Missouri State to petition NCAA for bowl eligibility after earning sixth win at Liberty

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Missouri State will petition the NCAA for a postseason waiver, hoping to allow the football team to participate in a bowl game this season, Athletic Director Patrick Ransdell said in a press conference on Monday, Nov. 10.

Because the Bears are in their second year of a transition from the FCS to the FBS, they are ineligible for postseason play due to NCAA rules.

Missouri State won its sixth game of the season on Saturday, Nov. 8, at Liberty, when the Bears rallied behind Jacob Clark’s game-winning 13-yard touchdown pass to Tristian Gardner with 27 seconds left to win 21-17. In a normal year, a sixth win would clinch the Bears’ bowl eligibility.

“We will be submitting a request for postseason consideration to the NCAA,” Ransdell said. “Whether that goes through or not is out of our control.”

As recently as 2023, three programs transitioning to the FBS had their postseason waivers denied by the NCAA, including James Madison, which started the year 10-0. The Dukes and Jacksonville State ultimately were allowed to play in bowl games due to the lack of bowl-eligible teams. The same can happen for Missouri State if fewer than 82 teams are eligible come the end of the regular season.

“I think all policies and structure of anything in regards to college football should be around the student athlete,” Bears coach Ryan Beard said. “In the modern day of college football, I don’t know if it makes sense to build a transition period. There are no rules that give us a competitive advantage. If you want to see a competitive disadvantage, come see some of the things we have going on here at Missouri State.”

Missouri State is 6-3 overall and 4-1 in its first season as a Conference USA member. The Bears host UTEP (2-7, 1-4 CUSA) on Saturday, Nov. 15, at 2 p.m. at Plaster Stadium.

This article originally appeared on Topeka Capital-Journal: Missouri State to petition NCAA for bowl eligibility

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