Sitting in his bedroom in Mount Pleasant, Michigan, almost three years ago, Ryan Beard received a phone call from Bobby Petrino who wanted him to become his defensive coordinator at Missouri State.
Petrino told Beard, his son-in-law, about Springfield and everything it had to offer. Petrino described Missouri State as a "hidden gem" and that it was "waiting to explode on the football scene." Petrino said there was no reason that they couldn't make it happen, something Beard continues to believe to this day.
From then on, Beard had the dream of one day becoming Missouri State's head football coach.