No. 9 Missouri capped a breakthrough season under fourth-year coach Eli Drinkwitz on Friday by defeating No. 7 Ohio State 14-3 in the Cotton Bowl and finishing 11-2. The Buckeyes held Mizzou scoreless through the first three quarters before Cody Schrader broke through with a 7-yard touchdown run on the opening play of the fourth quarter.
The Tigers provided some security with 5:12 left when Brady Cook capped a 13-play, 91-yard drive by finding Luther Burden for a 7-yard touchdown pass. Missouri's defense took care of the rest as the Tigers picked up their second-ever win over Ohio State and first since 1976.
Freshman quarterback Lincoln Kienholz was forced to play in the second quarter for Ohio State after Devin Brown suffered a severe ankle sprain in his first career start, coach Ryan Day said. With star receiver and Heisman Trophy finalist Marvin Harrison Jr. also out, the Buckeyes simply lacked their usual offensive power.
Schrader finished with 128 yards rushing, surpassing 1,600 yards this year and passing Tyler Badie for Missouri's single-season rushing record. Cook managed 128 passing yards and 66 rushing yards as he went from a slow start to six consecutive completions during a critical period in the second half.
- Missouri is now 3-0 in the 21st Century Cotton Bowl, having defeated Arkansas on January 1, 2008 and Oklahoma State on January 3, 2014
- Until this year, the Tigers hadn't won more than eight games in a season since 2014
- Ohio State finished with 203 total yards. Last season's low was 328 yards.
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