Tigers lean on Steele, surge late to beat MTSU 67-53
After the Missouri Tigers shut down the talented LSU offense last week, in Death Valley, most people thought that Middle Tennessee State and their band of 2 and 3 star players that most major universities did not recruit would not muster any offense.
For a quarter they were right, as the Tigers got out to a quick start, taking a 6-0 lead after a fade route to the endzone left M. Smith all alone.
M. Smith got open and Missouri got a 6-0 lead
Coleman missed the PAT, but it hardly mattered, as Missouri went on a 27 point run, taking a 27-0 lead with 4:35 left in the second quarter.
J. Johnson was a huge reason why, as the MTSU quarterback was highly ineffective in the first quarter, going 4 for 16 with an interception.
Who!?- J. Johnson was highly rattled in the first quarter and half at Faurot Field
Missouri was comfortable ahead 27-0 and made a few substitutions to get their second string some valuable practice. J. Johnson and company made a comeback, rattled off 20 straight points to make it 27-20 at halftime.
Halftime score
#1 Missouri (1-0) 27
Middle Tennessee State (0-0) 20
Missouri and Middle Tennessee State traded runs in the fourth quarter, with Missouri gaining a slight edge, heading into the fourth quarter ahead by 11.
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After 3 quarters
#1 Missouri (1-0) 41
Middle Tennessee State (0-0) 30
In the fourth quarter things got hairy. J. Johnson started off going a perfect 9 for 9 after fumbling the ball on his first drive on an option run. Middle Tennessee kept pounding, and Missouri blew an 18 point lead late in the quarter.
A. Hicks ran in two straight touchdowns and their 2-pt conversions to take a 48-37 game and make it 53-48 in favor of the Blue Raiders with 1:55 left in the game.
Missouri rallied under the leadership of N. Bailey, who marched them 93 yards in 11 plays for a touchdown on a 33 yard pass to J. Thomas, and Missouri snuck ahead 58-53.
J. Johnson made a bad pass shortly after that while backed up against his own goal line, and Missouri got the safety, making it a 60-53 game with 1:31 left.
J. Johnson's bad decision to throw it short cost MTSU the ball
Missouri got the ball back, and marched down field and scored, taking a 14 point, 67-53 lead with 19 seconds left.
Of course MTSU aired it out, and the legendary D. Washington added to his career interception total with a dandy to seal the game.
Tiger fans everywhere are glad Washington is back playing D this year
Missouri POTG
N. Bailey 27 for 41 for 356 yards, 5 TD, 0 int, and sacked twice
D. Steele had 46 carries for 334 yards and 3 TD. He also had 4 catches for 35 yards and a touchdown.
M. Smith had 10 catches for 159 yards and a trifecta of touchdowns
M. Wilson had 9 tackles and 2 sacks and 1 FF
MTSU POTG
J. Johnson 31 for 57 for 471 yards, 4 TD, 1 Int, and sacked 4 times
D. Newby had 16 catches for 256 yards and 2 TD
D. Bailey had 7 catches for 106 yards and 1 TD
| Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders at Missouri Tigers |
| Sep 5, 2015 | 1ST | 2ND | 3RD | 4TH | SCORE |
| Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders (0-0) | 0 | 20 | 10 | 23 | 53 |
| #1 Missouri Tigers (1-0) | 13 | 14 | 14 | 26 | 67 |
| Team Stats Comparison |
| MTU | MIZZ |
| Total Offense | 564 | 729 |
| Rushing Yards | 93 | 373 |
| Passing Yards | 471 | 356 |
| First Downs | 21 | 30 |
| Punt Return Yards | 18 | 3 |
| Kick Return Yards | 102 | 70 |
| Total Yards | 684 | 802 |
| Turnovers | 3 | 0 |
| 3rd Down Converstion | 6-10 | 11-19 |
| 4th Down Conversion | 1-1 | 2-2 |
| 2-Point Conversion | 2-3 | 0-0 |
| Red Zone Touchdowns/Field Goals | 4-2-1 | 7-5-1 |
| Penalties | 4 for 27 yards | 5 for 55 yards |
| Posession Time | 12:44 | 19:16 |
| Scoring Summary |
| FIRST QUARTER SCORING | MTU | MIZZ |
| 5:56 | (MIZZ) M. Smith 9 yard pass from N. Bailey (missed PAT) | 0 | 6 |
| 1:47 | (MIZZ) M. Smith 35 yard pass from N. Bailey (PAT) | 0 | 13 |
| SECOND QUARTER SCORING | MTU | MIZZ |
| 6:51 | (MIZZ) M. Smith 7 yard pass from N. Bailey (PAT) | 0 | 20 |
| 4:35 | (MIZZ) S. Ray returned a fumble 15 yards (PAT) | 0 | 27 |
| 3:31 | (MTU) D, Newby 30 yard pass from J. Johnson (PAT) | 7 | 27 |
| 1:31 | (MTU) C. Hart 10 yard run (2 pt failed) | 13 | 27 |
| 0:03 | (MTU) C. Alexander 25 yard pass from J. Johnson (PAT) | 20 | 27 |
| THIRD QUARTER SCORING | MTU | MIZZ |
| 7:01 | (MTU) M. Watkins 27 yard FG | 23 | 27 |
| 5:44 | (MIZZ) D. Steele 40 yard run (PAT) | 23 | 34 |
| 5:00 | (MTU) D. Newby 80 yard pass from J. Johnson (PAT) | 30 | 34 |
| 2:44 | (MIZZ) D. Steele 10 yard pass from N. Bailey (PAT) | 30 | 41 |
| FOURTH QUARTER SCORING | MTU | MIZZ |
| 7:44 | (MIZZ) D. Steele 4 yard run (PAT) | 30 | 48 |
| 6:23 | (MTU) D. Bailey 57 yard pass from J. Johnson (PAT) | 37 | 48 |
| 4:57 | (MIZZ) M. Coleman 22 yard FG | 37 | 51 |
| 3:54 | (MTU) A. Hicks 4 yard run (2pt conversion good) | 45 | 51 |
| 2:34 | (MTU) A. Hicks 52 yard run (2pt conversion good) | 53 | 51 |
| 1:55 | (MIZZ) J. Thomas 33 yard pass from N. Bailey (PAT) | 53 | 58 |
| 1:31 | (MIZZ) Safety (MTSU team safety) | 53 | 60 |
| 0:19 | (MIZZ) D. Steele 1 yard run (PAT) | 53 | 67 |