msubearnation.com

From the opening tip, it was clear that the “Bears of Old” had reappeared and taken over. Creighton never lead during the game and it was obvious that the Bears took out some frustration against the Jays. With the win, the Bears improved to 16-8 overall and 6-7 in the MVC. As talked about before the game, the rebounding battle would be an important one, the bears killed CU on the boards, 40-27. The game was MSU’s first win over Creighton since Feb. 25, 2006.

The intensity was turned WAYYYYYYYYYYYYY up when compared to the last few games and it was obvious that this team was ready to win a game. In the second half, MSU held Creighton without a POINT for nearly seven minutes.

Creekmore led MSU with 14 points (6-7 shooting) and Fuehrmeyer had 12 points. Weems also appeared to break out of his funk and scored 11. Mallett had 9 points and 8 rebounds.

Next up for MSU is Southern Illlinois.

2010 Missouri State Bears Football Signees

Willie White (WR, 6-3, 205, Jr., Kingsland, Ga., Camden County High, Coffeyville [Kan.] Community College) One of the nation’s top receiving prospects as a high school senior in 2007, White redshirted his freshman year at Georgia Tech, then suffered a meniscus injury his second season at the Atlanta school. He transferred to Coffeyville (Kan.) Community College in 2009 and broke his wrist in another season-ending injury during 2009 preseason two-a-day practices. He was a three-star recruit out of Camden County (Ga.) High School by YahooSports.com in the class of 2007 with a 4.5 40-yard dash time. He also was a Rivals.com Top 50 receiver prospect (No. 38) and No. 14 overall prospect in Georgia. He had 15 catches for 219 yards and a pair of touchdowns as a prep senior along with 42 tackles and two interceptions as a defensive back.

Noah Ashley (WR, 6-2, 170, Fr., Culver City, Calif., Culver City High) A first-team all-Ocean League receiver his senior year, Ashley collected 39 receptions for 620 yards and 10 touchdowns in 2009 for coach Jahmal Wright. He helped the Centaurs to a 9-2 record his senior season and is also a basketball standout. He was recruited by Idaho and Villanova.

Andrew Beisel (LB, 6-2, 210, Fr., Fenton, Mo., Rockwood Summit High) One of the most-prolific tacklers in the St. Louis area last season, Beisel tallied 155 total stops for the Rockwood Summit Falcons which ranked sixth among all high school players in the metro area. He has a 3.9 grade-point average and claimed first-team all-conference honors as a linebacker and tight end, while earning second-team all-state distinction by the Missouri sportswriters and sportscasters. He also claimed first-team all-district and third-team Post-Dispatch All-Metro honors for coach Mike Belers.

Sybhrian Berry (CB, 5-9, 175, Fr., Camden, Ark., Fairview High) Part of a the Arkansas Class 5A runners-up at Camden (Ark.) Fairview High in 2009, Berry was an all-state cornerback. He collected 13 interceptions as a senior, including three returned for touchdowns. He is also a noted kick returner and was selected to play in the Arkansas High School All-Star game. The all-conference standout helped coach Buck James’ Cardinals to a 10-4 overall record this season.

Also has a Rivals video if you have an account.

Joe Burgess (OL, 6-6, 300, Fr., Florissant, Mo., McCluer North High) A three-year starter for coach Jim Schottmueller at McCluer North High, Burgess was rated the No. 23 prospect in the Post-Dispatch Super 30 list after earning first-team All-Metro laurels. He helped the Stars average 301.3 yards per game of total offense and earned all-conference and all-state honors twice. MaxPreps.com named him to the All-Missouri Second Team (all classes) after helping McCluer North claim three straight district titles and a 6-5 record in 2009. He was also had offers from Nebraska and Vandy. Was recruited by K State.

http://insider.espn.go.com/ncf/recru…6season%3d2010

“Burgess has good height and weight for the tackle position but must improve his overall athletic ability, explosion and playing strength if he is to compete at the major level of competition. Lacks good flexibility in his stance and not quick off the ball”

Julian Burton (WR/RB, 5-10, 185, Fr., Memphis, Tenn., White Station High) A versatile athlete with great speed, Burton was a Tennessee all-state performer for the Class 6A state champion White Station squad. He was rated a three-star recruit on Rivals.com and scored 32 touchdowns in two seasons with just under 2,000 all-purpose yards. He also snatched seven interceptions and was a two-time Commercial Appeal Best of the Preps selection. In the state championship game, he earned offensive and defensive MVP honors. He was also recruited by Memphis, Louisiana Tech, Middle Tennessee, Alabama State and Hampton.

