We’re on the verge of bowl season, folks!

It’s the craziest time of year in college football, as there are 136 FBS teams, but only 44 total bowl games.

To qualify for bowl eligibility, teams must win at least six games, and they can only count one win against FCS opponents. If there are too many bowl-eligible teams, some will be left out of postseason play. Others can forfeit, and might have to if some are unable to field a full team due to the transfer portal.

Fifty-nine teams have already reached six wins heading into the final three weeks, and another 19 sit at five victories.

But for one team in particular, everything is going right for them except one thing… they’re technically not allowed to compete for a bowl game this year.

That brings us to the Missouri State Bears.

This is their first season at Division 1 FBS, alongside the Delaware Blue Hens. But unlike Delaware, Missouri State is exceeding all expectations, and is currently 6-3. The Bears (6-3, 4-1 Conference USA) reached the six-win threshold for bowl eligibility in dramatic fashion Saturday, rallying past Liberty with 27 seconds remaining.

However, NCAA rules prohibit postseason participation for teams transitioning from the FCS to the FBS.

The Bears have the fourth best record in C-USA play and tied for the second best record overall in the conference (alongside Jacksonville State).

After starting the season 2-3, they have gone on a four-game winning streak, all four of those wins being conference wins.

Right now, they rank 78th in yards per game, 107th in points per game, and 81st in yards per play. However, they only have a 30% success rate on third down, which is 125th in the nation, And allow on average 27.9 points per game. Although a lot of that came from the 73-13 loss to USC in the opening week.

Where Missouri State thrives is its passing game, which they frequently run the offense out of. In fact, they are 28th in the nation when it comes to pass-play percentages per game (53%).

They are a gritty team that plays until the final whistle, and head coach Ryan Beard has been a major part of their success over the past few seasons. Last season (2024), the Bears’ final campaign at the FCS level, Beard guided Missouri State to an 8-4 overall record and No. 23 national ranking with 12 all-conference standouts and three All-Americans in his camp.

In a season with such low expectations for a first-time FBS team, Missouri state has exceeded them all, gone toe to toe with some of the best in their conference, and yet still remains ineligible for a bowl game.

Unless of course there’s not enough teams to field the entire Bowl board. But it shouldn’t have to come down to a technicality. This team has proven they belong at the FBS level, just like they thrived at the FCS level.

PHOTO CREDIT: MO STATE FOOTBALL TWITTER)