Bear fans deserve better: 10 thoughts after Missouri State football's latest loss

Within the span of 12 realtime minutes on Saturday, the Bears went from being tied 7-7 at the end of the first quarter to losing 31-7.

Missouri State (1-4) found an embarrassing, new way to lose on Saturday at Plaster Stadium to South Dakota (3-3).

It will only get more difficult. 

The Bears now travel to No. 1 North Dakota State before hosting No. 15 Northern Iowa and No. 3 South Dakota State the following weeks. 

More:Missouri State football embarrassed in home loss to South Dakota

Here are my thoughts after the Bears' most recent loss.

1. On Saturday's game...

Another game, a different way to lose for Missouri State football. 

The first three games of the season saw the Bears give up big play after big play. It's a trend that didn't stop in Saturday's game but the way it happened was far worse. 

From 14:50 remaining in the second quarter to 10:11 remaining in the second quarter, South Dakota scored 24 points. It was a mixture of bad decisions, undisciplined play and poor mistakes you would hope would be fixed in the fifth year of a rebuild. 

Missouri State lost the game 45-10.

South Dakota scored 45-unanswered points until Missouri State, for some reason, kicked a field goal when down 38 with 11:48 remaining in the game. 

Not much can be said that hasn't been said before. It was yet another bad loss for a team that has had a lot of bad losses.

2. Bear fans deserve better

I don't like to toss around the word "embarrassment" lightly but that's the word that keeps coming to mind in regards to Missouri State football over the first five weeks of the regular season — although some would say it's been that way for the last 29 years.

I will admit that I am a Missouri State graduate. Being involved in journalism since the second I stepped on campus in 2015, I never became a "fan" of any of the sports programs because I wanted to be a good, unbiased sports reporter. My goal with everything I do is to tell it how I see it and to be fair. 

But I can't help but think about how much of a black eye the program has turned into for the university. The product on the field isn't good, the attendance is low and it has turned into a punchline for many.

There's no reason Missouri State can't have a good football program. I am a believer that if Indiana State can have a winning team then Missouri State can as well. 

Don't waste your energy and thought about whether Missouri State should get rid of football or not. MSU President Clif Smart told me before the season that he would rather be fired than get rid of the program. He's not going to do it. It's not going to happen.

More:Will Missouri State get rid of football? University president weighs in.

Although results haven't been there, you would still like to see success happen for the people involved in the program. The players are enjoyable to be around and the coaches put a lot of time with it. 

It's all frustrating and the Missouri State faithful deserves better.

3. The football program has taken steps back

I will admit that I wasn't around during the Terry Allen era and didn't experience it for myself but from what I've been told, he led years of mediocre football and MSU chose to not do anything about it until his contract ran out. 

Mediocre football sounds like a step in the right direction these days. 

Throughout Steckel's five years, he's often referred to how bad the culture of the team was before he arrived. Players often refer to how good the culture is now while the results haven't been there. 

We need to call it what it is. The #BearUp culture is a losing culture. 

Allen finished his nine seasons as the MSU head coach with a record of 37-67. He went 19-38 in his final five years including a 4-8 record in his final year.

Steckel is in his fifth year and has a 13-36 record. He has yet to win more than four games in a single season — something Allen did four times. By the looks of the remaining schedule, the Bears would be lucky to finish this season with three wins.

You could argue that the talent on the roster is improving but recruiting is half the battle. Players still have to be put in a position to succeed and that's not happening.

Blame it on the conference the Bears play in but programs like Indiana State are able to find ways to succeed. If Indiana State can do it, there's no reason Missouri State can't either.

Winning isn't happening and it hasn't happened in a long time at Missouri State. It's hard to argue things are better right now. By the looks of the wins and losses, it's easier to argue that the program has taken a step back.

4. Breaking down the 5 minutes from hell

In 12 minutes of realtime, South Dakota scored three touchdowns and a field goal to take a 31-7 lead less than five minutes into the second quarter.

Steckel called it an "avalanche" after the game. 

So what the heck happened? Here's a closer look:

2Q 14:52 - 38-yard field goal gives South Dakota a 10-7 lead

This drive actually turned out to be a pretty nice win for Missouri State as it forced a field goal.

