Note:Indiana State opted out of the spring season. † – Illinois State and Western Illinois opted out of the remainder of the spring season on March 21 and April 5, 2021, respectively.
Even with Bobby Petrino as head coach; expectations were low heading into the 2020 season. The Bears were coming off a 1–10 record in 2019. As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic; the Missouri Valley Football Conference season was moved from the Fall to the Spring. Missouri State originally had non-conference games scheduled against Oklahoma, Tarleton State, and Montana. The games against Montana and Tarleton State were canceled. The Bears added a home and home series with Central Arkansas in the Fall. The game at Oklahoma was kept on the schedule as planned.
MVFC Media Poll
The Media picked the Bears to finish in a tie for 9th place with Western Illinois. This was the second straight season Missouri State was predicted to finish last in the conference.
Missouri State had two players selected to the 2020 All-MVFC Preseason Team. Junior wide receiver Damoriea Vick and Senior cornerback Zack Sanders were the players chosen, both as honorable mentions.
The coaching staff for the Bears was completed overhauled following the hire of Bobby Petrino. Director of football operations Lynn Mentzer was the only person retained from the Dave Steckel era. Former Central Michigan special teams and safeties coach Ryan Beard, joined the Bears as the defensive coordinator. Nick Petrino joined the Bears as the offensive coordinator/ quarterbacks coach after spending the previous season at UT Martin in the same capacity.
Missouri State had a game scheduled against Tarleton State,[5] and Montana[6] which were later canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The Bears played three games in the Fall. One at Oklahoma to open the season and then a home and home series with Central Arkansas.[7] The home game vs. Central Arkansas was Missouri State's Homecoming game. The Bears played a conference only schedule in the Spring. The opener against Illinois State was postponed to April 17 after winter storms made the playing surface unplayable after it was covered in snow and ice. They had two games canceled in the Spring. Illinois State opted out of the season after playing four games.[8] The game vs. North Dakota was canceled following a positive test in the Fighting Hawks program.[9]
^On March 21, 2021, Illinois State announced that it would opt-out of the remainder of the 2021 spring season due to safety concerns related to the COVID-19 pandemic.
It was all Oklahoma in this one. The Bears were no match for the Sooners for the head coaching debut for Bobby Petrino. Oklahoma used a huge 31–0 first quarter to pull away comfortably. The Bears never really threatened and were shutout in the season opener. RS Freshman QB Jaden Johnson went 9–19 with 72 yards and an interception. WR Lorenzo Thomas had 46 yards on four catches as the leading receiver. RB Tarrell Roberts led Missouri State on the ground with one carry for 26 yards which was nearly half of the 54 rushing yards the Bears tallied up. Meanwhile; for the Sooners Spencer Rattler had four passing TD's in the first half and threw for nearly 300 yards. RB Seth McGowan had 61 yards on nine carries and found the end zone once on a 37 yard pass from Spencer Rattler. WR Theo Howard had 63 yards on five catches.[12]
Game One: Missouri State Bears (0–0) at #5 (FBS) Oklahoma Sooners (0–0)
Missouri State was on the road for the second straight week; this time in Conway, Arkansas taking on the #11 Central Arkansas Bears. The game started slow with neither team scoring in the first quarter. Both teams exchanged turnovers early in the first quarter and Hayden Ray missed a chip shot field goal. The Second quarter was another story as the teams combined for 24 points with the Bears leading 17–7 at half. Kevon Latulas returned a blocked punt for touchdown to give the Bears a 10-0 lead. Kierre Crossley scored from 4 yards out after a Jaden Johnson fumble set the UCA offense up at the MSU 17 yard line. Missouri State opened the second half scoring with a Jose Pizano 31 yard field goal to extend the lead to 20–7 with 8:47 left in the quarter. UCA would strike on a Breylin Smith seven-yard pass to Tyler Hudson; the extra point was missed and MSU led by 7. Central Arkansas grabbed the momentum and control of the game in the early stages of the 4th quarter. QB Jaden Johnson fumbled on the first play of the quarter which was returned by Dre Matthews for a touchdown. The extra point was converted and the game was tied at 20-20. Missouri State had to punt on the next drive after three straight incomplete passes. Grant Burkett booted it 43 yards and was returned 57 yards by Tyler Hudson for Central Arkansas's first lead of the game. Missouri State was never able to score the rest of the quarter and were stopped on 4th down twice in last three minutes of the game. Bobby Petrino would have to wait another week for his first victory.[13]
