Late game lapses in the passing game lead to Mizzou's first loss

STARKVILLE, Miss. — Missouri led No. 24 Mississippi State 24-17 going into the fourth quarter but were unable to hang on in its SEC opener. Losing a close game to a top-25 team is nothing new for Missouri as the loss marks the fourth single-possession defeat to a ranked conference opponent in the last three years.

Last season, the Tigers fell in all four ranked SEC games and were given a late-game drive to tie or win the game in the first two. Against Mississippi State, the Tigers were given two drives to secure the win, but neither proved to be enough.

"We battled on the road, had an opportunity to get it done," head coach Eli Drinkwitz said. "This is this year's team, this year's journey. (We) battled our butt off, came up about third-and-(three), fourth-and-(three) short."

There's no denying the Tigers are a different team than last year, as the passing game looks much stronger with the combination of quarterback Austin Simmons, receivers Cayden Lee and Donovan Olugbode. But the troubles of winning close games have bled into the 2026 season and the Tigers' offense in the clutch is to blame for part of that.

Missouri was scoreless in the fourth quarter, coming up empty on four drives. After its first two drives of four plays or less, Mississippi State responded with two touchdown-drives to retake the lead. Without the lapses in the secondary coverage during the second touchdown-drive, the offense would not have been in a position down a score with 3:57 to go, but that is still an unavoidable reality partially caused by empty offensive drives.

Missouri responded well, marching down to the Bulldogs' red zone, but Simmons threw two nearly -intercepted balls and on fourth-and-three, Simmons' pass was underthrown and batted down.

"We're really just hurting ourselves. There's a lot of self-inflicted wounds that we can all get better all around as a unit, especially from my part as well," Simmons said. "I got to make better decisions in some moments and I just got to keep on getting better."

It looked like the Tigers would not be given another chance, but after a three-and-out was forced by the defense, Missouri's offense was given 51 seconds to cover 53 yards. After several short gains and a penalty, the Tigers were forced to launch it deep for a chance at overtime. Simmons' arm made it the length of the end zone, but it was struck down, resulting in a Tiger loss.

"That's life in the SEC. That game on the road is going to be challenging. You expect to fight and you got to find a way to win," Drinkwitz said.

Although Simmons did not lead Missouri to victory and faltered in some clutch moments, the senior quarterback still had a positive performance. Simmons was 23-for-39, threw for 295 yards, three scores and zero interceptions. Simmons' top target was Lee, who finished the contest with a team-high 11 receptions, 156 yards and two touchdowns.

"They had a great connection," Drinkwitz said. "(But) we gotta get more, gotta find four more yards."

Some of the added pressure on Simmons came from a lack of early success. The Tigers went scoreless for their third straight first quarter, despite being in Bulldog territory in its two drives of the quarter. They failed to convert on a fourth down during the first drive and missed a 52-yard field goal on the second drive.

Missouri will be given another opportunity against a ranked SEC opponent in the Tigers' homecoming game against Florida at 2:30 p.m. Saturday.

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