From ESPN:
Burton is an undersized, speedy slot receiver/scatback who is built and moves like a running back. We are not sure this isn’t his best position at the next level. He is a stout, compact package with an extremely low center of gravity. Combine that with excellent speed and shifty change-of-direction

Tennessee recruiting board on him: http://www.volnation.com/forum/tenne…an-burton.html

“I know that TN has shown some interest in this kid at some point. He has been tearing it up of late. He led the Spartans to a State Championship victory over Maryville by rushing for 273 yards, scoring 4 touchdowns, and creating 2 turnovers (1 int w/ a 41 yrd return). Named offensive and Defensive MVP in title game.”

Nick Canavan (LB, 5-11, 205, Fr., Norman, Okla., Northside High) A solid defender and two-time Oklahoma all-state pick, Canavan tallied 353 career tackles for coach Lance Manning at Norman Northside High. His three varsity seasons also netted eight sacks and two interceptions while claiming all-district and all-conference honors twice. The three-year starter was also a standout running back for the Timberwolves.

Zack Cooley (OL, 6-5, 275, Fr., Lebanon, Mo., Lebanon High) A Rivals.com two-star recruit, Cooley was a Missouri second-team all-state offensive tackle in 2009 by both the coaches and sportswriters for coach Will Christian at Lebanon High. He earned first-team all-conference, all-district and All-Ozarks first-team distinction at offensive tackle and defensive end for the Yellowjackets. He also claimed first-team academic all-state honors and was recruited by Northern Iowa and Southern Illinois.

Michael Crutcher (DB, 6-1, 200, Fr., Wentzville, Mo., Timberland High) Crutcher helped Timberland to a 9-2 record his senior season and 19-3 cumulative ledger his final two seasons as a starter for the Wolves. He earned all-district honors in 2009 after collecting 100 tackles, an interception, a sack and a safety. He was also a two-time all-conference pick for coach Craig Collins.

Richard Galbierz (OL, 6-3, 285, Fr., Arnold, Mo., Fox High) Galbierz earned Class 6 second-team all-state honors in 2009 while leading Fox to a 9-3 record and state playoff appearance. He was also a first-team all-conference and all-district pick his senior season for the Warriors of coach Nick Gianino. He helped anchor an offensive line that averaged 330 yards per game of total offense.

Samuel Goode (DT, 6-3, 305, Fr., Jacksonville, Fla., Ribault High) Goode tallied 67 tackles, 11 sacks, 17 tackles for loss and an interception return for a touchdown in 2009 for coach Anthony Flynn’s Ribault High Trojans. He was selected to play in the Florida Shrine Bowl and was named Class 2A District 3 Offensive Lineman of the Year. He was also an all-district and all-conference offensive lineman and was named to the Florida Times-Union all-metro second team as a defensive tackle.

Mitch Jenkins (QB, 6-3, 203, Fr., Springfield, Mo., Hillcrest High) Jenkins guided Hillcrest High in Springfield to its first-ever playoff victory this season as the Hornets finished 7-5 overall. The southpaw threw for 2,775 yards and 35 touchdowns to earn Class 4 all-state honors by both the coaches and sportswriters, along with All-Ozark Conference and All Southwest Missouri distinction. An outstanding scholar with a 3.9 grade-point average, he completed 156-of-299 passes and rushed for 570 yards and seven touchdowns for coach John Beckham.

Josh Mattes (RB, 6-1, 220, Fr., Lebanon, Mo., Lebanon High) A powerful runner with great speed and athleticism, Mattes made the transition from receiver to running back for his senior year at Lebanon High School. He earned all-district, academic all-conference, and All-Ozarks Conference honors for the second straight season for coach Will Christian. In 2009, he had 200 carries for 1,224 yards and scored 20 touchdowns in 2009 while helping the Yellowjackets to a 5-5 record. In 2008, he had 45 receptions for 486 yards as the team’s feature receiver. The all-state sprinter and triple jumper was also recruited by UNI and Southern Illinois.

