No. 24 Missouri defeated No. 24 Boston College 27-21 on Saturday afternoon at Memorial Stadium after outscoring the University of Buffalo 38-0.
The Tigers are making a historic start to the 2024 college football season, the first since the 1935 season when the team shut out William Jewell and Warrensburg Normal in back-to-back games. Despite the loss to Missouri State, the Eagles are off to a hot start to the season. Boston College opened the 2024 season with a 28-13 win over then-Florida State on Sept. 10. 2. They beat Duquesne 56-0 on Saturday to move into the AP Top 25 for the first time since the 2018 season. The loss was the Tigers’ first of the season.
Missouri’s offense was outstanding at times, with Brady Cook completing 21 of 30 passes for 264 yards and a touchdown while also adding a second-half touchdown to help secure the win. Junior running back Luther Burden III had his best game of the season, catching six passes for 117 yards and a touchdown. Missouri quarterback Nate Noel rushed for 121 yards on 22 carries to help the Tigers improve to 3-0.
Although the defense gave up their first points of the season, they still showed resilience throughout the game. Boston College quarterback Tomas Castellanos was intercepted twice by the Death Row Defense, scoring both times on offense. They also held Boston College to just 46 rushing yards. Here are the latest updates on the entire game:
Missouri’s defense shuts down as the Tigers lead 3-0
After a phantom penalty against the Tigers late in the third quarter, Missouri gave the football away to Boston College. Two plays later, Missouri cornerback Dryden Norwood intercepted Thomas Castellanos’ pass, bringing the Missouri offense back into the game. The Tigers took advantage of the turnovers on offense, and with 7:24 left on 14 plays, Blake Craig’s 31-yard field goal extended Missouri’s lead to 27-14.
After the field goal, Boston College took over and quickly began to attack. The Eagles marched 75 yards in just over two minutes, capped by Castellanos’ 38-yard touchdown run to tight end Kamari Morales. Boston College closed the gap to 27-21. Missouri led with 3:40 left and aimed to run out the clock. On a crucial third-and-7, Cook dropped back and found Bearden for an 11-yard reception to help move the chains. After Brady Cook scored again, the Tigers rallied to secure their third win of the 2024 season
Brady Cook rushes for another touchdown to put Missouri up 24-14
After a strong first half, Missouri State’s offense took the field first to start the second half and picked up where it left off. Missouri quarterback Brady Cook added to the Tigers’ lead with a nine-play 6-yard touchdown run. It was Cook’s fourth touchdown of the season.
Boston College struggled against Missouri State’s high-powered offense to open the second half and opted to go for a quick three-and-out at halftime. The Tigers didn’t have much of an answer either, giving up after just six overs.
The Eagles’ second drive of the second half wasn’t much better than the first. Facing a stingy Missouri defense, Castellanos started the drive with 5:10 left in the third quarter, only to be flagged for an illegal forward pass. A turnover and false start left Boston College even further behind, leading to the team’s second score of the half. After a mirage of free throws from Boston College’s offense, Missouri followed suit. On the first play of the game, Tigers outfielder Luther Burden III received an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty after throwing an opponent’s mouth guard. After completing a screen pass to Burden on 2nd-and-25, the penalties continued and MU was penalized for a backside block and an unnecessary roughness on Burden for throwing the ball down the sideline.
Missouri is coming off a 17-14 lead at Boston College
After Luke Bauer’s punt ended Missouri’s second drive, Thomas Castellans and the Eagles took the lead again in their third. On 1st-and-10 from his own 33-yard line, Castellanos dropped a punt, ran to catch the ball, then immediately turned and threw a 67-yard touchdown pass to redshirt freshman Reed Harris. Looking for momentum after trailing 14-3, the Tigers needed a play to regain momentum and get back into the game. That’s when Missouri quarterback Brady Cook hit junior running back Luther Burden III for a 44-yard gain that put the Tigers right in the red zone. However, a Connor Tollison fumble and two punts led to another 38-yard run by Blake Craig to cut Mississippi’s deficit to 14-6.
Castellanos and the Eagles then regained control of the offense and the Tigers defense turned the tide with a game-changing performance. After the call pushed the Eagles back to the 15-yard line, Castellanos appeared to go deep downfield. But Missouri quarterback Tre’Vez Johnson picked off the ball on a baseline pass, giving the Tigers a score in their own territory and a chance to tie the game with 4:30 left in the half. Driving with his strong momentum, Cook found Burden for a 19-yard pass on third down for a quick score. Quarterback Nate Noel tied the score at 14-14 with 3:04 left in the second quarter after a 2-point field goal. Boston College was unable to drive deep into Missouri on its next drive, resulting in a drive with 42 seconds left in the half, giving Missouri the lead at its own 9-yard line. Despite the time constraints, the Tigers were efficient down the field, allowing redshirt freshman Blake Craig to complete his career-long 56-yard field goal with relative ease. Despite looking bleak at times in the first half, Missouri took a three-point lead into halftime.
Boston College scores first, Eagles lead Tigers 7-3
After winning the coin toss and electing to punt, Missouri State’s defense appeared to shut down Boston College’s offense on its first possession. However, the glaring penalty gave the Eagles new life.
Boston College then made the Tigers pay by working in the red zone and using quarterback Thomas Castellan to set up wide receiver Jerand Bradley’s 12-yard touchdown. It was the first time Missouri’s defense had allowed a score since last season’s Cotton Bowl game against Ohio State.
On the first play of the Tigers’ offense, running back Nate Noel rushed 2 times for 26 yards before falling short of his own red zone. Redshirt freshman Blake Craig hit a 38-yarder to put the Tigers up 7-3.