Some History on the Bears

Sep 1, 2012; Manhattan, KS, USA; Missouri State Bears quarterback Ashton Glaser (16) drops back to pass during a 51-9 loss to the Kansas State Wildcats at Bill Snyder Family Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Scott Sewell-US PRESSWIRE

Louisville will host Missouri State this Saturday at Papa John’s Cardinal Stadium. The Bears lost big to Kansas State last week 51-9. KSU pounded the run game and ended up with 324 rushing yards. Louisville could do similar with their solid running attack. Since the Bears’ football stats probably wont interest you, maybe some history will.

MSU was formerly known as Southwest Missouri State University. They changed names in 2006. The most notable alumni in my opinion is actor and funny-man John Goodman. Goodman is best known for his role in the TV series Roseanne. He has also been in several big time movies such as Raising Arizona, The Big Lebowski, and was the voice of Sully in Monsters Inc. Goodman is also one of the most popular guests on Saturday Night Live.

Goodman was born in Missouri and attended Southwest Missouri State as he earned a football scholarship. A football injury ended his career and he decided to pursue acting. Therefore, Goodman left Missouri for New York in 1975 and has been acting ever since.

Other famous alumni include MLB slugger Ryan Howard and former WNBA and NCAA all-time leading scorer Jackie Stiles. Springfield Missouri was also home to head basketball coach Charlie Spoonhour (1983- 1992), a name UofL fans should recognize from the Conference USA days. Spoonhour led the Bears to seven consecutive 20 win seasons and five trips to the NCAA tournament.

Hopefully this will give you something to talk about at the game Saturday, because we might see Will Stein in the second-quarter this week. The key is to take care of business early and work on some things. Louisville will be tested when North Carolina visits next week.