The Coyotes picked up a third-and-10 to move into the red zone but the Bears stepped up with a pair of good plays against the run before putting pressure on the quarterback on third down to force an incompletion.

It still appeared to be a competitive game at this point. 

2Q 12:27 - Ben Klett 57-yard run sets up an eight-yard touchdown pass

South Dakota held the Bears to a quick three-and-out, which was capped off with tackling a scrambling Huslig on third down. South Dakota took over at its own 40 following the punt. 

On South Dakota's first play, it gashed the Bears up the middle of the field for a 57-yard run. 

The Coyotes pulled their tight end and left tackle to seal off the right side of the ball while the left side of the Bears' defensive line stunted inside the blockers in front of them. The pulling Coyote blockers were able to create a big hole inside for Klett. 

Klett was able to outrun the Bears' defense until he was tackled by a member of the secondary at the MSU eight. 

On the following play, Simmons ran an RPO and saw linebacker Jordan Wilkes come up and play the run. That left plenty of space for the slot receiver to beat the safety inside to where Simmons pulled the ball on the option to deliver a strike to his open receiver for a 17-7 lead.

2Q 11:51 - Missouri State fumbles on the first play of next possession

Center Casey O'Brien's snap on the Bears' first play on their next possession turned into a quick turnover as the wheels continued to fall off the bus. 

The ball was snapped when Huslig wanted it to be snapped but instead of going to the quarterback, it drifted off toward the tailback. There wasn't much Huslig nor D.J. Frost could do as the ball was kicked around and recovered by the Coyotes. 

2Q 11:45 - Austin Simmons 29-yard touchdown pass

South Dakota wasted no time getting into the end zone following the fumble. 

Simmons rolled out to his right with his tailback looking as if he was going to run a quick option. The play sucked in safety Kam Carter, who was going to play the run. That would have left space across the field on an intermediate crossing route to the slot receiver from the opposite side of the field. 

However, Simmons didn't need to wait for that to develop. Corner Jacquez Carter slightly stepped up to play the run, which gave receiver Caleb Vander Esch a few steps on him while streaking down the field. 

Vander Esch caught the ball over a trailing corner to extend USD's lead to 24-7.

2Q 11:00 - Peyton Huslig interception sets up South Dakota touchdown

Despite all of this, it still wasn't over.

On the Bears' second play of their next possession, Huslig threw a pass straight to linebacker Jack Cochrane — who returned the ball to the MSU four yard-line. 

It's difficult to figure out exactly what Huslig was thinking on this throw. There's no doubt that this was his worst play of the game. 

Cochrane was lined up over tight end Jordan Murray — who was set up in the slot. Instead of going with Murray, Cochrane stayed in his zone and read Huslig's eyes. Huslig didn't look away from Kendall Stewart on the throw and the linebacker was easily able to step in front of the throw. 

This interception lined up with a problem Huslig has had over his three years as the starter. A lot of his throws appear to be premeditated and forced. 

South Dakota punched in a touchdown two plays later to go up 31-7.

5. Huslig's time as a starter should be coming to an end

Although he might be the best option on the current roster, Huslig's time as the Bears' starter should be coming to an end in order to see what else MSU has. 

At this point, wins don't matter. The Bears won't make the playoffs barring a miracle run in which they win out. 

Huslig is 8-19 as Missouri State's starter in the last three seasons. He's turnover-prone but he also offers athleticism at the position that the other quarterbacks don't have. 

MSU hasn't tried anyone else out at the position since he's arrived on campus. We've never been able to see what Division I transfer J.T. Granto is capable of and he's in his senior year. 

The Bears should at least look to see what Dalton Hill is capable of heading into next season. Reps would be wasted on Huslig if the Bears drop another game or two and are officially eliminated from postseason contention. 

Hill could be Missouri State's starter next season. The sophomore quarterback has played during garbage time and has never seen any meaningful snaps. 

Missouri State should also give freshman quarterback Ty Baker some reps in four games. If he plays four or fewer games, he will be able to keep his redshirt. 

Huslig might be the Bears' option to win games in the coaching staff's eye but winning won't matter as much if the season continues on the path it is on.