Game Two: Missouri State Bears (0–1) at #11 Central Arkansas Bears (1–1)
Referee: Ed Bourgeois • Umpire: David Williams • Linesman: Tony Wright • Line judge: Todd Allen • Back judge: Brendon Barnes • Field judge: Keith Claiborne • Side judge: Trey Castleberry
TV announcers (ESPN3): John Liddle, Shea Walker, and Taylor Verrico
Pregame line: -16
Game information
First Quarter
No score
Second Quarter
(12:04) MSU – Jose Pizano 47-yard field goal (Drive: 11 plays, 52 yards, 3:32; MSU 0-3)
The Bears and Bears met for the second time in the Fall for Missouri State's Homecoming game. This would also be the last game that Missouri State played in the Fall and their last non-conference game. Like the first game, it was a low scoring contest through the first quarter. UCA struck first on a 47-yard field goal from Hayden Ray. This came on the heels of interception from MSU QB Jaden Johnson. Missouri State started the second half strong; scoring 14 straight points on rushing touchdowns by Kevon Latulas for 63 yards and Keshun Parker for one yard. UCA would answer with 14 straight points of their own. Deandre Lamont scored on a 36 yard pick six, and Mitch Perkinson scored on a 10 yard receiving touchdown. Missouri State added 10 more points before the half. Jeremiah Wilson was the third MSU running back to hit paydirt when he scored from nine yards out. Jose Pizano kicked a 30-yard field goal as time expired to put Missouri State up 24–17 at the half. UCA scored 16 unanswered points in the third quarter on three field goals from Hayden Ray and Breylin Smith's second touchdown pass of the game. Backup QB Jake Van Dyne threw two interceptions to stunt the offense for MSU. Missouri State would finish the fall winless at 0–3. Missouri State continued to turn the ball over with two fumbles lost and 4 interceptions.[14]
Game Three: Missouri State Bears (0–2) vs. #11 Central Arkansas Bears (2–1)
Referee: Andy Speciale • Umpire: Scott Jones • Linesman: Chris Hamilton • Line judge: Jeff Engelmann • Back judge: Cleo Miller • Field judge: Travis Evans • Side judge: Austin Hills
The Bears traveled to Hanson Field in Macomb, Illinois for their first game of the Spring and first MVFC matchup. Missouri State jumped out to a 14-point lead in the first quarter from a five-yard rushing touchdown from Celdon Manning and 11-yard run from Jeremiah Wilson. This was the first time all season that the Bears scored in the first quarter. They had been shutout in their previous three games. The Leathernecks dominated the second quarter; scoring 17 points to take a 17–14 lead into the half. Western Illinois took advantage of three turnovers by the Bears. Dennis Houston scored on six-yard pass from Connor Sampson after Jaden Johnson his first interception of the game. Greg Benton Jr. returned a Jaden Johnson fumble 75 yards to tie the game at 14. Another Bears drive stalled in Leatherneck territory when Jaden Johnson threw his second interception. WIU would use the possession to go up by three points as time expired when Mason Laramie connected from 45 yards out. The Bears returned the favor in the third with a 37 yard field goal from Jose Pizano. Pizano would another field goal in the 4th to give the Bears their first lead of the game since 6:50 in the second quarter. The Leathernecks retook the lead for the last when Tony Tate scored on the ground from two yards out. Jaden Johnson threw his first touchdown pass as a Bear when he connected with Isaac Smith for a 22-yard score. Jose Pizano kicked his third field goal of the game to put the Bears up 30–24 when he converted from 33 yards. Missouri State held on for the first win of the Bobby Petrino era.[15]
Game Four: Missouri State Bears (0–3) at Western Illinois Leathernecks (0-0)
Referee: Matt Gallagher • Umpire: Kyle Harbour • Linesman: Scott Landy • Line judge: Ivan Cardonan • Back judge: Bill Foltz • Field judge: Jared Budson • Side judge: Stacy Jameson
