SPRINGFIELD — Missouri State (0-1) looks to bounce back when the Bears host Lindenwood (1-1) for its home opener at 6 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 12.
This is Casey Woods’ first chance to show off his roster to a home stadium against an in-state opponent.
“We have a huge opportunity this weekend, stepping into our only in-state opponent that we play,” Woods said. “It’s going to be a great challenge. They are well coached, and I look forward to getting in front of our home crowd.”
The Lions, an FCS school, have been able to score the ball at will to start the season. Lindenwood defeated Charleston Southern 20-17. Last week, the Lions lost 36-32 to Stony Brook on the road.
Lindenwood head coach Jed
Stugart brings his team to Springfield. This is his 10th season in charge. Stugart spoke to the media on Tuesday talking about his team’s philosophies.
“Don’t think they are going to overlook us,” Stugart said. “They are playing at home, and they want to have a good showing for their home opener. They are looking at it like a rival Missouri game, and it is. We better match that as far as our focus, attention to detail, because this is too good of a football team.”
Lindenwood is one of 28 teams at the FCS level to be perfect in red zone attempts. The Lions have scored each time entering this area thanks to quarterback Pops Battle.
The junior is another mobile signal caller. He has rushed for at least one touchdown in each of the team’s first two games. Battle threw for 142 yards against Charleston Southern and followed it with 209 passing yards against Stony Brook.
Battle has the ability to break long runs and keep drives alive. Keeping him contained will be key, according to Missouri State defensive coordinator Jack Curtis.
“They look the part,” Curtis said. “This quarterback is athletic and can beat you with his feet. We’ll have to do a good job containing, just like we did against Marcel Reed last week. We’ll have to put last week behind us and be at our best."
After Missouri State’s offensive struggles against Texas A&M, the Bears look to this game as a great chance to get back on track. Missouri State only picked up four first downs and accrued just 67 total yards of offense.
Starting quarterback Skyler Locklear played the entire game. Locklear was involved in a quarterback battle with Henry Belin in the offseason, but the coaching staff was going to ride with Locklear throughout the game against the Aggies despite the offensive deficiencies.
“We were trying to find some momentum to bring into this upcoming week,” offensive coordinator Mark Cala said. “That was our reasoning for leaving him in.”
The Lions have allowed 25 total passing first downs to their two opponents. Locklear’s throwing ability and finding the right receivers will be key for the Bears in this game.
“They are going to come in here and could’ve easily been a 2-0 football team,” Woods said. “They are confident, and when you look at their roster, they are a heavily junior- and senior-laden team.
In their only other meeting, Missouri State defeated Lindenwood 28-14 in 2024. Former quarterback Jacob Clark threw for 302 yards on 28-for-33 passing and two touchdowns.
Liam Keating covers high school sports and Missouri State athletics for The Springfield News-Leader. Send stats or information to him at Lkeating@usatodayco.com
This article originally appeared on Springfield News-Leader: Scouting Missouri State football's Week 2 opponent Lindenwood
