NEWARK, Del. – The University of Delaware football team will host the Missouri State Bears on Tuesday, October 20 at 7 p.m. for a Weekday CUSA matchup on ESPNU. This will be the first matchup between the two programs that moved to the FBS and joined Conference USA together in 2025.
ABOUT THE FIGHTIN' BLUE HENS
The Fightin' Blue Hens enter the contest 2-4, 0-2 CUSA, coming off a 33-30 road loss to Middle Tennessee.
QB Nick Minicucci leads the team with 838 passing yards and five passing TDs. The senior signal caller missed the previous two games due to injury.
QB Tyler Bell set the Delaware freshman single-game passing yards record (306) in his first-career start against Middle Tennessee. Bell went 22-of-36 passing to go with two passing touchdowns, 15 receiving yards, and a receiving touchdown. His passing total surpassed the record held by Bill Vergantino (286) against New Hampshire in 1989. Bell became the first-true freshman QB to start a game for the Fightin' Blue Hens since Minicucci started an FCS Playoff game against Lafayette on November 25, 2023 and first to start a regular-season game since Mike Connor did so on November 17, 2001 at Villanova.
RB Jo Silver tops the team with 230 rushing yards on the campaign with one rushing touchdown.
WR Sean Wilson paces the team with 25 catches for 339 yards and three touchdowns. Wilson and WR Da'Wain Lofton are the only duo in CUSA to each have 300+ receiving yards this season.
LB Colin Gallagher leads the Hens with 43 tackles, while LB Gavin Moul's 7.6 tackles per game are the best on the squad.
BAN Blake Matthews has put constant pressure on the quarterback this season, tallying a team-best 4.5 sacks. His 4.5 sacks are tied for 34th most in the country and tied for second in Conference USA, while his 0.75 sacks per game rank tied for 34th in the nation and second in the league. Matthews' TFL numbers are equally impressive, totalling 7.0 tackles for loss on the season, landing him in a tie for 40th most in the FBS, while his 1.17 TFLs per game are tied for 44th most nationally and lead Conference USA.
Delaware's defense has come up with 19 sacks this season, tied for 14th most in the FBS, and two more than any other Conference USA team. It's the most by a CUSA program through six games of a season since Jax State in 2023 (23).
The Blue & Gold boast the No. 1 passing offense in Conference USA with 271.0 passing yards per contest, all while using five different quarterbacks and having two other players throw a pass.
Delaware is averaging 22.8 points per game (T-4th in CUSA), while allowing 26.8 points per game (7th).
UD has recorded 365.0 yards of total offense per game (6th in CUSA), while allowing 390.7 yards per game (8th).
ABOUT THE BEARS
The Bears are 2-4, 1-1 CUSA, coming off a 24-21 home win over Kennesaw State.
Missouri State is led by first-year head coach Casey Woods, who was previously the offensive coordinator at SMU from 2022-25.
Fifth-year QB Skyler Locklear, a UTEP transfer, runs the offense for the Bears. He's completed 71-of-108 passes for 788 yards and four touchdowns on the season. Last season as a member of the Miners, he threw for 338 yards and four touchdowns in the 61-31 loss to Delaware.
On the ground, MSU is led by RB Antonio Martin with 227 yards and two touchdowns.
Former WKU and Charlotte WR Isaiah Myers is the team's leading receiver with 554 receiving yards to go with five TDs.
On defense, LB Jared Lloyd leads the way with 34 tackles.
Missouri State is averaging 22.2 points per game (7th in CUSA), while allowing 30.5 points per game (9th).
The Bears have recorded 357.0 yards of total offense per game (7th in CUSA), while allowing 430.8 yards per game (10th).
Delaware Games Notes
Delaware Press Conference
Missouri State Game Notes
Missouri State Press Conference
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***Missouri St. at Delaware, 6:00, ESPNU***
***Missouri St. at Delaware, 6:00, ESPNU*** 
