FARGO — It’s the last season in the Missouri Valley Football Conference for FBS-bound Missouri State, that much is known. How the Bears will treat their last season in Division I FCS is another, especially being ineligible for the 24-team playoffs.
It could make competing for a Missouri Valley Football Conference title like their own postseason.
“If you can be competitive in the best FCS conference by far, that’s a lot to play for,” said head coach Ryan Beard. “You’re playing perennial national champions, guys that are in the playoffs every year. You can do everything you want to accomplish this year without the playoffs. I think that will be enough in itself that you can win a conference championship.”
Beard said he has no plans of preserving eligibility of players with no postseason hopes. He said that may be more of a conversation next year when the Bears are in Conference USA when they are not eligible for either a league title or a bowl game.
“This year, everything’s on the line,” he said. “Hoisting a trophy at the end of the year is a big deal, especially in this conference.”
Their no-playoff status could make for an interesting game with the Bison provided the Bears are still in the hunt for the conference crown. That game is set for Nov. 16 in Fargo, the next-to-last Saturday in the regular season in the Bears’ going away Valley tour.
“I can promise you they’re not going to roll over, play dead and let us win games,” Beard said. “The handshakes will be cordial because our conference is filled with true professionals that understand the game is bigger than any individual relationship. We have to show up each Saturday expecting we’re going to get people’s best shots.”
The Bears will go with senior quarterback Jacob Clark, who is returning from a shoulder injury. He played in only four games last season but did complete 63% of his passes for over 1,000 yards.
Clark, a highly-touted high school recruit in Texas, spent his first three years at the University of Minnesota, but played in just five games his last two years at Missouri State.
Jacardia Wright, who spent his first three seasons at Kansas State, is back for his third season at Missouri State. He led the team last season with 767 yards, although the Bears averaged only 3.6 yards per carry.
“The thing about Jacardia, I think he’s trimmed down,” Beard said. “He’s always been a powerful guy but I think last year he may have played too heavy.”
Missouri Valley Football Conference
Aug. 12: Illinois State
Aug. 13: Indiana State
Today: Missouri State
Aug. 15: Murray State
Aug. 16: North Dakota
Aug. 17: North Dakota State
Aug. 18: Northern Iowa
Aug. 19: South Dakota
Aug. 20: South Dakota State
Aug. 21: Southern Illinois
Aug. 22: Youngstown State
Jeff would like to dispel the notion he was around when Johannes Gutenberg invented the printing press, but he is on his third decade of reporting with Forum Communications. The son of a reporter and an English teacher, and the brother of a reporter, Jeff has worked at the Jamestown Sun, Bismarck Tribune and since 1990 The Forum, where he’s covered North Dakota State athletics since 1995.
Jeff has covered all nine of NDSU’s Division I FCS national football titles and has written three books: “Horns Up,” “North Dakota Tough” and “Covid Kids.” He is the radio host of “The Golf Show with Jeff Kolpack” April through August.
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Publish date : 2024-08-13 13:00:00
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