'A Stubborn Refusal to Quit': Mizzou Shows Grit and Chemistry in Cotton Bowl Win
ARLINGTON, Tx. — In the locker room at Faurot Field, the Missouri Tigers are reminded of this message on a sign: "When the weakest choose to run, we stand shoulder to shoulder and move forward together."
When the Tigers were heading into the final quarter of Friday's Cotton Bowl against Ohio State, the team had no choice but to resemble that saying. Missouri was scoreless, trailing the Buckeyes 3-0. The most successful drive in the first three quarters had been a four-play, 26-yard trip that was stopped by the time expiring for the first half.
But the 2023 Missouri team was no stranger to adversity.
"We've been at the bottom," quarterback Brady Cook said. "We've had some tough years, some tough games, tough experiences together. An opportunity like this comes up, there's nothing but excitement. ... We were going to fight all four quarters for this one."
Near the end of the third quarter though, something had switched for the Missouri offense. The Ohio State defense was exhausted as their offense was just as inefficient, punting on six of the last seven drives since scoring a field-goal in the first quarter.
"We knew they couldn't score, we just knew the offense had to get something to get a little momentum," Missouri wide receiver Luther Burden III said.
Starting a drive with 4:25 remaining in the third quarter at the own five yard line, Missouri was still waiting for any sign of life on offense. The drive started behind the power of running back Cody Schrader, who had a 10-yard carry to provide breathing room for his offense. The success for Schrader allowed things to finally open up for the Missouri passing game. Cook rainbowed a 50-yard pass into to the hands of freshman wide receiver Marquis Johnson for the longest play of the game.
"We just needed a spark to get us going and, Marquis Johnson, I feel like he got us going with the big play, got some momentum and we got going after that," Burden said.
Three plays after Johnson's reception, Schrader scored Missouri's first touchdown on a seven-yard rush. After another stop by the Missouri defense, the Tigers had the chance to put the game away with 11 minutes left. Utilizing Schrader to drain the clock, Missouri went on the longest drive of the night, going 13 plays for 91 yards and ending with a seven-yard receiving touchdown from Burden. After failing to score on the first nine drives, Missouri scored touchdowns on two consecutive possessions when it mattered most.
"The offense showed grit," Cook said. "We just kept chopping. We looked up, it's fourth quarter, and we have zero points. But what are you going to do? We were driving. We were confident. We still believed in the game plan. Still believed in the calls that were being sent in. And we believed in each other. So, when we put up 14 in the fourth, it's no surprise to us."
The fate of the game rested in the hands of the Missouri defense to put the final nail in Ohio State's coffin. It did just that. Junior defensive back Daylan Carnell pounced on quarterback Lincoln Kienholz, causing a fumble that defensive end Joe Moore recovered, and the celebration was on.
"But the story of the game is how hard our defense played," Missouri head coach Eli Drinkwitz said. "Refused to give in. Refused to blame or place blame. Stick together, and then our offense just kept chopping wood."
The Tigers defense held the Buckeyes just 203 total yards and had 10 tackles for loss. Junior defensive end Johnny Walker Jr. was named the game's most outstanding defensive player of the game after causing a strip-sack in the first half.
The Missouri defense could've became frustrated when the offense wasn't carrying the weight in the first three quarters. Instead, the team continued to stick together as one unit, a testament to its unique connectivity.
"We're a bunch of wilderness brotherhood guys who stick together, fight together, found a way to love each other and had each other's back," Drinkwitz said. "And I knew at any point — I mean, at the locker room, these guys will tell you, I was telling them, we are right where we want to be. Let's just go win the game. They believed in us."
The 2023 Missouri team will be remembered for being just that, a team/ The idea of playing for the name on the front of the jersey and not the one on the back was not just a cliche to this group.
This was exemplified in the acts of two veteran members of Missouri's team in defensive back Kris Abrams-Draine and defensive end Darius Robinson.
Abrams-Draine went into the medical tent during the game and discovered his shoulder was separated. Drinkwitz told him he should sit out the rest of the game. The junior responded to Drinkwitz with "the hell I am."
Robinson suffered a groin injury in the middle of the week but played the entirety of Friday's game.
"Those guys have NFL futures and said, 'nope we're playing for each other and we're not giving into that mindset,'" Drinkwitz said. "That's a legacy that's going to be passed on. Those guys put it on the line for our football team tonight."
Friday's Cotton Bowl win has the potential to define a significant amount of the legacy for the new era of Tigers football. The victory not only wrapped up a momentous season for the team but could help change the identity and culture of the program for years to come.
"This game was big for the 2023 Tigers to cap off an incredible season for the people who chose to come back further last year and chose to come back instead of going to the NFL," Cook said. "It's special for them and that group. But it's also special for our team next year, the guys who are coming back for one more, the coaches, the brotherhood. This is just going to give us more momentum"
In the upcoming season, Missouri football will have high expectations to continue this success, which brings a whole new set of challenges that the Tigers have not had to deal with in Drinkwitz's tenure.
"So everything's coming together now but we do understand that everything is twice as hard at the top of the mountain," Drinkwitz said. "So whatever we did to achieve this year, it's going to be twice as hard. We're going to have to battle a whole new set of problems."
The fourth-year head coach aims for the team to not lose vision of the mindset that took the Tigers to new heights in 2023.
"It's why stop now, that's the mentality," Drinkwitz said. "We've worked really hard to get to this opportunity and we're not going to sit here and change."
There is a strong sense that this season will only be the beginning of success for Missouri. Even the players feel it.
"I think next year's team is going to be even better," Robinson said. "I think this is just the start for the program and I'm glad I was able to be the start of something. ... I'm just excited that we were able to get the win but theres bigger things coming at Mizzou."
If Missouri has similar success in 2024, one of the key components will be continuing to build the chemistry that took this group so far. It was arguably the Tigers' most important component this season.
It was the glue that held them together in the final 15 minutes of the Cotton Bowl after three brutal quarters. In a moment where they could've turned on each other, they stood shoulder to shoulder and moved forward together to victory.
