TERRE HAUTE, Ind. – A four-yard touchdown pass from Peyton Huslig to Lorenzo Thomas with 16 seconds left in the game lifted visiting Missouri State (4-2, 2-1 MVFC) to a 29-26 victory over Indiana State (2-4, 0-3 MVFC) here Saturday.
It was Thomas’ first career touchdown pass and lifted the Bears, who led 21-10 at the half, to their first road win of the year. Jeremiah Wilson added a two-point conversion moments later to give MSU the three-point win.
Huslig finished 21-of-33 for 169 yards with the touchdown and no interceptions. Wilson carried 14 times for 61 yards, with teammate Donovan Daniels leading the Bears with 62 yards on 15 attempts and a pair of scores.
The Bears’ game-winning, 86-yard scoring drive came on the heels of a Bears’ defensive stand to hold ISU to a field goal. The ISU drive covered 84 yards to the MSU one-yard line before Jerry Nunez converted a 19-yarder that gave ISU a 26-21 lead with 4:04 remaining.
The Bears wasted little time getting on the scoreboard early in the contest, marching 87 yards on 17 plays on their opening possession to take a 7-0 lead. Daniels’ one-yard rush capped the Bears’ longest scoring drive of the season by all measures, consuming seven-and-a-half minutes on the clock.
Huslig was 5-for-5 on the opening drive while Daniels and Wilson combining for 39 yards on the ground.
The Bears’ defense held ISU to three-and-out possessions on its first two opportunities, but on Indiana State’s third possession, the Sycamores broke through. ISU marched 78 yards on seven plays for the tying score with Ja’Quan Keys’ 47-yard scamper to pay dirt just 10 seconds into the second quarter to knot the score, 7-7.
Huslig then led the Bears down the field with urgency, retaking the lead eight plays later on an option pitch to Daniels from 10 yards out for his second score of the day. Nick Masoner helped set up the Daniels scoring play with 19 yards on the previous two rushes to set up the first and goal from the 10. Daniels then took the pitch from Huslig with a full head of steam to put the Bears up 14-7 and a cap a 65-yard scoring drive.
The Sycamores chipped away with a 48-yard field goal by Jerry Nunez with 6:31 left in the opening half to draw within four. But once again, the Bears were up to the task, engineering a long scoring drive on their next possession to extend their lead to 21-10.
The critical first-half possession covered 85 yards in 12 plays with Wilson scampering 18 yards on a first-down play for the score.
Missouri State was 8-of-10 on third down in the opening half and racked up 15 first downs in all with 238 yards of total offense.
Indiana State capitalized on its first possession of the second half, going 73 yards with a sustained ground attack. On the 12th play of the drive, Keys pounded it in again from two yards out to make it a 21-17 contest with 8:15 left in the third.
The home side rallied again later in the third, utilizing the ground attack again to march 85 yards for the go-ahead score. Keys’ seven-yard touchdown run to the left side with 14:28 to go, put the finishing touches on the 14-play drive and gave ISU a 23-21 advantage with the failed extra point.
Keys finished with 141 yards on 23 carries.
Indiana State’s 19-yard field goal with four minutes left in the game extended its lead to 26-21.
The Bears look to resume their winning ways at home next week when they entertain Western Illinois at 2 p.m. at Robert W. Plaster Stadium on homecoming in Springfield. The WIU game kicks off a two-game MVFC home stand that also includes an Oct. 27 matchup with Southern Illinois.
