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Missouri State

FB Game Week 13

Road Test at Kennesaw State Up Next for Football Bears

November 19, 2025

By: MSU Athletics Communications
GAME 11 - Missouri State Bears (7-3, 5-1 CUSA)  at Kennesaw State (7-3, 5-1 CUSA)
Date and Time Saturday, Nov. 22, 2025 | 1:02 p.m. (Central)
Stadium Info Walens Family Field at Fifth-Third Stadium (11,040) | Kennesaw, Ga.
Tickets KSUOwls.com | (470) 578-6957
Radio KWTO (101.3 FM) (Corey Riggs, Tom Mast, Maddux Radosevic) | Bears Radio Network |
Varsity Network App
Television ESPN+ (Nolan Alexander, Caleb O'Neal, Maria Martin) | Watch
Fan Information Shop BearWear | Weather | Stadium Information and Policies
Coverage Ryan Beard Weekly Presser | MoState Update / Audio Clips 
Series Kennesaw State leads series, 1-0 | Last Meeting: KSU 35, MSU 24 (9/21/19) | Box Score
Live Stats Live Stats
Game Notes Missouri State | Kennesaw State | CUSA Notebook | MSU Media Guide
Bears Mobile App App Store (Apple Devices) | Google Play Store (Android Devices)
Follow Athletics Facebook | Athletics Twitter | Football Facebook | Football Twitter | Instagram |
#WeAreMoState | #OutHitOut Hustle | @MoStateFootball

First and Ten Notes
  • Missouri State puts a 5-game winning streak on the line Saturday when the upstart Bears travel to Kennesaw State for a 1 p.m. (Central) kickoff. MoState has also reeled off 4 straight road wins and sits one game behind CUSA leader Jax State with two weeks to go.
  • The Bears are 8-2 in their last 10 road games, an active streak matched by just seven FBS clubs: Oregon (10-0), BYU (8-2), Clemson (8-2), Georgia (8-2), Louisville (8-2), Ohio State (8-2) and UNLV (8-2). 
  • Missouri State is up 3 spots this week to No. 93 on MasseyRatings.com, which puts the Bears No. 2 in CUSA (in their inaugural season) behind WKU (87) and just ahead of Jax State (95), Kennesaw State (106) and LA Tech (108). MSU ranks 26th among all G5 clubs.
  • Since the season opener at USC, the Bears have held 9 straight opponents under 30 points. The last time MoState's defense had a longer run of scoring stinginess was a 10-game stretch from 10/21/95 to 10/5/96. There are only 10 other FBS schools (7 of which are in this week's AP Top 25) with active streaks of 9 or more consecutive games allowing less than 30 points.
  • Jacob Clark has loaded up this week after a remarkable effort vs. UTEP, earning CUSA Offensive Player of the Week, Manning Award National QB of the Week, and Frisco Bowl Player of the Week as well as honorable mention for the Earl Campbell Tyler Rose Award.
  • MSU has recorded 40 explosive passing plays of 20 or more yards, which ranks t24th nationally.
  • CB Jordan Dunbar ranks 2nd in CUSA and tied for 10th nationally in passes defended per game (1.20).
  • Under coach Ryan Beard, the Bears are now 5-0 when allowing less than 300 yards of total offense.
  • The Bears rank No. 2 in Conference USA in total defense (364.2), just behind Liberty (362.1). Missouri State also ranks No. 2 in rushing defense (142.1) behind LA Tech's 130.0. 
  • QB Jacob Clark leads Conference USA in passing touchdowns (19) and pass efficiency (150.47) while ranking 2nd in passing yards per game (250.8), yards per attempt (8.1), total passing yards (2257) and total offense (253.1). He needs 51 passing yards to reach 7,000 for his career. Last week, he set an MSU single-game record for pass completions (30) and season-high in completion percentage (.769).
  • WR Jmariyae Robinson has 117 career receptions, which ranks 8th in club history, 1,528 yards (11th) and 13 TDs (6th) with receptions in 32 straight appearances. 
  • RB Shomari Lawrence ranks 5th in CUSA in rushing (70.70) and 6th in all-purpose yards (79.00), while his 83.17 rushing average in league games ranks 4th. He is coming off a season-high 109 rushing yards in last week's win vs. UTEP.
  • A Missouri State victory would give the Bears ...
    • 8 wins for just the 10th time in program history, including back-to-back seasons 
    • 5 road wins in a single season for the first time in club history
    • 5 consecutive road wins for the first time since winning 7 straight between 1966-67 
    • 6 conference wins for the second year in a row and fourth time in MSU history
    • A share of first place in CUSA, IF FIU defeats Jax State
    • 20 career victories for third-year head coach Ryan Beard
  • In TD pass-related rankings, the Bears shine on both sides of the ball, ranking 25th in FBS in passing TDs (21) and 30th in fewest passing TD's allowed (11). 

