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Missouri stuns No. 17 LSU with a late goal-line stand

nick bromberg
Senior writer
·2 min read

Missouri stopped No. 17 LSU four times from the 1-yard line with less than a minute left to secure a 45-41 upset victory.

LSU seemed destined for the victory after a Terrace Marshall catch got the Tigers within a yard of a go-ahead TD with 44 seconds left. But two running plays got stopped before LSU called timeout with 22 seconds left. A third-down pass was knocked down by Mizzou LB Nick Bolton and Myles Brennan’s fourth-down pass to Marshall was deflected by Missouri DB Joshuah Bledsoe.

Misouri QB Connor Bazelak shredded the LSU defense for 406 passing yards and four touchdowns. Bazelak was 29-of-34 passing. He had just one more incompletion than he did passing touchdowns.

Missouri piled up 586 yards of offense on an LSU defense that routinely left receivers wide open. RB Larry Rountree also had 119 yards on 18 carries.

LSU’s passing game was pretty good too. Brennan was 29-of-48 passing for 430 yards and four touchdowns. Three of those went to Marshall, who had 11 catches for 235 yards.

But LSU couldn’t run the ball against a Missouri defensive line that was missing key players because of positive coronavirus tests and contact tracing. LSU had just 49 rushing yards on 20 carries.

LSU safety Todd Harris Jr. walks off the field following a 45-41 upset loss to Missouri in an NCAA college football game Saturday, Oct. 10, 2020, in Columbia, Mo. (AP Photo/L.G. Patterson)
LSU is now 1-2. (AP Photo/L.G. Patterson)

LSU also failed to win the game despite recovering three Missouri fumbles and not turning the ball over itself. Those turnovers even turned into 17 LSU points.

Missouri didn’t go away. Bazelak was making the first start of his career and was missing three of his top five wide receivers because of coronavirus protocols. He was fantastic.

Four different players caught touchdown passes and Tauskie Dove led the team with six catches for 83 yards. Chance Luper — the son of Missouri assistant Curtis Luper — also had a huge 69-yard catch on Missouri’s go-ahead touchdown drive. Luper was extraordinarily open on the play and helped set up a five-yard TD pass from Bazelak to TE Niko Hea.

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