Indiana Upsets No. 18 Missouri 31-27
September 22, 2014 | Sports,
By: Greg Dailey, KCOU Sports
The silence at Faurot Field told the story.
In a back-and-forth contest that nobody saw coming, Indiana upset 18th ranked Missouri 31-27. The Hoosiers used the running game to wear on the Tiger defense, particularly a heavy dose of Tevin Coleman and D”Angelo Roberts.
Andrew Baggett had knocked in a 40-yard field goal with just 2:20 left in the game, but the lead would not even last two minutes.
A critical pass interference penalty extended the final Indiana drive, and then it was up to the Hoosier ground game. Coleman set up the Hoosiers’ final score with a 44-yard run in the final minutes. Roberts capped it off with a dive into the south end zone, leaving only 22 seconds on the clock.
The 47-game turnover streak: gone. The Missouri undefeated record: gone. Missouri’s left guard Anthony Gatti: gone.
Anything that could have gone wrong, went wrong. Indiana came prepared for a dogfight, and Missouri did not. Missouri hurt themselves with 10 penalties for 75 yards. Missouri had the only turnover of the game, a Maty Mauk interception on the first play of the second half. Markus Golden was held out with a hamstring injury. And it was noticeable.
Coleman, who had 19 carries 132 yards, paced the Indiana attack that ran the ball 50 times on the Tigers for 241 yards.
Indiana established leads of 7-0 and 14-7 in the first half, but Missouri had an answer both times. First, it was Mauk hitting Jimmy Hunt on a 45-yard touchdown. After Indiana went back in front, Russell Hansbrough weaved his way through the line before bursting into the open field, outrunning the Hoosier defense for a 68-yard touchdown run.
Andrew Baggett nailed a 27-yard field goal, but Indiana’s Aaron Del Grosso knotted the score at 17 with a 23-yard field goal of his own to end the first half.
Out of the locker room, Mauk threw his interception, but after a Shane Ray sack, Del Gross pushed a 41-yard attempt wide right. The Tigers couldn’t do anything with the break though, even after a successful fake punt where Harold Brantley rumbled 10 yards for a first down. The offense fizzled and punted right back to the Hoosiers.
The visitors from Bloomington, Indiana did not take long to score. Two plays and 82 yards later, quarterback Nate Sudfeld found J-Shun Harris II for a 33-yard touchdown, and the Hoosiers were up 24-17.
Missouri put together an impressive drive to answer, highlighted by a Sean Culkiin 1-yard touchdown reception from Mauk. The Tigers held out on defense, and on their next drive Baggett made what could have been the game winning field goal.
Coleman and Indiana had other ideas.
Missouri returns to action Saturday, Sept. 27 at South Carolina at 6 p.m.