No. 15 Bears Set to Host Youngstown State on Senior Day

First and Ten

• With three straight Top 25 wins, a 4-1 conference record, and a share of first place in the Missouri Valley Football Conference, No. 15 Missouri State concludes the regular season Saturday when it hosts Youngstown State at Robert W. Plaster Stadium for a 2 p.m. kickoff. It will be the first meeting between the MVFC foes since Nov. 18, 2017 and the first matchup at Plaster Stadium since 2016.
• A win for the Bears would mean … team’s first 4-game win streak since 2013; first winning record since 2009 (6-5); first 5-win league finish since 2013 (5-3); third 5-1 league finish in Valley play in program history (1989, 1990).
• The Bears rank of 15th in this week’s STATS Perform FCS Top 25 poll marks the team’s highest national ranking since Nov. 4, 1996 (14th). Missouri State remains No. 23 in the AFCA coaches poll this week.
• Bears defensive backs Jeremy Webb (Sr., East Mims, Fla.) and Montrae Braswell (So., Avon Park, Fla.) are tied for 2nd nationally in total interceptions with 3 apiece. Braswell was named MVFC Defensive Player of the Week on March 14 after he scored a pair of touchdowns in MSU’s win at South Dakota (36-yard interception return, 100-yard kickoff return), while Webb had a season-high 8 tackles in MSU’s win at UNI.
• Missouri State’s reputation as “Sack City” continues to grow as the Bears have accumulated a school-record 26 total sacks this season, which shares the national lead among all FCS schools (with SFA and Central Ark.). A total of 17 different Bears have contributed to that sack total. MSU’s 3.0 sacks per game in MVFC play leads the league, while its 3.25 sacks overall is 12th-best in the FCS ranks.
• Freshman RB Celdon Manning (Allen, Texas) was named STATS National Freshman of the Week and MVFC Offensive Player of the Week on March 29 for his role in lifting the Bears past No. 10 Southern Illinois. He scored all 4 of the Bears touchdowns and racked up 182 all-purpose yards (117 receiving, 65 rushing), including a 75-yard touchdown reception on the first play of the game.
• Kicker Jose Pizano (So., Lehi, Utah) converted the game-winning 33-yard field goal as time expired to lift the Bears past No. 10 Southern Illinois on March 27. The transfer from Snow College (Utah) is 11-of-13 (.846) on field goal tries this season and 15-for-15 on extra points, ranking 16th nationally in FG per game (1.38) and 16th in FG accuracy. He was named MVFC Special Teams Player of the Week after he converted a pair of critical field goals and the game’s only extra point in MSU’s 13-6 win at UNI on March 20. Pizano’s 33-yard field goal with 4:30 remaining helped the Bears secure their first win at the UNI-Dome since 1998.
• The Bears continue to lead the MVFC in third-down defense, holding opponents to just a 30.1 percent conversion rate in league games and 29.7 percent (14th nationally) overall. Missouri State’s defense also ranks 10th nationally in take-aways (13), 17th in red zone defense (.692) and 21st in rushing defense (111.9).
• Quarterback Matt Struck (Sr., Central Point, Ore.) is 2-0 as a starter and earned MVFC Newcomer of the Week honors after he completed 18-of-26 (.692) passes for 245 yards and a touchdown in MSU’s win over No. 10 Southern Illinois on March 27. He made his first start in the Bears victory over No. 10 UNI (March 20), completing 19-of-25 (.760) passes for 174 yards and a touchdown. Struck joined the squad in January after he started 11-of-12 games as a junior at Idaho State, completing 164-of-320 passes for 2,334 yards with 20 touchdowns in 2019.
• Jordan Murray (Jr., Lee’s Summit, Mo.) has recorded a pass reception in 28 consecutive games, the fifth-longest streak in program history. For his career, Murray has 72 catches for 843 yards and 9 TDs.
• Damoriea Vick (Jr., Oklahoma City, Okla.) has 485 receiving yards this season which ranks 12th nationally. In  league games, he ranks 2nd in receiving yards per game (78.0) and is 6th in receptions per game (5.2).
• Defensive tackle Eric Johnson (Sr., Plainfield, Ill.) has played in 41 straight games, the team’s top active streak.
• In league games, the Bears have surrendered just 18 second-half points this season (3.6 ppg) with its five MVFC foes to date punting on 16-of-27 second-half drives with 5 turnovers, 2 TDs and 1 field goal.

Coach Bobby Petrino

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• Missouri State University officially introduced Bobby Petrino as its new head football coach in a news conference at JQH Arena on the Springfield campus, January 16, 2020.
• He is currently 123-60 (.672) in his 15th season as a head coach. He is 4-4 at Missouri State — 3-2 on the road and 1-2 at Robert W. Plaster Stadium. He has never coached against YSU.
• Petrino previously served as head coach in two stints at Louisville as well as Arkansas and Western Kentucky. He spent 14 seasons at the FBS level and led his programs to 11 bowl appearances with seven teams ranked in the top 25 at season’s end.
• The Helena, Mont., native is in his 32nd year of collegiate coaching in 2020. He has guided his programs to top-six final rankings in the Associated Press poll three times (2004, 2006, 2011), directing some of the nation’s top offensive programs along the way.
• His clubs have finished in the top five nationally in scoring offense three times, while his 2004 club at Louisville led the country in scoring at 49.8 points per game. He has developed 34 NFL Draft selections during his illustrious career, including four in the first round, and Heisman Trophy winner Lamar Jackson.
• Petrino and his wife Becky have four children: Kelsey, Nick, Bobby and Katie — and six grandchildren. Nick Petrino is Missouri State’s offensive coordinator, while sons-in-law Ryan Beard (defensive coordinator) and L.D. Scott (defensive line) are also on the MSU coaching staff this season.

Series History

• The Bears are 5-15 all-time against Youngstown State.
• MSU is 3-7 at home against the Penguins in a series that started in 1996 and 2-8 all-time in Youngstown.
• The squads have not met since 2017 and have split the last eight meetings, although YSU has reeled off four straight wins in the series | Stats

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