Football Bears Ready for Home Opener vs. SMU

Saturday, September 13

Springfield

2:30 p.m.

Missouri State University

SMU

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Football Bears Ready for Home Opener vs. SMU

September 09, 2025 | Football

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By: MSU Athletics Communications

GAME 3 - Missouri State Bears (1-1) vs. SMU Mustangs (1-1)
Date and Time	Saturday, Sept. 13, 2025 \| 2:32 p.m. (Central)
Stadium Info	Robert W. Plaster Stadium (17,500) \| Springfield, Mo. Traffic Flow / Parking Map \| Clear B ag Policy \| Tailgating Info \| Game Guide / Changes This Season
Tickets	MissouriStateBears.com/tickets \| (417) 836-7678 \| Stadium Box Office Opens at 10 a.m
Promotions	Rally Towel Giveaway \| Pride Bands Reunion \| 2025 Promo Calendar
Tickets	MissouriStateBears.com/tickets \| (417) 836-7678 \| Stadium Box Office Opens at 10 a.m
Radio	KWTO (101.3 FM) (Art Hains, Corey Riggs, Tom Ladd) \| Bears Radio Network \| Varsity Network App
Television	CBS Sports Network (Jack Gordon, Taylor McHargue, Brandon Marcello)
Fan Information	Shop BearWear \| Digital Program \| Weather \| Top 25 Polls
Coverage	Ryan Beard Weekly Presser \| MoState Update / Audio Clips
Series	First Meeting
Live Stats	Live Stats
Game Notes	Missouri State \| SMU \| 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

Fresh off its first victory as an FBS program, Missouri State returns to Robert W. Plaster Stadium on Saturday (2:30 p.m., CBS Sports Network) for the Bears' home opener against ACC stalwart SMU.
MoState is 17-6 in its last 23 home games, dating back to March 13, 2021. In that span, the Bears have scored two or more touchdowns 21 times and scored 30 or more points 17 times. MSU has reeled off 4 straight winning home seasons, including a 5-1 ledger at Plaster Stadium last fall.
The Bears are 72-37-4 all-time in home openers, including a 31-10-2 mark in home lid lifters as a Division I program (since 1982). During his tenure at MSU, coach Ryan Beard is 4-1 in home openers (2-0 as head coach, 2-1 at DC), including four straight victories.
Under coach Ryan Beard, the Bears are 11-2 when they rack up 400 or more yards in total offense.
Kanye Young (Menifee, Calif.) was named CUSA Defensive Player of the Week on Monday. Young paced a feisty Missouri State defense in the club's win at Marshall, posting a team-high 7 total tackles, including 3 solos, 2 QB hurries, a tackle for loss, and a game-clinching interception on Marshall's final drive of the game. Missouri State held Marshall to just 274 yards of total offense and 12 first downs on the night.
Long-time Missouri State broadcaster Art Hains will be calling his final Missouri State game Saturday against his alma mater, SMU. Hains first began calling Missouri State action on the radio in 1977 and is in his second stint and now 46th season behind the microphone. This will be his 463rd Bears football broadcast on a resume of nearly 3,000 MSU athletic events.
QB Jacob Clark (Rockwall, Texas) has thrown for 200+ yards in 14-of-18 career starts. His 359-yard passing effort at Marshall was his 9th career 300-yard game and pushed him past 5,000 career passing yards (5,198). He also became the 3rd Bear to reach 40 career TD passes. He is a Manning Award Star of the Week finalist and an honorable mention candidate for the Earl Campbell Award Player of the Week.
Missouri State leads CUSA in completion percentage (70.0), passing yards per completion (13.02), passing yards per attempt (9.12) and average time of possession (33:32). The Bears ranks 2nd in pass efficiency (158.58) and 3rd in pass offense (273.50).
The Bears overcame a 13-point second-half deficit last week to defeat Marshall, 21-20. It marked the club's best come-from-behind win since erasing a 28-14 third-quarter home deficit vs. Southern Illinois (10/29/2016). It was also the team's largest road comeback since overcoming a 24-7 second-half deficit at Northwestern State (8/28/14).
In his first career start, redshirt freshman TE Jeron Askren (Wichita, Kan.) scored the game-winning touchdown to complete MSU's 4th-quarter comeback at Marshall. Askren's 8-yard TD grab from Jacob Clark with 2:12 to play sealed MSU's first victory as an FBS program and earned him CUSA Freshman of the Week.
Missouri State alum Eric Johnson (Colts) played in his 40th career NFL game on Sunday as part of Indianapolis' win over Miami on opening weekend.
Head coach Ryan Beard was named the CUSA Coach of the Week by @CBSSports pundit Matt Zenitz earlier this week.

Series History

First Meeting

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.
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-teamers 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.