The Bears returned home following the win at Western Illinois for a matchup with the #6 North Dakota State Bison. The Bears couldn't get anything going offensively and were unable to crack the Bison Defense. 25 first half points were enough for NDSU to win the game. Bison QB Zeb Noland Threw a seven-yard touchdown pass to Noah Grindorff to put the Bison up seven points. The Bears defense allowed two big plays to hand North Dakota State control. Jalen Bussey scored on a 53-yard touchdown run while Zeb Noland threw his second touchdown pass of the game when he connected with Braylon Henderson for an 81-yard score with less than 10 seconds left in the half. Jake Reinholz added a 38-yard field goal in between the long Bison scores. Jose Pizano had a 42-yard field goal blocked in the second quarter. The Bears would drop to 1–4 on the season and extend their losing streak to the Bison to 10 years.[16]
Game Five: Missouri State Bears (1–3) vs. #6 North Dakota State Bison (2–1)
Referee: Aaron Adams • Umpire: Dan Montgomery • Linesman: Gordy Hanson • Line Judge: Marc Shield • Back Judge: Jamie Birr • Field Judge: Dorran Stewart • Side Judge: Sam Banks
Missouri State traveled North to the Dakota Dome to visit the #21 South Dakota Coyotes. The Coyotes struck first in the 1st quarter when Kai Henry scored on the ground from eight yards away. The Bears answered immediately when Montrae Braswell returned the ensuing kickoff 100 yards for a touchdown. The first kick return for a touchdown in two years for the Bears. South Dakota scored again on the ground when Travis Theis scored on a 31-yard run. Missouri State fought back in the second quarter with Jose Pizano kicking a 21-yard field goal. Montrae Braswell added his second touchdown of the game when he picked off South Dakota QB Carson Camp and broke numerous tackles en-route to a 36-yard pick six. The Coyotes tied the game up at 27 when Mason Lorber knocked through a 21-yard field goal. It stayed tied through the half and most of the 3rd till South Dakota added seven more on a Carson Camp 36-yard touchdown pass to Carter Bell. The Bears would tie the game up on their next drive. Jeremiah Wilson capped off an 11 play, 75 yard drive when he scored on a six-yard run. The Bears special teams came up big in the 4th quarter. Eric Johnson blocked a 44-yard field goal attempt by Mason Lorber to preserve the tie. On the next drive; Jose Pizano put the Bears up for good 27-24 after he converted a 28 yard field goal. The Bears defense sacked Carson Camp six times in the game. Bobby Petrino got his first win vs. a ranked opponent, and the Bears won their first game in the Dakota Dome after losing their previous three games there.[17]
Game Six: Missouri State Bears (1–4) at #21 South Dakota Coyotes (1–1)
Referee: Rick Warne • Umpire: Keith Vaverchak • Linesman: Frank Spryszak • Line judge: Marcus Allen• Back judge: Devin Aller • Field judge: Paul Winglewich • Side judge: Ken Cloud
Referee: Matt Gallagher • Umpire: Scott Landry • Linesman: Ivan Cardona • Line judge: Chuck Morning • Back judge: Stacy Jameson • Field judge: Amy Pistone • Side judge: Scott Landry
TV announcers (ESPN+): Brad Wells, Justin Surrency
Pregame line: -15
Game information
First Quarter
(02:32) MSU - Carson Buddemeyer 3 yard pass from Matt Struck, Jose Pizano kick (Drive: 13 plays, 91 yards, 6:47; MSU 0-7)
Second Quarter
(01:24) MSU - Jose Pizano 31 yard field goal (Drive: 4 plays, 8 yards, 2:06; MSU 0-10)
(00:00) UNI - Matthew Cook 27 yard field goal (Drive: 11 plays, 65 yards, 1:24; MSU 3-10)
Third Quarter
(00:55) UNI - Matthew Cook 43 yard field goal (Drive: 6 plays, 25 yards, 3:14; MSU 6-10)
Fourth Quarter
(04:30) MSU - Jose Pizano 33 yard field goal (Drive: 12 plays, 55 yards, 6:09; MSU 6-13)
Referee: Rick Warne • Umpire: Adam McClurg • Linesman: Frank Bullock • Line Judge: Bret Carpenter • Back Judge: Chris Curry • Field Judge: Chuck Morning • Side Judge: Pat Brown II
Game weather: 50 °F (10 °C), Winds W 19 mph; Light Rain
Game attendance: 3,581
Referee: Aaron Adams • Umpire: Dan Montgomery • Linesman: Denis Schinderl • Line Judge: Marc Shield • Back Judge: Jamie Birr • Field Judge: Dorran Stewart • Side Judge: Leanne Surmin
Referee: Steve Cadorette • Umpire: Corey Williams • Linesman: Mark Tarleton • Line Judge: Robert Shober • Back Judge: J. Moscarello • Field Judge: Martine Jones • Side Judge: Tim Gallagher
