| 2023 Missouri State Bears football | |
|---|---|
| | |
| Conference | Missouri Valley Football Conference |
| Record | 4–7 (3–5 MVFC) |
| Head coach |
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| Offensive coordinator | Nick Petrino (4th season) |
| Offensive scheme | Multiple |
| Defensive coordinator | L. D. Scott (1st season) |
| Base defense | 4–2–5 |
| Home stadium | Robert W. Plaster Stadium |
| Conf. | Overall | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Team | W | L | W | L | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 1 South Dakota State $^ | 8 | – | 0 | 15 | – | 0 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 4 South Dakota ^ | 7 | – | 1 | 10 | – | 3 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 3 North Dakota State ^ | 5 | – | 3 | 11 | – | 4 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 19 Youngstown State ^ | 5 | – | 3 | 8 | – | 5 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 16 North Dakota ^ | 5 | – | 3 | 7 | – | 5 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Northern Iowa | 5 | – | 3 | 6 | – | 5 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 12 Southern Illinois ^ | 4 | – | 4 | 8 | – | 5 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Illinois State | 4 | – | 4 | 6 | – | 5 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Missouri State | 3 | – | 5 | 4 | – | 7 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Murray State | 1 | – | 7 | 2 | – | 9 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Indiana State | 1 | – | 7 | 1 | – | 10 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Western Illinois | 0 | – | 8 | 0 | – | 11 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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The 2023 Missouri State Bears football team represented Missouri State University as a member of the Missouri Valley Football Conference (MVFC) during the 2023 NCAA Division I FCS football season. The Bears were led by first-year head coach Ryan Beard and played home games at Robert W. Plaster Stadium in Springfield, Missouri.
The media picked the Bears to finish in 8th place.
| MVFC media poll [1] | ||
| Predicted finish | Team | Votes (1st Place) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | South Dakota State | 539 (44) |
| 2 | North Dakota State | 492 (1) |
| 3 | Northern Iowa | 409 |
| 4 | North Dakota | 399 |
| 5 | Southern Illinois | 337 |
| 6 | Youngstown State | 323 |
| 7 | Illinois State | 269 |
| 8 | Missouri State | 229 |
| 9 | South Dakota | 226 |
| 10 | Indiana State | 148 |
| 11 | Murray State | 74 |
| 12 | Western Illinois | 65 |
Missouri State had six players selected to the 2023 All-MVFC Preseason Team. Two from the defense, two from the offense, and two from the specialists. Two players were picked to the first team and four to the second team.
Preseason All-MVFC Team
| Preseason All-MVFC Team [2] | |||
| Player | Team | Position | Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Grant Burkett | First Team | P | JR |
| Caden Bolz | First Team | LS | JR |
| Jacardia Wright | Second Team | RB | JR |
| PJ Hall | Second Team | DB | JR |
| Stetson Moore | Honorable Mention | TE | SR |
| Von Young | Honorable Mention | LB | JR |
| Name | Position | Alma mater | Joined staff |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ryan Beard | Head coach | Western Kentucky (2012) | 2020 |
| Nick Petrino | Offense coordinator / quarterbacks coach | Western Kentucky (2014) | 2020 |
| Ronnie Fouch | Running backs coach/ recruiting coordinator/ co-offensive coordinator | Indiana State (2004) | 2020 |
| L.D. Scott | Defensive coordinator / defensive line coach | Louisville (2009) | 2020 |
| Reggie Johnson | Co-defensive coordinator / linebackers coach | Louisville (1996) | 2020 |
| Donte Ellington | Co-special teams coordinator / wide receivers coach | Northwood (2008) | 2023 |
| Nelson Fishback | Tight ends coach/ co-special teams coordinator | Western Kentucky (2015) | 2020 |
| Max Halpin | Offensive line coach | Western Kentucky (2016) | 2020 |
| Tramain Thomas | Defensive backs coach | Arkansas (2013) | 2020 |
| Michael Downing | Outside linebackers coach | Texas Christian (2017) | 2023 |
| Kevin Elliot | Safeties coach | Concord (2013) | 2022 |
| Brad Jarman | Director of football operations | Missouri State (2018) | 2023 |
Source: [3]
| 2023 Missouri State Bears Football Roster | ||||||||||
Quarterback
Running back
Wide receiver
Tight end
Punter
| Offensive lineman
Defensive lineman
Long snapper | Linebacker
Cornerback
Safety
Placekicker
| ||||||||
Source: [4]
| Date | Time | Opponent | Site | TV | Result | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| September 1 | 7:00 p.m. | at Kansas * | ESPN+ | L 17–48 | 41,091 | |
| September 9 | 6:00 p.m. | at UT Martin * | ESPN+ | L 31–38 | 6,104 | |
| September 23 | 2:00 p.m. | Utah Tech * | ESPN+ | W 59–14 | 11,002 | |
| September 30 | 4:00 p.m. | at No. 10 Southern Illinois | ESPN+ | L 20–33 | 10,359 | |
| October 7 | 2:00 p.m. | No. 7 North Dakota State |
| ESPN+ | L 10–38 | 8,727 |
| October 14 | 3:00 p.m. | at Western Illinois | ESPN+ | W 48–7 | 2,809 | |
| October 21 | 2:00 p.m. | Murray State |
| ESPN+ | W 28–24 | 11,386 |
| October 28 | 1:00 p.m. | No. 24 Youngstown State | ESPN+ | L 28–44 | 9,880 | |
| November 4 | 2:00 p.m. | Illinois State |
| ESPN+ | L 35–36 | 7,700 |
| November 11 | 2:00 p.m. | No. 15 Northern Iowa |
| ESPN+ | W 35–16 | 6,898 |
| November 18 | 2:00 p.m. | at No. 1 South Dakota State | ESPN+ | L 17–35 | 15,637 | |
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| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bears | 7 | 3 | 0 | 7 | 17 |
| Jayhawks | 7 | 10 | 10 | 21 | 48 |
at David Booth Kansas Memorial Stadium • Lawrence, Kansas
| Game information |
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| Statistics | MSU | KU |
|---|---|---|
| First downs | 10 | 27 |
| Plays–yards | 48–217 | 66–521 |
| Rushes–yards | 27–74 | 38–245 |
| Passing yards | 143 | 276 |
| Passing: comp–att–int | 14–21–2 | 22–28–0 |
| Time of possession | 26:13 | 33:47 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
|---|---|---|---|
| Missouri State | Passing | Jacob Clark | 14/21 143 yards 1 TD 2 INTa |
| Rushing | Jacob Clark | 8 carries 36 yards | |
| Receiving | Celdon Manning | 2 receptions 31 yards | |
| Kansas | Passing | Jason Bean | 22/28 276 yards 2 TDs |
| Rushing | Devin Neal | 13 carries 94 yards 1 TD | |
| Receiving | Lawrence Arnold Quentin Skinner | 4 receptions 77 yards |