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Missouri State

FB Game 2

Week 2: Football Bears Take on UT Martin

September 05, 2023

Missouri State Bears (0-1) at UT Martin Skyhawks (0-1)
Date and Time Saturday, Sept. 9, 2023 | 6:02 p.m. (Central)
Location Hardy M. Graham Stadium (7,500) |  Martin, Tenn.
Tickets UTMSports.com | (731) 881-3630  
Radio KWTO (101.3 FM) (Steve Savard, Corey Riggs) | Bears Radio Network | Varsity App
Television ESPN+ (Davis Gregory, John Hatler) | Watch
Series Missouri State leads 7-1  | MSU 35, UTM 30 (9/8/22) | FInal Stats
Live Stats Live Stats
Game Notes Missouri State | UT Martin | 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 closes out a two-game road swing to start the 2023 season this Saturday when the Bears travel to UT Martin for a 6 p.m. kickoff against the Skyhawks. The contest at Hardy Graham Stadium will air on ESPN+.
  • The Bears and Skyhawks are squaring off for the third straight season. The last time Missouri State played a non-conference foe three straight seasons was Central Arkansas, which the Bears played four times between Sept. 25, 2020 and Sept. 1, 2022. MoState's last trip to Martin was in 2007. 
  • Missouri State was one of just four MVFC schools to start the season on the road and joined South Dakota, UNI and Western Illinois as the only league programs to play an FBS opponent in its season opener last week. Likewise, the Bears were one of just seven Valley programs to play a Division I scholarship program in week one.
  • The Bears have one player from the state of Tennessee. Utah State transfer Caden Kellow (LS, Brentwood, Tenn.) joined the Bears this fall. He attended Ravenwood High School.
  • The Bears are the only team in the Missouri Valley Football Conference to play their first two games of the 2023 campaign on the road.
  • With a 43.9 career punting average (on 169 attempts), Grant Burkett (Jr., Joplin, Mo.) is the nation's No. 2 active career leader in that category. He holds three of Missouri State's top four single-season punting averages, including a school-record 46.2 average in 2021.  
  • MSU allowed a sack on the opening series last week at Kansas and went the remainder of the game (45 straight plays) without allowing another one, which ranks the Bears 21st nationally in fewest sacks allowed.
  • The Bears have 20 players on the roster this season with experience at the NCAA FBS level, including five wide receivers and 10 newcomers.
  • After his debut effort at Kansas last week, Bears QB Jacob Clark (RSo., Rockwall, Texas) ranks 22nd nationally in completion percentage (.667), after connecting on 14-of-21 attempts.  
  • Bears CB Jamal McMurrin (Sr., West Salem, Ore.) shares the national lead in pass break-ups (2), while fellow defensive back Todric McGee (So., Wichita Kan.) ranks 4th nationally in solo tackles (10), which also leads the MVFC, while he ranks 21st in total stops (12), which is second in The Valley.
  • UTM assistant coach Mason Petrino (wide receivers) is first cousins with Missouri State offensive coordinator Nick Petrino. Mason played QB at Idaho for his father, Paul Petrino, from 2016-19. 
  • MoState's co-captains for the 2023 season are Grant Burkett (P, Joplin, Mo.), PJ Hall (S, Little Rock, Ark.), Raylen Sharpe (WR, Allen, Texas), Darion Smith (DL, St. Louis, Mo.) and Jacardia Wright (RB, Decatur, Ill.). 
  • Jacardia Wright (RB, Decatur, Ill.) earned MVFC All-Newcomer Team laurels in his first season in Springfield in 2022, ranking 6th in the Valley in rushing yards per game (71.1), 6th in rushing TD's (9) and 8th in yards per carry (4.56). He became MSU's first 700-yard rusher since 2014 (Calan Crowder). Wright had Missouri State's only two 25-yard "chunk" plays at KU -- a 27-yard reception and a 26-yard rush.
  • Missouri State's wide receivers made a big impact in last week's season opener at Kansas. J'mariyae Robinson (RFr., Cocoa, Fla.) had 2 touchdowns in Week One which pushed him to 8th nationally in scoring (12.0) and 30th nationally in points responsible for (12.0) per game. With his game-high 5 receptions at KU, Raylen Sharpe (Jr., Allen, Texas) ranks 39th nationally in receptions per game (5.0).
  • MSU's 3-for-3 effort in the red zone last week at KU gives them a share of the national lead in red zone efficiency. Illinois State (4-of-4) and South Dakota State (3-for-3) were the only other MVFC clubs to register perfect red zone efforts -- with at least three attempts -- in the season's opening week. 
  • The Missouri Valley Football Conference, of which Missouri State is a charter member, has produced 10 of the last 12 national champions at the NCAA Division I FCS level with four national runners-up in that same span. The Bears have been an FCS playoff team in two of the past three seasons.
       
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
  • Missouri State leads the all-time series against UT Martin, 7-1, in a regional rivalry that dates back to 1996. The Bears are 2-0 all-time in Martin and 5-1 in Springfield against the Skyhawks.
  • In 2021, the teams squared off in the opening round of the NCAA FCS Playoffs at Plaster Stadium (11/27/21) with the Skyhawks prevailing, 32-31, in a thriller. With 1:03 to go, on the heels of 25- and 9-yard completions from MSU's Jason Shelley to Xavier Lane, a tipped pass was intercepted by UTM's D'Carrious Stephens at his own 46, killing MSU's drive and crushing its comeback hopes in crunch time. The Bears turned the ball over six times that led directly to 23 Skyhawks points and ultimately proved to be the difference. Shelley threw for 279 yards and 3 touchdowns while Lane snagged 7 receptions for 110 yards. Shelley also rushed for a game-high 93 yards. UTM was led by Dresser Winn who completed 22-of-43 attempts for 272 yards and a pair of TDs. | Final Stats
  • MoState avenged the loss last season (9/8/22), when a pair of Jason Shelley touchdown passes to Ty Scott in the fourth quarter helped MSU overcome a late deficit in a 35-30 home win. The No. 5-ranked Bears trailed 24-21 heading into the final stanza before Shelley and Scott connected on a fourth-and-one play from the seven-yard line for the go-ahead touchdown with 10:09 to play to give MSU a 28-24 lead. Shelley finished the night 19-of-24 for 297 yards and 5 touchdowns, while Scott caught 8 passes for 96 yards and a career-high 3 touchdown receptions. | FInal Stats
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