VERMILLION, S.D. – South Dakota forced three Missouri State turnovers (two fumbles and one interception) rallied from a halftime deficit to hand No. 24 Missouri State its first Missouri Valley Football Conference setback of the season with a 35-28 decision over the Bears Saturday afternoon at the DakotaDome.
In a shootout that saw the two clubs combine for 991 yards of total offense, Austin Simmons found Levi Falck open for a 40-yard touchdown strike early in the fourth quarter to hand the Coyotes (3-2, 2-0 MVFC) the lead for good. Despite surrendering 478 yards to the Bears offense, USD’s defense slammed the door shut, allowing just one second-half MSU touchdown and coming up with a crucial goal-line stand late in the game to preserve the lead.
Simmons completed 28-of-38 passes for 337 yards and the go-ahead touchdown to Falck, while USD racked up 513 yards overall for the game in stopping the Bears’ three-game win streak.
Alex Gray recorded 10 stops for USD, sharing leading tackler laurels with his twin brother, Andrew, who also forced a pair of fumbles, recorded an interception and broke up three passes for the game.
Bears quarterback Peyton Huslig accumulated 374 yards of offense, completing 21-of-42 passes for 283 yards, while rushing 18 times for 91 yards and two touchdowns. Tyler Currie enjoyed a career day for MSU, hauling in seven catches for 113 yards and a score.
The Bears (3-2, 1-1 MVFC) took a 21-17 advantage into the locker room at halftime, seizing their first lead of the day on a Peyton Huslig-to-Antwan Woods 11-yard touchdown pass with 1:31 to play in the half. Moments earlier, Huslig connected with Damoriea Vick on a critical 22-yard toss on fourth and seven, setting the Bears up with a fresh set of downs at the USD 11.
Both offenses enjoyed productive starts to the game, combining for 566 yards in a half that featured two ties and three lead changes. South Dakota struck first with a three-yard Ben Klett run after marching 75 yards to pay dirt in just under two minutes on its opening possession of the game.
The Bears responded immediately with a nine-play drive of their own, knotting the score at 7-7 when Huslig ran it in from 10 yards out with 9:02 to play in the opening period. After Klett put the home club back on top with a 19-yard run, Huslig and the Bears had an answer once again. This time, the junior quarterback broke free for a 32-yard scoring run that punctuated an 82-yard drive.
MSU’s defense flexed its collective muscle on a key third-down stop at the Bears 2-yard line late in the half, as Angelo Garbutt and Jordan Wilkes teamed up to stuff a USD rush for a two-yard loss. Mason Lorber converted a 22-yard field goal try to put the Coyotes in the lead once again, but the Bears offense came through with another scoring drive inside the two-minute mark to swing the momentum. Huslig hooked up with Currie on a 31-yard completion to the USD 36, then found Vick deep in Coyote territory to set up Woods’ go-ahead score.
South Dakota used a pair of big plays from its defense and a two subsequent third-quarter scoring drives to reclaim the lead, however. Immediately following a 26-yard completion to Currie on the Bears’ opening drive of the second half, Andrew Gray stepped in front of a Huslig pass near midfield to give the Coyotes an opening. Simmons’ 38-yard rush to the Bears 5 set up another Klett TD run, this time from two yards out to give USU a 24-21 lead.
Andrew Gray delivered another vital blow for the USD defense on the ensuing MSU drive after the Bears had moved the ball into Coyote territory. The safety forced a Huslig fumble at the USD 46, which Jacob Headlee returned nine yards into Bears territory. From there, the Coyotes moved the ball to the MSU 3, only to see the Bears defense stiffen when it mattered once again. An errant snap on first and goal pushed USD back to the 14, before Matt McClellan’s sack for an eight-yard loss on third down forced another Lorber field goal, this one from 39 yards, making it a 27-21 game.
MSU once again relied on the right arm and legs of Huslig to engineer another go-ahead scoring drive, capped by a 10-yard TD strike to Currie that handed the Bears a 28-27 lead with 2:45 left in the period. Huslig ran for 14 yards, then completed passes of 11 yards (Lorenzo Thomas) and 29 yards (Jordan Murray) to move the Bears offense into scoring position.
After Simmons’ go-ahead TD toss to Falck, the Bears had a pair of late scoring opportunities in USD territory, only to come up empty. Huslig found Currie three times for a total of 41 yards to help move the Bears to the USD 1, only to have Donovan Daniels’ fourth-down rush from there come up short after Alex Coker dropped the sophomore for a two-yard loss with just over two minutes left in the game.
Then, following a defensive stop by the Bears defense, Huslig connected with Currie one more time for 15 yards, before finding Vick for six more to move MSU to the Coyote 37. But four consecutive incompletions stalled the last-ditch effort, sealing the victory for USD.
The Bears will conclude their two-game MVFC road swing with a 1 p.m. (CDT) conference game at Indiana State next Saturday (Oct. 13).
