COLUMBIA, Mo. – Two long first-quarter touchdowns – a 78-yard punt return by Luther Burden III and a 79-yard Brady Cook-to-Dominic Lovett pass – sent the Missouri Tigers (2-1) on their way to a 34-17 victory over the Abilene Christian Wildcats (2-1) at Faurot Field.
Burden scored when the Tigers forced the Wildcats to punt after three plays on the game’s opening possession. He scooped the bouncing ball off the ground, broke to his right and ran untouched down the west sideline to the end zone behind a convoy of blockers. It was the first time Mizzou’s opening score was a punt return since Bob Orf turned the trick in 1939 in a 7-6 win for the 12th-ranked Tigers over the fifth-ranked Oklahoma Sooners in Columbia. It was also Burden’s first punt return as a Tiger.
For the game, he returned four punts for 111 yards, caught six passes for 58 yards and ran three times for eight yards. Burden also became the seventh Tiger in history to record touchdowns rushing, receiving and via punt return in the same season, and the first since Marcus Murphy in 2014.
Two plays after ACU’s Cole Zepeda connected on a 39-yard field goal to make the score 7-3, Cook unloaded the bomb to a wide-open Lovett who caught it and sprinted to his first career receiving touchdown. It was Mizzou’s longest play from scrimmage since Drew Lock connected with Johnathon Johnson for an 85-yard score in the 2018 Liberty Bowl against Oklahoma State.In the second quarter, Harrison Mevis booted a 31-yard field goal to give the Tigers a 17-3 halftime lead.
An Ennis Rakestraw, Jr. pass interception early in the third quarter set up a short touchdown that Nathaniel Peat scored on a six-yard pass from Cook. The drive was kept alive on a third-and-nine when Barrett Banister caught a 25-yard pass down to the six-yard line. It was the 100th reception of his career, making him the 25th Tiger to hit the century mark.
Moments later, Rakestraw forced a fumble that was recovered by Chad Bailey at the ACU 35-yard line, but after a drive stalled, Mevis missed a 52-yard field goal wide left. On Mizzou’s next possession, Cook fumbled on a sack by David Oke in the end zone and Alexander Duke recovered for a Wildcats touchdown.
Cook responded by driving the Tigers 75 yards in eight plays and tossed a 13-yard scoring pass to Lovett that gave Mizzou a 31-10 lead. Lovett finished the game as MU’s leading receiver with seven catches for 132 yards.
The Tigers got a 52-yard field goal from Mevis in the fourth quarter, before Abilene Christian scored its final points on a 49-yard pass from Maverick McIvor to Blayne Taylor. Missouri amassed 487 yards of total offense and limited ACU to 308. Cook completed 21-of-30 passes for 292 yards and three TDs. Cody Schrader led the rushing attack with 54 yards on 10 carries.
UP NEXT
The Tigers will open Southeastern Conference play on the road against the Auburn Tigers. Game time on Saturday, Sept. 24, is 11 a.m. (ESPN) at Jordan-Hare Stadium.