Martin Montgomery (DE, 6-3, 235, Fr., Pine Bluff, Ark., Pine Bluff High) After recording 85 total tackles his senior season, Montgomery helped coach Bobby Bolding’s Zebras to an Arkansas Class 6A runner-up finish and 9-5 overall record. The all-state defensive end also tallied 20 sacks, 15 tackles for loss, and recovered three fumbles during the campaign. An all-conference selection, he was also picked to play in the Arkansas All-Star Game. Originally verballed to Arkansas State.

Eric Pearce (DT, 6-2, 280, Fr., Springdale, Ark., Har-Ber High) The 2009 Arkansas all-state defensive lineman helped his Har-Ber squad to an Arkansas Class 7A state title and 12-1 overall record. He was a two-time all-conference pick for coach Chris Wood’s Wildcats and was selected to play in the Arkansas High School All-Star Game after producing 46 total tackles and seven sacks as a senior.

Jordan Rainey (OL, 6-5, 310, Fr., Joplin, Mo., Joplin High) A two-star recruit by Rivals.com, Rainey established himself as a top-shelf prospect in 2009, earning Class 6 first-team all-state honors for the Joplin Eagles of coach Doug Buckmaster. He was first-team all-conference and all-district his senior season after claiming second-team laurels from the district and league in 2008. He helped Joplin to an Ozark Conference title his junior season. Originally committed to Arkansas. And was also recruited by Kansas State and Arkansas State.

Caleb Schaffitzel (DB, 6-0, 205, Fr., Fair Grove, Mo., Fair Grove High) One of the most prolific scorers in Missouri high school history, Schaffitzel broke state career records for touchdowns (141) and all-purpose yards (10,512), while accumulating 8,551 career rushing yards and 119 rushing touchdowns. The two-time all-state and four-time all-district standout started 47 straight games for coach Jason O’Neal as a two-way performer. He also accumulated 432 career tackles as a safety with 11 interceptions. His senior season, he accounted for 50 total touchdowns, and carried 275 times for 2,711 yards to help him tally 3,302 all-purpose yards for the Eagles.

Isaac Umesi (CB, 5-10, 175, Fr., Richland Hills, Texas, Richland High) A highly-touted corner, Umesi was a Texas Class 5A first-team all-district performer in District 3 for the Rebels of Richland High. A Rivals, Scout, and ESPN three-star athlete. He also snagged second-team all-district honors as a junior in 2008. He was named a Top 100 player by the Dallas Morning News (No. 74), a Top 50 recruit by the Fort Worth Star Telegram (top 4 defensive back), and a Top 10 prospect at the Coppel Combine. With exceptional 4.4 speed and a 33-inch vertical, Rivals.com ranked him as a three-star prospect. He was also recruited heavily by Kansas, as well as Baylor, and Colorado State. Had an offer from Kansas

Austin Witmer (K, 6-5, 180, Fr., Grand Island, Neb., Grand Island Central Catholic High) A four-year letterman at Grand Island (Neb.) Catholic High, Witmer kicked 76 extra points and converted 24 field goals during his prep career for the Crusaaders. He earned first-team all-state honors in 2008 and 2009 after claiming honorable mention all-state distinction in 2007 for coach Charlie Shoemaker. He was all-conference and all-district three seasons and averaged 57.9 yards per kickoff in 2009 while helping his team to an 8-2 season. He was also recruited by Minnesota and Nebraska-Kearney.

From ESPN:

Witmer is a 6-foot-5 kicker. He uses his long levers to create great leverage on the ball. His KOs are explosive with many in the 4.1-4.2 second range. He has worked on kicking FG off the ground before his senior year and showed well at Kohl’s National Camp

From Missouri State Athletics Communication – Rick Kindhart

SPRINGFIELD – No. 25-ranked Northern Iowa escaped with a 55-54 win over Missouri State on Saturday afternoon, collecting the final five points of the game after the Bears (15-7, 5-6) led by four points with 1:38 to play.

