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SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – Missouri State overcame an early double-digit deficit behind a dominant second-quarter, reeling off 35 unanswered points en route to a 52-24 home-opening victory over Lincoln University Thursday afternoon at Robert W. Plaster Stadium. The Bears defense paved the way to MSU’s first victory of the season, putting points on the board with a fumble return for a score, while recording seven sacks and permitting just 59 rushing yards on the day.
Peyton Huslig led the Bears’ comeback, finishing his day with completions on his last 11 passing attempts as part of a 12-for-14, 235-yard performance. In all, three MSU quarterbacks combined for 330 passing yards, giving the Bears (1-1) their best single-game showing through the air since their 2017 season opener at Missouri. Additionally, the offense topped the 500-yard mark in total offense—tallying 177 yards on the ground—and none of its eight scoring drives extended beyond the three-minute mark in duration.
McNeece Egbim led all tacklers with 10 stops, and seven different Bears recorded at least half a sack, paced by the first two sacks of Claudio Martin’s MSU career.
After coughing up the football on each of their first three possessions of the day, the Bears responded in a big way to find the end zone on five straight drives to build a 25-point advantage. Lincoln (1-1) converted the three early turnovers into a 10-0 lead with 4:29 to play in the first period, but Huslig’s 59-yard scoring toss to a wide-open Nick Masoner opened the scoring floodgates for the Bears just 12 seconds later.
Huslig would lead the Bears’ offensive charge, starting a string of 13 overall consecutive completions for MSU signal-callers before completing his day late in the first half. The junior quarterback also gashed the Blue Tigers with his legs, capping a seven-play, 73-yard drive with a five-yard scoring run to hand the Bears their first lead of the day. Huslig completed six passes—three of which went to Aaron Denson for a total of 42 yards—on the drive, then connected with his first two throws of MSU’s next possession to set up the first of two short Jason RandallTD runs.
MSU’s defense cashed in as well, as an Eric Johnson strip caused a Hosea Franklin fumble, and Darius Joseph scooped up the loose ball and raced 27 yards to pay dirt to push the margin to 28-10 with 7:00 to play in the half. The Bears sacked LU quarterback Henry Ogala six times for a total loss of 43 yards in the opening stanza, and allowed just 13 rushing yards on 22 attempts in the half.
Randall added his second one-yard TD run of the day to cap the first-half scoring with just under four minutes left on the clock.
Lincoln would finish the half with just 70 yards of total offense, but broke from intermission with a 77-yard scoring drive that ended with a 15-yard pass from Ogala to Antonio Issac to stop the Bears’ scoring run.
The Bears answered immediately, using a pair of long runs from Dalton Hill to set up Jeremiah Wilson’s first rushing touchdown as a Bear that pushed the lead back to 25 points. Hill would finish the day as the Bears’ leading rusher, carrying three times for 74 yards, in addition to completing 4-of-5 passes for 30 yards. Fellow reserve quarterback J.T. Granato later connected with Tyler Currie on a 33-yard touchdown pass for his first scoring toss of the season to complete the ledger for MSU.
Ogala led Lincoln’s offense by completing 16-of-21 passes for 205 yards and a pair of touchdowns, while Franklin rushed for a game-high 79 yards on 16 carries for the Blue Tigers.
Missouri State continues a three-game home stand next Saturday (Sept. 15) when it hosts Northern Arizona for a 2 p.m. contest. Tickets are available through MissouriStateBears.com, or by calling (417) 836-7678 during regular box office hours.
Postgame Notes: Missouri State improved to 68-35-4 all-time in home openers and 213-168-12 overall at Plaster Stadium … The Bears won their seventh-straight home game in the series with Lincoln … Masoner’s 59-yard reception marked the second scoring catch—and longest—of his MSU career … Randall registered his second career two-touchdown performance, equaling his Oct. 10, 2015 effort at Southern Illinois; he has scored at least one TD in five of MSU’s last six games overall, dating back to Oct. 28, 2017 vs. Indiana State … Huslig and Granato teamed up for their second streak of at least 13 straight completions in as many seasons; the duo joined forces to complete 14 straight passes—which ranks as the second-longest in school history—last year vs. Indiana State … Huslig’s 235 passing yards marked his third-best passing performance as a Bear and the fourth 200-yard passing game in 13 career starts for MSU … The Bears’ 28 points in the second quarter matched the program record for offensive production in the period (previously set on Sept. 9, 2006 vs. Southwest Baptist) … Egbim logged his sixth double-digit tackle effort as a Bear … Lorenzo Thomas reeled in game and career highs of five receptions for 89 yards … Denson’s five catches for 70 yards also represented career-best figures for the junior receiver … Kevin Ellis recorded a career-best nine tackles, and Walter Watson’s six stops also marked a personal best for the sophomore defensive lineman.
