#6 Pitt State football beats Missouri Southern 42-17

JOPLIN, Mo. -- Pittsburg State football had far from the perfect start to Saturday's Miner's Bowl at Missouri Southern.

Gorilla quarterback Chad Dodson threw an interception on his first pass attempt. The Lions then scored on their first play from scrimmage -- a 46-yard strike from Luke Sampson to Draper Parker.

The 6th-ranked Gorillas were completely unphased by the early 7-0 deficit, though.

They scored two unanswered touchdowns -- a 30-yard pass from Dodson to Cleo Chandler and a 5-yard rush by Noah Hernandez.

After Southern pulled back within four points, the Gorilla offensive onslaught continued.

Dodson threw his second touchdown of the day -- a 70-yard bomb to Jack Roberts -- to put PSU up 21-10.

In the final minutes of the first half, Pitt State dipped into its bag of tricks. The Gorillas dialed up a wide receiver reverse/flea flicker.

Dodson handed the ball off to Chandler, who flipped it to Christian Carter, who then flipped it back to Dodson. The PSU QB delivered a strike to his tight end Will Huggins who scored from 49-yards out. That gave #6 Pitt State a 28-10 lead at halftime.

Pitt State controlled the game in the second half, winning by a final score of 42-17.

This is the 10th consecutive victory for the Gorillas over the Lions, dating back to 2014.

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