousin once removed of current MoState offensive coordinator Nick Petrino.
  • Raylen Sharpe (Jr., Allen, Texas) ranks 21st nationally in punt return average (10.6), 23rd in receiving yards per game (77.5) and 28th in receptions per game (5.5). He is No. 5 in The Valley in both receptions and yards with 100+ receiving yards in two of the last three games.
  • MSU is a perfect 13-for-13 in red zone scoring this season which gives the Bears a share of the national (and MVFC) lead in red zone efficiency. South Dakota State (16-for-16) and South Dakota (10-for-10) also own a share the lead with four other FCS programs (SEMO, Fordham, Drake and Bethune-Cookman).
  • Wide receiver Terique Owens (Sr., Pleasanton, Calif.) ranks 17th nationally in yards per reception (20.45), which is 1st in The Valley. He had 5 receptions for 140 yards and 2 touchdowns in MSU's only other home contest this season (vs. Utah Tech).
  • Among all NCAA kickers (all divisions), Owen Rozanc (Sr., Sheffield Lake, Ohio) ranks 35th in career field goals (38), converting 69% of his career three-point attempts (38-55). He capped MSU's two longest scoring drives of the season in last Saturday's game at No. 10 Southern Illinois with clutch field goals of 21 and 28 yards. He ranks 19th nationally in field goals per game (1.25) which is tied for the league lead in the MVFC.
  • As a team, the Bears rank 18th nationally in pass efficiency defense (113.67), which is also 2nd in the MVFC.
  • The Bison have won 9 FCS national championships in the last 12 years with a national runner-up finish last year.
  • Fourth-year NDSU QB Cam Miller leads the country in completion percentage (.782), more than 100 points better than last season when he completed just 65.8 percent of his passes.
       
Coach Ryan Beard
  • Missouri State University officially presented Ryan Beard as its new head football coach on Dec. 19, 2022 during a news conference in Great Southern Bank Arena on the Springfield campus.
  • At 34, Beard is the program's youngest head coach on record and is the 22nd person to hold the football Bears' top coaching position. His elevation to head coach came on the heels of three seasons as MSU's defensive coordinator (2020-22) under former head coach Bobby Petrino.
  • Beard has played a significant role in Missouri State's resurgence on the gridiron, managing a defensive unit that has boasted 18 all-conference selections, four All-Americans and three professional players in his tenure at MoState.
  • In his first campaign in Springfield in 2020-21, Beard and his defensive unit broke the program record for sacks with 27, created 15 turnovers, and held every Missouri Valley Football Conference foe under 30 points for the first time since 1989. His inaugural season at MSU culminated in five all-conference selections, while the Bears captured a share of the MVFC championship and earned an NCAA playoff berth.
  • As an encore effort in 2021, Beard's second year with the program saw the Bears top the club sack record again (30) while racking up 25 takeaways and securing 15 interceptions. In addition to making a second straight NCAA playoff appearance in 2021, MSU finished in sole possession of second place in the rugged Missouri Valley Football Conference, ranked ninth nationally in turnovers gained and finished 14th in interceptions per game. The 2021 Bears also boasted five all-conference players on the defensive side of the ball while Bears' defensive lineman Eric Johnson was drafted by the Indianapolis Colts in the fifth round of the 2022 NFL Draft.
  • The 2022 Bears defense gave up just 15.8 points per game over their last four games with defensive end Kevin Ellis leading the nation in fumble recoveries, and four MSU defenders earning all-conference laurels. Five-time All-MVFC pick Montrae Braswell signed a free agent deal with the Seattle Seahawks.
  • Before coming to Missouri State, Beard spent the 2019 season at Central Michigan as the special teams and safeties coach for head coach Jim McElwain. He joined the Central Michigan staff in February of 2019 and helped lead the Chippewas to an 8-6 campaign on a defensive secondary that created 13 interceptions.
  • Beard served as an assistant at Louisville during the 2017 and 2018 seasons, starting as the defensive backs coach and in quality control before moving on to become the Cardinals' linebackers coach and their co-special teams coordinator. As the defensive backs coach at Western Kentucky in 2016, Beard helped lead the Hilltoppers to the Conference USA championship and a win in the Boca Raton Bowl.
  • Beard was a standout defensive back at Western Kentucky himself from 2007-11. He was a two-time All-Sun Belt Conference selection and was named to the league's All-Freshman squad and its All-Academic team. In 2011, he earned the Western Kentucky Iron Man Award.
  • A native of Bowling Green, Ky., Beard was a four-year letterwinner at Bowling Green High for coach Kevin Wallace, where his efforts helped the Purples advance to the state 3A championship contest each of his last two years.
  • Beard holds two degrees from Western Kentucky: a bachelor of science in Business Management (2012), and a master of science in Recreation and Sport Administration (2014).
  • He is married to the former Katie Petrino. The couple have four children with son Beau and daughter Lainey, in addition to twins Jacob and Kailey born in the spring of 2022.

Series History
  • In a series that dates to 2008 when the Bison joined the MVFC, North Dakota State owns a 12-2 lead in its history against Missouri State. The Bears are 1-6 at home and 1-6 in Fargo all-time with the Bison winning the last 11 meetings between the two clubs.
  • In the COVID spring season of 2020-21 (3/6/21), NDSU accounted for one-third of its offensive output on two big first-half plays and relied on its defense to take it from there in a 25-0 Bison win in Springfield. MoState registered 14 first downs on the afternoon and drove into Bison territory four times. However, the 18 points in the second quarter by the visitors proved too much to overcome in MSU's Valley home opener. Bears QB Jaden Johnson was 13-of-21 through the air for 132 yards and no interceptions. Damoriea Vick caught 6 passes for 73 yards with Lorenzo Thomas snagging 3 catches for 28 yards.  On the ground, MSU's top ball carrier was Tobias Little who gained 46 yards on 8 touches. The defeat would mark the only Valley loss of the season for the Bears who went on to earn a share of the MVFC regular-season title for the first time since 1990 and advanced to the NCAA playoffs.
  • In the most-recent meeting between the clubs in the fall of 2021 (10/23/21), it took No. 3 NDSU a dozen plays and more than seven minutes, but with the game tied and the outcome in the balance, the Bison drove 62 yards for the go-ahead score with just under five minutes left in the game to secure a 27-20 victory. Cam Miller's 24-yard touchdown pass to Christian Watson capped the drive, which started at the NDSU 38. The Missouri State defense scratched to keep things tied as long as it could, including a sack from Kevin Ellis. But six plays later, Miller hit Watson at the right pylon for the score. It marked the first time the Bison led all game as the No. 17 Bears racked up 321 yards of total offense and played a strong defensive game. Jason Shelley completed 16-of-25 passes for 242 yards, while Ty Scott led the MSU receiving corps with six receptions for 104 yards. It was Shelley's seventh straight 200-yard passing game. The Bears led 20-13 at the end of three quarters.
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