Tigers edge Baylor

Wolfert's 34-yard field goal put Missouri in the lead.

By Lenny Goldman

Published Nov. 3, 2008

After leaving Baylor with another conference victory, senior linebacker Brock Christopher felt both relieved and excited. 

"There was definitely joy," Christopher said after Saturday's game. "We won a road game which is always tough to do, but there was a sigh of relief, too. We didn't play as well as we wanted to."

It took the sturdy leg of senior kicker Jeff Wolfert to put the Tigers on top with two minutes and 31 seconds remaining in the game. With the score tied at 28, Wolfert nailed a 34-yard field goal that carried Missouri on to its seventh win of the season.

"I almost didn't watch the kick so I could get on the phone with coach Yost to try and figure out what to do if they scored, because he's money," senior quarterback Chase Daniel said. "He knows what he's doing. He is Mr. Reliable."

After the first 10 minutes of the game, it didn't look like Missouri would need a game-winning field goal to pull off the victory. The Tigers got off to a quick start as Daniel hit senior tight end Chase Coffman for a three-yard touchdown pass on their first drive of the game.

"With this offense every time we get on the field we're trying to score points," senior wide receiver Tommy Saunders said. "No matter what play they call we're trying to execute. We did a pretty good job on the first couple of drives."

The Tigers opened up the lead on their second drive after forcing a Baylor punt. Daniel then found Saunders for a 19-yard touchdown pass to make the score 14-0.

But Baylor's freshman quarterback Robert Griffin wasn't willing to back down. Griffin, who rushed for 75 yards and a touchdown and threw for 283 yards and two touchdowns, rallied the Bears back and eventually tied the game at 21 with just less than four minutes remaining in the third quarter.

"He played great," Christopher said. "We didn't play as well as we wanted to, but I'm not taking anything away from him. He's got a bright future ahead of him. He can run the ball, he can throw the ball and he did a great job leading that team."

Both teams exchanged touchdowns and found themselves tied at 28 with around 10 minutes remaining in the game.

Wolfert later made the eventual game-winning field goal with two and a half minutes left, giving Baylor one more chance to either tie or win the game.

But on the Bears' final drive Griffin threw his first career interception to Christopher, allowing Missouri to wind the clock down to zero. It took 210 passes for Griffin to throw an interception, a new college record.

"It felt good," Christopher said. "The defense had one more chance to go out there and close the game. I kind of baited him into throwing it a little bit and I was able to end the game."