6. Expect 'hot seat' talks to heat up for Steckel in the next few weeks

Sunday morning began the first wave college coaches who have gotten a hold of me to ask about the potential of a coaching change. This is something that happened toward the end of former MSU basketball coach Paul Lusk's career.

I don't expect this to slow down any time soon. 

Steckel is in the fifth year as the Missouri State head coach and success hasn't been there. He's 13-36 and is among the least successful coaches in the history of the program.

As MSU enters the most difficult three games of its schedule, the assumption is that the Bears will come out 1-7, therefore, confirming that they won't make the postseason. 

Fans on social media have already been outspoken about their displeasure in the program. As we inch toward the end of the season, this will likely continue to get louder.

7. Here are the terms of Steckel's contract

Steckel's contract has two years remaining after this season with a base salary of $270,000. A buyout after this season could cost MSU as much as $540,000.

This would have been the final year on his initial contract but MSU opted to give him a two-year extension after going from 1-10 in his debut season to 4-7 the following year. 

Remember that MSU hasn't been as quick to let someone go when someone has a lot of money left on their deal — as proven when the university brought back Lusk following the 2016-17 basketball season when a buyout would have cost $742,906.

8. MSU football by the numbers

Missouri State earned a victory after a thrilling game-winning drive against Indiana State on Oct. 13, 2018. Since then, the Bears are 1-9 and have been outscored 157-430 during that span. 

The Bears are one of eight FCS teams in the last 365 days to only win one game. Three of the other seven teams don't offer football scholarships.

• Presbyterian 0-11 (Phasing out scholarships. Will be non-scholarship by 2020)
• Valparaiso 1-11 (non-scholarship)
• Southern Utah 1-11
• Texas Southern 1-10
• Western Carolina 1-10
• Bucknell 1-9
• Missouri State 1-9
• Brown 1-8 (non-scholarship)

Only two teams in the country rank behind Missouri State in third-down conversions (26.2%). Those schools are Eastern Illinois (25.8%) and Western Illinois (23.3%). 

Missouri State has the 106th ranked defense in the country while allowing 458.6 yards per game. The Bears rank 112th in rushing yards allowed (238) and 53rd in passing yards allowed (220.6) per game. 

It's not any better offensively. Missouri State has the No. 101 offense in the country while gaining 315.2 yards per game. The Bears rank 46th in passing (241.6) and 117th in rushing (73.6) yards per game. 

What does Missouri State do well? Punt. Brendan Withrow has the Bears ranked eighth in the country in net punting with an average of 40.7 yards per boot. 

9. *Looks at schedule* Oh no.

Have you stopped to think about how the Missouri State football season isn't even halfway over? The Bears are 1-4 and are just now entering the most difficult part of their schedule. 

Missouri State starts this week with a trip to No. 1 North Dakota State. The Bison haven't lost a game since Nov. 4, 2017, and they still won the national championship that year. 

The Bears then return home for a homecoming matchup with No. 15 Northern Iowa. MSU hasn't beaten UNI since 2005 and have been outscored 164-17 against the Panthers in four games under Steckel. 

After UNI, the Bears host No. 3 South Dakota State whose lone loss this season came in a near upset win over Minnesota. 

The last three weeks of the season look to be the most favorable even though the Bears won't be expected to win any of them. Southern Illinois looks improved while Illinois State is ranked No. 10 in the country. The season ends with a home game against an Indiana State team that is trending down but Missouri State is still Missouri State.

10. North Dakota State is still king

The Bison will be a heavy favorite on Saturday in a game no one will think the Bears have any shot at winning. 

North Dakota State is the winner of seven of the last eight national championships and is undefeated this season. 

A Bison quarterback has yet to throw an interception this season. The team ranks Top 10 in the country in nearly every positive statistical category. 

Oregon plays Washington at the same time on Saturday on national television if you're looking for something else to watch.

Wyatt D. Wheeler is a reporter and columnist with the Springfield News-Leader. You can contact him at 417-371-6987, by email at wwheeler@news-leader.com or join the conversation on Twitter where his handle is @WyattWheeler_NL.