SPRINGFIELD – Missouri State head football coach Bobby Petrino announced today his team’s schedule for the upcoming 2022 season, an 11-game slate that includes five home games and a pair of Thursday night contests.
The Bears are coming off an 8-4 season that included a runner-up finish in the Missouri Valley Football Conference the team’s second straight NCAA FCS Playoff appearance.
Petrino begins his third season as Bears’ head coach with a road game at Central Arkansas on Thursday, Sept. 1 in what will be the fourth meeting between the clubs in three years. A week later (Sept. 8), Missouri State hosts UT Martin in the home opener, in a rematch of a thrilling NCAA Playoff matchup between the teams last November at Plaster Stadium.
The back-to-back Thursday games precedes the squad’s annual FBS game on Saturday, Sept. 17 when the Bears travel to Arkansas. It will be the eighth meeting between the two programs but first since 2011.
“It’s definitely a very tough schedule, but we are very excited about the opportunities it presents,” said Petrino. “In the non-conference, we will play Central Arkansas and UT Martin again, which are both high-quality programs we are very familiar with, and then play a very good Arkansas team on the road that will definitely get us ready for conference play. The Valley is the top FCS conference in the country, so our league schedule is eight challenging weeks against tremendous programs.”
MVFC play begins at home on Saturday, Sept. 24 with a showdown against South Dakota State on Family Weekend. The squads have not squared off on the league schedule since 2019.
The month of October includes two road contests with games at North Dakota (Oct. 1) and Northern Iowa (Oct. 22) along with home games against rival Southern Illinois on Oct. 8 and a homecoming match against Western Illinois on Oct. 29. The Bears will have an open date on Oct. 15.
November will bring three more conference contests with a Nov. 5 game at South Dakota, a senior-day game against Youngstown State on Nov. 12, and the regular-season finale at Indiana State on Nov. 19.
Petrino also noted that the team’s spring workouts will begin on Tuesday, March 22 and conclude on Saturday, April 23. The spring will consist of 15 practice dates, including scheduled scrimmages on April 2, 9 and 16.