Series History
  • 16-7 lead at the half before an Owls comeback. No. 6 KSU carried 44 times for 479 yards and 5 TDs. Bronson Rechsteiner (10-221) and Isaac Foster (8-183) led Kennesaw's attack, while MSU's Peyton Huslig passed for 292 yards, 2 TD. | Box Score
  • MoState has 4 players from the state of Georgia, including WR Ronel Johnson (McDonough, Ga).

Coach Ryan Beard
  • Missouri State University officially presented Ryan Beard as its new head football coach on Dec. 19, 2022. At the time of his hire, Beard was the program's youngest coach on record and was the 22nd person to hold the football Bears' top coaching position. 
  • At 36 years old, coach Beard enters the 2025 season as the fifth-youngest head coach in the FBS ranks.
  • Head coach Ryan Beard was named the CUSA Coach of the Week by @CBSSports pundit Matt Zenitz on Sept. 8, 2025 after MSU's first FBS win at Marshall and again on Nov. 3 after the Bears defeated FIU for their first-ever FBS home win. 
  • Last season (2024), the Bears' final campaign at the FCS level, Beard guided MoState to an 8-4 overall record and No. 23 national ranking with 12 all-conference standouts and three All-Americans in his camp. Quarterback Jacob Clark finished 14th in the Walter Payton FCS Player of the Year voting, while running back Jacardia Wright signed an undrafted free agent contract with the Seahawks after the season. The Bears reeled off eight straight wins from Sept. 14 to Nov. 9, the squad's longest since a stretch from 1988-89.
  • The 2024 Bears finished 6-2 in Valley play to tie for fourth place (one game behind tri-champions NDSU, SDSU and USD) and match the team record for conference victories (1978, 2021), including MSU's first 6-0 start in conference play since 1978. Likewise, the Bears started 8-2 overall for the first time since 1990 and reached eight overall wins for the ninth time in program history -- first since the 2021 NCAA playoff team. Likewise, MSU's four-game road win streak was its first since a split-season stretch from 1996-97.  
  • Beard's 2024 squad boasted one of the nation's most efficient offensive attacks, racking up 306.2 yards per game through the air (5th), 424.8 total yards per game (17th) and 34.8 points per outing (13th), all of which ranked in the top 20 nationally.
  • In his inaugural head coaching season (2023), Beard guided the Bears to a 4-7 overall record and a 3-5 ledger in the MVFC. The team's strong November surge included and a 35-16 home win over No. 18-ranked Northern Iowa.
  • The 2023 Bears finished No. 5 in the nation in passing offense (300.3), No. 7 in pass efficiency (158.77), 26th in total offense (400.8) and 31st in scoring (29.8).  
  • Missouri State was rewarded with seven All-MVFC selections in Beard's first campaign as head coach, including first-team picks Grant Burkett (P) and Raylen Sharpe (WR). Sharpe finished fourth in the MVFC Offensive Player of the Year voting. Likewise, Burkett (second team) and Sharpe (third team) were named to the Associated Press FCS All-America Team, while the Bears also boasted three Phil Steele Freshman All-America honorees, including first-teamers Cash Hudson (OL) and Avery Powell (CB).
  • At the end of the 2023 campaign, Beard was named to the American Football Coaches Association's exclusive 35 Under 35 Coaches Leadership Institute. 
  • During his three seasons as MSU's defensive coordinator (2020-22), Beard played a significant role in the team's resurgence under coach Bobby Petrino, managing a defensive unit that boasted 18 all-conference selections, four All-Americans and three professional players in his tenure at MoState. 
  • 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 DB coach at WKU (2016), Beard was part of a CUSA championship Boca Raton Bowl win. 
  • He 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. A native of Bowling Green, Ky., Beard was a four-year letterman 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.
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