LAWRENCE, Kan. – Crossing into Border War enemy territory for the first time in two decades, the No. 23 Missouri Tigers claimed another battle against their fiercest rivals on Saturday, pulling away from hated rival Kansas 38-21 in the 122nd renewal of the StorageMart Border Showdown at David Booth Kansas Memorial Stadium.
The win stretched the Tigers’ streak against the Jayhawks to five in a row in the series and six of the last seven matchups. The five-game win streak matches the series’ longest streak in its century-plus history.
In front of a sold-out crowd of 32,000 at Kansas’ partially renovated stadium, quarterback Austin Simmons dazzled in the first half, finishing with 292 passing yards and three touchdowns, while the Tigers played keep-away in the second half, running the ball on 15 consecutive snaps in the fourth quarter before Simmons iced the victory with a fourth-down touchdown pass to Brett Norfleet in the closing minutes.
Winners of 15 consecutive regular-season games against nonconference opponents, Mizzou improved to 2-0 on the season while Kansas fell to 1-1. Mizzou leads the series against Kansas 59-54-9, but Friday night’s victory was the Tigers’ first in Lawrence since a 38-34 decision in 2001 – Gary Pinkel’s first year as MU head coach.
On KU’s first possession of the second half and the score tied 14-14, linebacker Robert Woodyard forced and recovered a fumble by Kansas quarterback Isaiah Marshall at the KU 35 yard line, and five plays later Simmons threw a 8-yard touchdown pass to Donovan Olugbode for Mizzou’s first lead of the game at 21-14.
On Kansas’ next play, Woodyard intercepted a Marshall pass over the middle and returned it 28 yards to the KU 12 and running back Xai’Shaun Edwards scored his first Mizzou TD on a 10-yard run that increased MU’s lead to 28-14. Woodyard, along with fellow LB Nicholas Rodriguez and safety Santana Banner, led MU tacklers with six apiece.
In the fourth quarter, a Tiger drive of 61 yards stalled out at the KU 12 and Blake Craig kicked a 32-yard field goal to up MU’s cushion to 31-21 with 11:46 remaining. Mizzou took over on downs late in the game at the Kansas 14-yard line, and on fourth down, Simmons connected with Norfleet on a 13-yard touchdown pass to close out the scoring.
Simmons completed 19 of 29 passes for 292 yards and three touchdowns, leading the Mizzou offense to 469 total yards. Kansas managed just 255.
Jamal Roberts powered the Mizzou running game with 125 yards on 28 carries, while Olugbode and Cayden Lee each caught six passes for the Tigers for 121 and 120 yards, respectively.
The Tigers overcame a sluggish start in their first game at Kansas in 21 years as dropped passes, two blocked field goals and some untimely penalties stalled some early bursts. But Mizzou came alive in the second half, outscoring their Big 12 foes 14-0 in the third quarter to recapture momentum for good.
Roberts shook off an early fumble with a 64-yard touchdown dash midway through the second quarter, surging untouched off the right side for longest run of his college career. Getting the ball back after a stalled KU drive, Simmons ran the 2-minute drill with precision, hitting Lee for a game-tying 27-yard touchdown strike with 30 seconds until halftime.
Simmons broke the halftime stalemate with an 8-yard bullet to Olugbode in the end zone on another clutch third-down completion, putting the Tigers ahead 21-14 just minutes into the third quarter.
Woodyard, another impact transfer from within the SEC, made his presence felt in the third quarter with takeaways on consecutive drives, first forcing and recovering a KU fumble deep in Jayhawk territory to set up Simmons’ go-ahead touchdown pass to Olugbode. A series later, Woodyard picked off Kansas’ Isaiah Marshall on the possession’s first play from scrimmage, leading to another quick Tigers’ score, a 10-yard Edwards touchdown run for a 28-14 lead — just 28 seconds after the last Mizzou TD.
The Tigers invaded the red zone to open the fourth quarter but settled for a Craig field goal for a 31-21 lead, later followed by the final TD pass to Norfleet.
UP NEXT
The Tigers return home for their final nonconference game of the season against the Troy Trojans. Game time on Saturday, Sept. 19 is 6 p.m. At the game, the 100th anniversary of Memorial Stadium will be celebrated and Mizzou’s 1960 national championship team will be feted.
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