1989 Southwest Missouri State Bears football team

The 1989 Southwest Missouri State Bears football team represented Southwest Missouri State University (now known as Missouri State University) as a member of the Gateway Football Conference (GFC) during the 1989 NCAA Division I-AA football season. Led by fourth-year head coach Jesse Branch, the Bears compiled an overall record of 10–3, with a mark of 5–1 in conference play, and finished as GFC champion. Southwest Missouri State advanced to the NCAA Division I-AA Quarterfinals and were defeated by Stephen F. Austin.

1989 Southwest Missouri State Bears football
GFC champion
NCAA Division I-AA Quarterfinal, L 25–55 at Stephen F. Austin
Conference	Gateway Football Conference
Record	10–3 (5–1 GFC)
Head coach	Jesse Branch (4th season)
Defensive coordinator	Dave Wommack (4th season)
Home stadium	Briggs Stadium
Seasons ← 1988 1990 →

1989 Gateway Collegiate Athletic Conference football standings

v t e	Conf							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
No. 9 Southwest Missouri State $^	5	–	1	–	0			10	–	3	–	0
No. 15 Eastern Illinois ^	4	–	2	–	0			9	–	4	–	0
No. 20 Northern Iowa	4	–	2	–	0			8	–	3	–	0
Illinois State	4	–	2	–	0			5	–	6	–	0
Indiana State	2	–	4	–	0			4	–	7	–	0
Western Illinois	1	–	5	–	0			4	–	7	–	0
Southern Illinois	1	–	5	–	0			2	–	9	–	0
$ – Conference champion ^ – NCAA Division I-AA playoff participant Rankings from NCAA Division I-AA Football Committee poll

Schedule

Date	Time	Opponent	Rank	Site	Result	Attendance	Source
September 2		Northwestern State*		Briggs Stadium Springfield, MO	W 20–10		[1]
September 9		Indiana State		Briggs Stadium Springfield, MO	W 31–10		[2]
September 16		at Western Illinois		Hanson Field Macomb, IL	W 31–24		[3]
September 23		at Austin Peay*	No. T–5	Municipal Stadium Clarksville, TN	W 41–3	2,493	[4]
September 30	1:30 p.m.	Northern Iowa	No. T–5	Briggs Stadium Springfield, MO	W 37–22	7,512	[5]
October 7		Illinois State	No. T–5	Briggs Stadium Springfield, MO	W 42–7	9,000	[6]
October 14		at Western Kentucky*	No. 4	L. T. Smith Stadium Bowling Green, KY	L 33–42	9,000	[7]
October 21		at Southern Illinois	No. 8	McAndrew Stadium Carbondale, IL	W 31–25	10,000	[8]
October 28		No. 20 Alcorn State*	No. 7	Briggs Stadium Springfield, MO	W 59–19	9,148	[9]
November 11		at Eastern Illinois	No. 5	O'Brien Stadium Charleston, IL	L 15–16	10,128	[10]
November 18		at Liberty*	No. 9	Willard May Stadium Lynchburg, VA	W 31–20		[11]
November 25		No. 8 Maine*	No. 9	Briggs Stadium Springfield, MO (NCAA Division I-AA First Round)	W 38–35	7,270	[12]
December 2		at No. 3 Stephen F. Austin*	No. 9	Homer Bryce Stadium Nacogdoches, TX (NCAA Division I-AA Quarterfinal)	L 25–55		[13]
*Non-conference game Rankings from NCAA Division I-AA Football Committee Poll released prior to the game All times are in Central time

^[14]

References

1. "NSU stumbles to Southwest Missouri in opener". The Shreveport Times. September 3, 1989. Retrieved March 24, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
2. "Southwest Missouri blasts Indiana State". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. September 10, 1989. Retrieved March 24, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
3. "Two big plays give Bears 31–24 victory". The Springfield News-Leader. September 17, 1989. Retrieved March 24, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
4. "SMSU roars past Governors 41–3". The Leaf-Chronicle. September 24, 1989. Retrieved March 24, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
5. "Northern Iowa can't keep up with No. 5 S.W. Missouri State". The Des Moines Register. October 1, 1989. Retrieved March 24, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
6. "ISU no match for these Bears". The Pantagraph. October 8, 1989. Retrieved March 24, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
7. "Western rallies past SW Missouri". The Courier-Journal. October 15, 1989. Retrieved March 24, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
8. "Salukis pass up opportunity". The Southern Illinoisan. October 22, 1989. Retrieved March 24, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
9. "SMS rolls Alcorn St. in 59–19 win". The Springfield News-Leader. October 29, 1989. Retrieved March 24, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
10. "Late FG try fails as Bears fall to Eastern Illinois". The Kansas City Star. November 12, 1989. Retrieved March 24, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
11. "SW Missouri ends LU playoff dream". The News and Advance. November 19, 1989. Retrieved March 24, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
12. "SWMO wins wild opener". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. November 26, 1989. Retrieved March 24, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
13. "Lumberjacks flatten hobbled SMS". The Springfield News-Leader. December 3, 1989. Retrieved March 24, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
14. "Missouri State Football 2023 Media Guide" (PDF). Missouri State University Athletics. p. 65. Retrieved June 30, 2024.