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    • Mizzou players share reaction to missed Vanderbilt field goal, Tigers win
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    Mizzou players share reaction to missed Vanderbilt field goal, Tigers win

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    When Vanderbilt kicker Brock Taylor trotted onto the field to make a 31-yard field goal in double overtime, Missouri quarterback Brady Cook was focused on preparing for the next drive.

    “I was just preparing for the two-point plays,” Cook said. “If he had done that, it would have been a two-point back-and-forth. Basically, (I) was just going over the three or four calls that we were preparing for.”

    No two-point attempts were needed, however, as Taylor’s kick missed to the left and sent a rush of Missouri players onto the court. The shock of his miss sent a roar through Memorial Stadium.

    “It was like a weight was lifted off my shoulders,” defensive tackle Chris McClellan said. “It’s a great feeling, man. To know that we got that win.”

    Despite coming in as a 20-point favorite, there was never a comfortable moment for Missouri in the win. It held a lead for just 7:57 of regulation, with multiple score and lead changes along the way. With the score changes came multiple emotional swings.

    “Man, it’s a lot of ups and downs in the game like that,” McClellan said. “It’s just really hard to go out there and keep your head up, especially the way we started.”

    Despite the Tigers’ struggles on offense and strong defense, they walked away with a win that put them 4-0 on the year and 1-0 in conference.

    “A win is a win, no matter what,” McClellan said.

    The toughness of the defense was more than certainly a key to the victory for the Tigers. Even with a poor start in the first quarter, they were able to limit Vanderbilt to 4-of-14 on third down conversions.

    “Personally, as a defense, we started off a little slow,” McClellan said. “But I thought we, you know, hung in there at the end. We went in there and just came hard with it.”

    Standing on the sidelines while the other team’s kicker decides your fate can’t be easy. Missouri’s offense, unable to score on third down and forced to settle for a field goal, could only watch as Taylor got a chance to send the game into overtime.

    “We were just watching. We were just waiting to see what would happen,” running back Nate Noel said. “Fingers crossed. And we were just watching.”

    Cook couldn’t resist showing some emotion after Taylor’s kick went well, too. He didn’t have his best performance leading the offense, with 226 passing yards and two touchdowns on 23-for-37 efficiency.

    “I was absolutely happy when he missed,” Cook said.

    Despite a poor team performance, Missouri was able to add a win to the left side of the record column. They will get a bye week to reflect and improve on their First Four performance before traveling to College Station for their first road test of the year against Texas A&M.

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    ‘It’s not good enough’: Cook-led offense struggles in Vanderbilt win

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