Mizzou responds to its first loss with a 42-point win against Massachusetts

AMHERST, Mass. (KMIZ)

After No. 21 Mizzou’s first loss of the season against Texas A&M in Week 7, head coach Eli Drinkwitz urged his group to respond positively. The Tigers delivered the response Drinkwitz was looking for.

MU outscored Massachusetts 45-3, putting them back in the win column, fueled by a balanced effort throwing and running the football. Mizzou (5-1) finished the game with 461 yards of total offense, including 230 yards through the air and 231 yards on the ground.

The Tigers only needed two offensive plays to find the end zone on Saturday afternoon. Luther Burden III scored a 61-yard touchdown on a jet sweep before the first minute of the game had expired. From there, Mizzou scored two more touchdowns in the first half against Massachusetts (1-6), both thanks to short-yard carries from running back Marcus Carroll. The Georgia State transfer finished the game with three rushing touchdowns.

Overall, Carroll led MU’s rushing attack with 91 yards on 15 attempts. Carroll and Lacy managed the majority of the carries in a contest in which fellow running back Nate Noel did not play. Drinkwitz confirmed that the Appalachian State transfer missed the game due to a back strain.

Burden III also had to end the game early after suffering a severe blow while trying to catch a slanting shot from Brady Cook. When asked about Burden III’s status on the ESPN2 broadcast, Drinkwitz told the sideline reporter, “He’ll be fine.” However, he had no injury updates to share during the postgame press conference. Before leaving the game, the St. Louis native led the team with five catches for 59 yards and ranked second on the team in rushing, gaining 68 yards on the ground on just two carries.

After taking a 24-3 lead into the locker room, MU scored three more goals in the second half. First, Carroll broke free for a 35-yard touchdown. The Tigers then scored two goals through the air. Joshua Manning scored the first touchdown of his college career on a 63-yard pass from Cook to give Mizzou a 35-point lead, and Brett Norfleet caught his first touchdown pass of the 2024 season in the closing minutes of the third quarter to extend his lead Teams out to 45-3.

Cook was efficient in Saturday’s bounce-back win, completing about 73% of his throws for 219 passing yards and two touchdowns. He also rushed three times for 16 yards on the ground.

Next, MU returns to Faurot Field for the 113th edition of Homecoming. The Tigers will welcome Auburn to Columbia on Saturday, October 19th. Kick-off is scheduled for 11 a.m