Harrison Mevis gives Mizzou football last-second win over K-State Wildcats: takeaways
Harrison Mevis statue, anyone?
Missouri has its first ranked win on Faurot Field in more than three years. And it took a 61-yard kick from Mevis as time expired to get there.
Eli Drinkwitz’s team opened up the playbook on offense, as Brady Cook had a career day, and the Tigers avenged a 2022 beatdown by beating the 15th-ranked Wildcats 30-27 on Saturday in Columbia.
They stormed the field in Columbia. I’m sure they’ll take the fine.
Here are three takeaways from the game...
Quarterback Brady Cook’s career day
It took Mizzou’s offense six plays against No. 15 Kansas State to do what had been mostly a distant dream through two games.
The Tigers put Faurot Field on its feet.
K-State methodically marched down the field for a game-opening touchdown.
Then: Brady Cook’s response.
Cook found Cody Schrader on third down in the flat to prevent a three-and-out. The QB took a chance against the coverage to target Theo Wease Jr. the very next play.
And then Cook let loose.
Star wideout Luther Burden III took off on a post route. Cook had the time. The pair had the connection.
And that was a sign of things to come, as Cook put together a career-high 356 yards, which included two touchdowns on 23-of-35 passing.
Luther Burden shows up ... big time
Burden caught a pass on the Kansas State 34 and had two players to beat.
How do you think it ended up?
He slipped one, he bore down on another, dropped the right shoulder as if cutting inside …
Not in your life.
The wide receiver slipped left and put the corner on the ground without ever laying a hand on him and put Missouri up 27-24.
It was Luther Burden’s day.
The St. Louis star finished with seven receptions for 114 yards — his second straight game with more than 100 — and two touchdowns.
Third-down woes persist
As is becoming more and more common in CoMo, Missouri’s defensive playmakers showed out.
Ty’Ron Hopper tracked sideline to sideline for his eight tackles. The corner duo of Ennis Rakestraw Jr. and Kris Abrams-Draine were rock solid against an incredibly dangerous group of wide receivers. Rakestraw finished with seven tackles and was excellent in the open field.
The pass rush hounded Will Howard into at least four dangerous throws, one of which resulted in Abrams-Draine’s first pick of the season in the first quarter. The others grazed the fingers of Hopper and Jaylon Carlies on either end of the half. The first, however, bounced out of Carlies’ hands on the goal line up into the air ... and into KSU wide receiver Phillip Brooks’ open arms.
The third-down deflected completion was not an uncommon result.
Drinkwitz said a goal of the defense was to get better with third-down stops. Consider that unfulfilled.
Kansas State went 8-of-17 on third down, including all three of the Wildcats’ touchdown completions.
