Chiefs quarterback Daniel reflects on Cotton Bowl
Mention the name “Chase Daniel” to a Missouri football fan, and all sorts of memories from the 2007-08 football season will come to mind.
Mention “Cotton Bowl” to the Mizzou legend, and he will tell you all about the team experience in his hometown.
Daniel may play this week against the Chargers, as the Chiefs have a wild card spot clinched and could rest Alex Smith during the game. This is also the week leading up to the 2014 Cotton Bowl Classic, six years after Mizzou left Dallas with a Cotton Bowl win.
“The week leading up to the Cotton Bowl was one of the best weeks of my life,” Daniel said after Chiefs practice this week. “I think the Cotton Bowl is second to none in non-BCS bowls. I think the Cotton Bowl is right up there with BCS bowls.”
Statistically, Daniel had a pedestrian Cotton Bowl. That is only because running back Tony Temple ran for 281 yards and four touchdowns, both Cotton Bowl records.
“He really carried the team that day,” the former Mizzou quarterback said. “It sort of culminated our great season. I think we finished 12-2 and number four in the country.”
Daniel added that this year’s team has the chance to finish inside the top five in the rankings.
“They are going to be ready for the game for sure.”
Many try to compare the ’07 team (believed to be one of the greatest teams in school history) and this year’s Tiger squad. Statistically, the teams are identical. Daniel’s team scored more points per game (39.9) than the one led by James Franklin (39.0) so far. However, Missouri’s defense in 2013 gave up less points (22.5) than the 2007 team (23.3).
After you crunch the numbers, you can tell not much separates the team. The same goes for the intangibles.
“I think we just complimented each other,” Daniel points out when reflecting on the character of the 2007 team. “We never got too low with the lows, too high with the highs. We just worried about the next play and moved on and continued to do great things throughout the season.”
Daniel finished with 4,306 passing yards and 33 touchdown passes. He was only intercepted 11 times on 563 pass attempts and finished fourth in the Heisman voting.
When asked if he had any advice for the Tiger team playing in the 2014 Cotton Bowl, Daniel said, “Enjoy it.”
