KENNESAW, Ga. – Missouri State racked up a season-high 535 yards, but home standing Kennesaw State scored the game-winning touchdown with 27 seconds remaining to steal a 41-34 decision from the visiting Bears here Saturday in a Conference USA thriller.
 
Missouri State (7-4, 5-2 CUSA) got a career-high 173 rushing yards from Shomari Lawrence, including a 70-yard touchdown scamper to the end zone with 5:08 remaining that tied the game, 34-34, at the time. It marked Lawrence's third 100-yard effort over a four-game span.
 
Bears quarterback Jacob Clark finished 23-of-32 for 344 yards and 3 touchdowns, eclipsing 7,000 career passing yards along the way and breaking the Missouri State record for 200-yard games with his 20^th.
 
The crazy fourth quarter started with the game tied, 27-27, and the Bears on the move. A potential go-ahead touchdown pass from Clark to Tristian Gardner was called back on offensive pass interference, leaving the Bears to settle for a 36-yard field goal attempt by Yousef Obeid. The Owls (8-2, 6-1 CUSA) broke through and blocked the kick to keep the score tied with just under 11 minutes to go.
 
The Owls returned fired with a 13-play, 78-yard scoring drive that culminated in a 26-yard touchdown pass from Amari Odom to Clayton Coppock to give the home side a 34-27 advantage at the 5:51 mark.
 
Lawrence single-handedly tied things up again. He tested the waters with a five-yard carry to the MSU 30 before he ripped of a 70-yard touchdown run on the next play to knot the score, 34-34.
 
Missouri State's defense then had one of its biggest plays of the afternoon on KSU's ensuing drive. DJ Wesolak's sack of Odom on 3^rd-and-10 forced the Owls to punt after a three-and-out stop to give the Bears the ball back with 3:29 to play.
 
Clark and the Bears took over at their own 43 and knifed their way through Kennesaw's defense with Lawrence and Ramone Green Jr. sharing four carries to the KSU 33 on the heels of the two-minute timeout.  With first and 10 from there, the Bears stalled and were forced into a fourth-and-11 from the Owls 34. Missouri State lined up for a 52-yard field goal attempt, but tried to foil the Owls with a fake kick. KSU snuffed it out and took over on downs from their own 39 and 67 seconds to go.
 
Three plays later, Odom hit Chase Belcher with the game-winning 14-yard TD pass with 27 seconds remaining.
 
Clark and the Bears moved the ball in the final seconds with completions to Jmariyae Robinson (11 yards) and James BlackStrain (32 yards) to the Kennesaw 26. But Clark's next pass on MSU's final offensive play was intercepted, and the Owls eventually ran out the clock.
 
The game featured three ties and three lead changes.
 
Odom passed for 387 yards and 5 touchdowns for KSU and rushed for another score to account for all six scores by the Owls. KSU had an even 500 yards of total offense and 26 first downs.
 
Dash Luke led the Bears with 5 receptions for 73 yards. Tristian Gardner caught a pair of TD passes on two receptions. 
 
Jared Lloyd (10), Wesolak (7), Dyan Dixson (7) and Kanye Young (7) led Missouri State's defensive efforts.
 
In the first half, the Bears took the opening drive of the game to the Kennesaw State 25 before settling for a 42-yard Yousef Obeid field goal to take an early 3-0 advantage.
 
KSU rallied for back-to-back touchdown drives to close out the first-quarter scoring with Odom engineering 85- and 80-yard possessions to push the Owls on top 14-3. A 32-yard scoring strike to Coppeck at the 8:46 mark preceded a 41-yard TD pass to Gabriel Benyard with 35 seconds remaining in the first.
 
Kennesaw State outgained the Bears by a 170-69 margin in the first 15 minutes, but MoState turned it around in the second quarter. The Bears defense flipped the script on the pesky owls with a three-and-out stop, a missed 29-yard field goal and a turnover on downs as the quarter expired on KSU's three possessions of the period.
 
Meanwhile, Clark and the Bears made it a one-score game after Obeid capped a 62-yard scoring drive with a 43-yard field goal to draw the visitors within 14-6. After the missed field goal by KSU's Daniel Kinney, the Bears took over at their own 20 with 1:49 left in the half. Clark and company then went to work with two completions for a combined 43 yards to Luke to the Owls 37. An 18-yard pass to Green Jr. to the 15 then set up a 19-yard TD pass to Gardner on the fifth play of the possession.
 
Clark eclipsed 7,000 career passing yards on the key scoring drive. The late score made it a 14-13 game at the half and capped a 40-second scoring drive – the team's shortest of the season. The Bears outgained Kennesaw State, 127-105, in the second period.
 
The Bears conclude their inaugural FBS regular season at home on Saturday, Nov. 29 against Louisiana Tech at 1 p.m. Tickets for the LA Tech game are available at MissouriStateBears.com or by visiting the Athletics Box Office at Great Southern Bank Arena, (417) 836-7678, during regular box office hours.