Junior running back TreVeyon Henderson (32) looking downfield on his 20-yard rush in the first quarter of the Cotton Bowl versus Missouri Dec. 29 at AT&T Stadium. The Buckeyes fell 14-3. Credit: Caleb Blake | Photo Editor
The 88th edition of the Cotton Bowl didn’t look like previous Ohio State postseason games.
C.J. Stroud threw for 348 yards and four touchdowns in the College Football Playoff semifinal against Georgia in 2022. Justin Fields completed 22 of 28 passes and scored six touchdowns against Clemson in 2020 to advance to the national championship.
The No. 7 Buckeyes (11-1, 8-1 Big Ten) fell to the Missouri Tigers (10-2, 6-2) 14-3 behind quarterbacks Devin Brown and Lincoln Kienholz’s combined 43% completion rating at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, Friday.
With Brown starting at the helm of the Buckeyes for the first time, things got off to a rough start. The sophomore led the offense to a three-and-out behind two incomplete passes intended for junior wide receiver Emeka Egbuka, leading them to a fourth-down situation and a Jesse Mirco punt.
The same story held for the defense’s first opportunity. Ohio State allowed a 17-yard rush, and the Tigers landed on the Ohio State 48-yard line after a couple more successful plays before punting and giving the Buckeye offense the ball back.
In only Ohio State’s third drive, junior running back TreVeyon Henderson broke free for 20 yards down the sidelines to put it on the Tigers’ 33-yard line. Two plays later, Brown was sacked by Missouri’s senior defensive back Jaylon Carlies for a loss of four. Brown went down briefly with a high-ankle sprain and then hobbled to the sideline.
After a scoreless 12 minutes to start the game, Ohio State got on the board first with a field goal from sophomore kicker Jayden Fielding. For the rest of the first half, it gained three first downs — one due to an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty on Missouri — punted three times and went 0-for-4 on third downs. Additionally, the Buckeyes never broke into the Tigers’ territory aside from their field goal attempt.
Missouri also fought to find its footing on offense, switching from quarterbacks junior Brady Cook and redshirt freshman Sam Horn. The Tigers accumulated 112 total yards, completed 45% of passes and averaged 3.5 yards per play between both quarterbacks.
Ohio State led 3-0 at the half and began the second with a three-and-out stop on defense and a 24-yard complete pass to graduate receiver Xavier Johnson — the longest of the game. This led to another attempt for Fielding from 48 yards out, which hit the left goal post and left the Buckeyes scoreless.
Missouri was able to convert a third down on a 17-yard rush from Cook before junior defensive end Jack Sawyer sacked him for an 8-yard loss — his third of the game — ultimately leading to its eighth punt of the night.
It wasn’t until less than four minutes on the clock in the third quarter, that Cook found freshman wide receiver Marquis Johnson for a 50-yard gain, putting the Tigers in the red zone for the first time in the game for either team. Five seconds into the fourth quarter, Missouri capitalized on its drive with a rushing score by graduate running back Cody Schrader.
The Tigers’ next drive lasted 13 plays for 91 yards. They converted on fourth down and — with the help of two Ohio State defensive penalties —Missouri found the end zone for its second score of the night: a 7-yard pass from Cook to sophomore wide receiver Luther Burden with 5:12 remaining on the game clock.
With the ball back, Kienholz charged down the field 36 yards before he was dropped for a loss of seven and fumbled the ball, turning it over to the Tigers with 3:13 left in the game. Missouri ran out the clock to finish the night off as Cotton Bowl champions.