The final 98 seconds, however, were not without controversy. After a put-back by Will Creekmore gave the Bears a 54-50 advantage, UNI went to Kwadzo Ahelegbe on its next possession. With 22 seconds on the shot clock, Ahelegbe drove hard to the basket and was fouled by Creekmore just outside the paint. Officials called Creekmore for an intentional foul, and when Ahelegbe stayed down, the Panthers substituted with Ali Farkhmanesh who made one-of-two free throws. The intentional foul call gave UNI the ball, and on the ensuing in-bound play, the Panthers attacked immediately and got a short jumper by Adam Koch to make it a 54-53 game with 1:18 on the clock.

With a narrow lead, the Bears ran the clock on their next possession before Adam Leonard, who finished with a game-high 17 points, drove to the basket and was blocked by Jordan Eglseder. The Panthers collected the rebound and wasted no time getting it down the floor, turning to Kerwin Dunahm for his only basket of the game with 40 seconds to go to take a 55-54 lead.

Much like their previous possession, the Bears had a chance to win the game down the stretch with a pair of up-close chances. First, Creekmore drove to the bucket and could not get the roll or the call with 10 seconds to play. After the junior center kept the rebound alive for MSU, the Bears set up a play after their final timeout and eight seconds on the clock. Leonard got the ball in the corner and drove the baseline, but his shot was challenged, and when Adam Koch emerged from the crowd of flying bodies with the ball, he simply tossed it into the air to allow the final three seconds to expire.

In addition to Leonard’s performance, MSU got 9 points from Jermaine Mallett and 8 from Creekmore who also posted a game-high 7 rebounds.

UNI was led by Eglseder’s 14 points, while Koch scored 10.

The Bears outrebounded UNI 31-29 in the game and had just eight turnovers to the Panthers’ 10. MSU also collected five three-pointers, including four by Leonard who was 4-of-9 from beyond the arc for his best outing in two weeks.

Cuonzo Martin’s squad was 22-of-56 (.393) from the field and made five of the seven free throws (.714) they were awarded in the contest. Northern Iowa (19-2, 9-1), on the other hand, got to the line 16 times, making 12 (.750) and made good on 20-of-44 (.455) field goals.

There were 10 lead changes and five ties overall in the contest. Perhaps no MSU shot was more critical than Leonard’s three at the 10:31 mark of the second half. UNI had just taken a 42-35 lead, its biggest of the afternoon, on a three-pointer by Marc Sonnen, his second in a span of just over a minute. Leonard’s response cut the MSU deficit to four, and then made it a three-point game with another trey 35 seconds later to answer an Eglseder put-back and make it a 44-41 contest.

With 8:52 to play in the game, Keith Pickens emerged with a towering put-back dunk to make it a one-point contest, and the Bears were able to tie the game just over four minutes later on Leonard’s third trey of the half to make it a 50-50 game. Leonard gave the Bears a 52-50 lead with 2:43 to go before Creekmore’s put-back just over a minute later.

The paid attendance of 9,087 was fourth-largest in JQH Arena history and 18th-largest in Missouri State history.

In the first half, After UNI scored the game’s first basket on a jumper by Ahelegbe, the Bears tallied 13 of the game’s next 17 points to hold a 13-6 lead on a dunk by Isaiah Rhine at the 12:12 mark.

Missouri State rallied to lead 19-15 with just 7:42 to go in the first period on a jumper by Kyle Weems, and then UNI started chipping away. A three-pointer by Jake Koch 36 seconds later made it a one-point game, and then a pair of free throws by Lucas O’Rear gave the Panthers their first lead since the opening minute, 20-19 with 6:16 to go.

Northern Iowa managed just two field goals the rest of the half, but finished 7-for-9 at the charity stripe as MSU was called for nine personal fouls, and UNI went into the intermission with a 26-24 lead.

The Bears hit the road Wednesday as they continue MVC play at Southern Illinois at 7:05 p.m. before returning home next Saturday to host Creighton at 7:05 p.m. Cuonzo Martin’s squad will learn its BracketBusters opponent Monday evening at 5:30 p.m. during an ESPNU selection show.

A career-high by Nafis Ricks, with 18 points, couldn’t help the Bears hold off a hot-shooting Creighton team on Sunday. The Bears lost 76-72.

