No. 23 Mizzou wins first SEC road game of season at Mississippi State
STARKVILLE, Miss. (KMIZ)
SEC road trips have been a problem for No. 23 Mizzou football all season long, but not on Saturday in Starkville. Head coach Eli Drinkwitz and company cruised to a 39-20 win over Mississippi State. That marked the team's first conference road win of the 2024 season.
The Tigers only trailed once in Saturday's win, down 3-0 in the first few minutes of the game. But, Mizzou responded in a big way with a scoop and score touchdown from standout Daylan Carnell. He brought back a fumble 68 yards to mark his first touchdown of 2024. With that score, he's now found end zone in all three of his seasons in Columbia.
The offense took the scoring from there, though.
Running back Marcus Carroll was the first offensive player to find end zone in Davis Wade Stadium, as he punched in a two-yard touchdown to complete a 75-yard drive from the MU offense in the first quarter. That score gave his team a 14-3 lead.
Carroll would go on to score two more touchdowns to complete a hat trick on Saturday. He ended the day with 61 yards on 14 carries and three end zone trips. However, his counterpart Nate Noel also had a strong outing, as he ran for 95 yards on 25 carries.
In fact, according to Mizzou spokesperson Dave Matter, Mizzou tallied 56 rushing attempts overall, which is the second-most of the Drinkwitz era at MU. It's the most since his team put up 62 attempts versus Kentucky in 2020.
Offensive coordinator Kirby Moore also got the passing attack going in the win against the Bulldogs. Quarterback Brady Cook, who continues to play through injury, threw for 268 yards and onee touchdown, completing 75 percent of his passes.
That one touchdown came on a tremendous throw to star wide receiver Luther Burden at the start of the second quarter. Cook launched a dime 28 yards for a score at the back of the end zone. It was the second-straight game that Burden has scored a touchdown. The St. Louis native tallied 91 yards receiving for an average of about 13 yards per play.
Defensively, coordinator Corey Batoon's unit had a few plays they would want back, as the unit gave up more than 330 yards of total offense. However, the Tigers made enough stops on that side of the ball to get the win.
Linebacker Triston Newson and defensive back Jospeh Charleston led the charge on the defensive end with six tackles apiece. The Tigers did record two sacks on Mississippi State, courtesy of defensive tackle Kristian Williams and defensive end Johnny Walker Jr.
Up next - Mizzou will return home for the final game of the regular season. Drinkwitz and company will host Arkansas on Saturday, Nov. 30 at 2:30 p.m.