The Bears made some excellent stops on defense and sank some high-pressure shots, but not in the final minute of the game as the Jays called a time out and got a thunderous dunk from Kenny Lawson. The Bears called a time out and god a contested 30-foot three point shot. That was the turning point in the game as CU went up 70-69. Creighton went to the line 6 time in the final minute and made all six, despite an NBA-range three by Kyle Weems to keep things interesting.

Other scorers for the Bears were Mallet (13) and Creekmore (12). Weems, with that last minute desperation three, was able to extend his double-figure scoring streak to an amazing 21 games.

Bears return to the friendly confines of JQH Arena on Wednesday night to face the Evansville Aces.

It took the Bears overtime to overtake Indiana State on Tuesday night, but the game should have never been at that level. In the first half the Bears used a stifling defense to chop down the Sycamore offense. The second half was a completely different story. Indiana State went 11-14 from three in the second half which should be unacceptable for Missouri State. A few of those shots were in the “circus” category, but the majority were wide open shots. The same type of wide open threes that caused us to lose two in a row. BearNation will be nervous awaiting news on Adam Leonard, it was obvious losing Leonard meant MSU lost a lot of confidence on offense. I was incredibly impressed with how Jermaine Mallett took over the game in overtime, including an exclamation-point dunk as time was winding down.

With the win, the Bears improve to 14-5 and 4-4 in the conference, we will find out where they are in the standings following Wednesday’s Valley games.

Next up is an ESPNU game against Creighton on Sunday.

Go Bears!

If you have followed the Bears recently, you know about the annual January Slump. Well, folks, we are now in it once

again!

Here is a little look through the history book to see how MSU has performed, in January, since moving to D1:

BOB CLEELAND
1982-83 – 6-4
CHARLIE SPOONHOUR
1983-84 – 4-5
1984-85 – 3-5
1985-86 – 5-3
1986-87 – 8-1
1987-88 – 7-1
1988-89 – 7-1
1989-90 – 6-2 (LAST YEAR IN MID-CON)
1990-91 – 6-3 (FIRST YEAR IN MVC)
1991-92 – 5-3
MARK BERNSEN
1992-93 – 4-5
1993-94 – 2-7
1994-95 – 3-6
STEVE ALFORD
1995-96 – 4-5
1996-97 – 5-5
1997-98 – 5-5
1998-99 – 7-3
BARRY HINSON
1999-00 – 5-4
2000-01 – 4-5
2001-02 – 5-5
2002-03 – 7-1
2003-04 – 6-3
2004-05 – 4-5
2005-06 – 5-4
2006-07 – 6-4
2007-08 – 4-5
CUONZO MARTIN
2008-09 – 2-6
2009-19 – 2-4 (In Progress)

This is a simple post…

What has happened to this Bears team that the entire city of Springfield fell in love with to begin the year?

Where is that fire?

Where is the passion?

If you know where to find it, call Zo immediately!

Student leaders at Missouri State University have established a campaign to raise $50,000 in 50 hours next week for Haitian disaster relief. All proceeds will benefit the Convoy of Hope, a university news release said.

“Bears Backing Haiti: 50 in 50” will be conducted for 50 hours Jan. 19-21, with the goal of raising $50,000 to aid Springfield-based Convoy of Hope in their disaster relief efforts in the country.

The campaign will run from 6 p.m. Jan. 19 through 8 p.m. Jan. 21 in front of the Plaster Student Union, utilizing volunteers on campus with buckets to collect donations.

In addition, students, faculty, staff and community members may drop off monetary donations at the Commerce Bank location in PSU during business hours.

All checks need to be made out to Convoy of Hope with “Bears Backing Haiti” written in the subject line.

“Students are really gearing up for this; it definitely supports our public affairs mission as well as reflecting the caring and concern of our university community,” said Earle Doman, vice president for student affairs.

“The group that met is trying to coordinate all efforts so we don’t have multiple request/efforts to assist with the Haiti relief effort. Having this effort student initiated and led is a real plus for many reasons.”

Students will also collect money at the Lady Bears game Jan. 18 and at the Bears basketball game Jan. 19.

Organizers will also seek donations from members of the university community as well as from citizens of Springfield and the surrounding area in addition to corporate donations as matching funds.

The campaign will conclude with an 8:15 p.m. Thursday evening with a candlelight vigil and the presentation of a check to Rob Clay with Convoy of Hope at the Bear Paw.