After a defensive slog of a first half left Mizzou and Vanderbilt deadlocked at 3-3, the Tigers received a golden opportunity early in the third quarter.
Chris McClellan tipped up a Diego Pavia pass that was snatched out of the air by Damon Wilson II, setting Eli Drinkwitz’s squad up with the ball in the red zone in a tied game.
Mizzou was unable to quickly punch the ball into the end zone, setting up a fourth-and-goal at the Commodores’ two-yard line and a key decision: take the three points or go for
seven.
The Tigers chose to go for the touchdown – a move that made sense given the low-scoring nature of the game and the team’s defensive performance.
The decision backfired in multiple ways.
Kirby Moore’s offense fell one yard short of the goal line, stuffed on a fake pitch quarterback keeper, to maintain a knotted score and squander a prime scoring opportunity.
But in the moments after the failed play, a far graver outcome revealed itself – one of the worst possible scenarios for a football team.
Quarterback Beau Pribula was down on the turf and clearly in pain. He spent a lengthy time being attended to by the medical staff, getting an air cast before being shuffled from a cart to a wheelchair.
The ultra-talented and inexperienced five-star, true freshman Matt Zollers, was suddenly thrust into the spotlight for Mizzou after starting the year third on the depth chart. Nobody knew what to expect from the Pennsylvania native, who had seen limited time and even fewer passing reps with the Tigers.
During the remainder of a matchup against the 10th-ranked in the nation, in his first major collegiate action, Zollers reaffirmed himself as Mizzou’s future at the quarterback position – and for now, its present.
“[He showed] courage, fearlessness,” center Connor Tollison said, “He did everything he could when his number was called, and ultimately, that’s all you can ask for.”
Zollers stood out from his first drive, moving the offense into field goal range after converting on a fourth down with a 15-yard strike to Joshua Manning. Robert Meyer clanged a 29-yard attempt off the left upright, and Vanderbilt took a 10-3 lead the very next play on an 80-yard rushing touchdown by Makhilyn Young.
The true freshman again responded to the challenge, leading the charge on a 12 play, 75-yard touchdown drive that culminated with a fourth down reception in the end zone by Jude James.
When a Commodores punt on the ensuing drive gave the Tigers the ball back in a tied game, it looked like Eli Drinkwitz’s squad could potentially seize the momentum for good.
But like so many times during Saturday’s contest, the action sharply changed course as soon as the game appeared to be headed in one direction.
C.J. Heard forced an Ahmad Hardy fumble near midfield, allowing Diego Pavia to lead Vanderbilt’s offense on a methodical drive toward the end zone to take a 17-10 lead with less than two minutes remaining.
Zollers led a last minute push, though, moving Mizzou into Hail Mary range with six seconds on the clock and sending one final toss toward the end zone.
The Tigers nearly pulled off a miracle. Kevin Coleman, Jr., hauled in a pass that was initially ruled incomplete before the call was overturned – but the reception fell barely short of the goal line.
“They said it was one inch,” Tollison said about how close they were to the goal line on the final play, “So I guess it is.”
Zollers met and exceeded all reasonable expectations as Mizzou battled for a win against a top-10 opponent, connecting on 14 of 23 passes for 138 yards and a touchdown. He displayed the talent that made him such a highly touted recruit, and the ability his teammates have seen each week in practice.
“He’s a starter every week,” STAR defender Daylan Carnell said, “All through camp, we’d seen his arm talent and the way he could do, so really nothing surprised me today.”
The Tigers will need Zollers to continue translating his promising practices to game situations.
CBS Sports’ Matt Zenitz reported after the game that Pribula’s injury will hold him out for the remainder of the regular season, with further testing taking place today. Drinkwitz said Pribula’s ankle was dislocated (it initially looks like no broken bones) and confirmed an MRI would take place today without providing a definitive timetable for the quarterback’s return, instead saying it would be a while before his return.
Matt Zollers will be tasked with leading the Mizzou offense for the forseeable future.
“Starting as soon as I get on the plane, we’ll come up with a plan. We’ll attack it, and Mizzou will be proud. We’ve got a bunch of fighters in that room; those guys are fighting their butts off, played really hard,” Drinkwitz said, “I mean, they got a fumble on the one inch line; [it] got overturned, but they’re doing everything they can to give us a chance. And then the ball gets thrown to the one inch line. So we’re giving ourselves opportunities.”
The Tigers’ playoff hopes are likely over. The team stands at 6-2 on the season and has looming matchups with an undefeated and top-five ranked Texas A&M squad, plus a top-25 Oklahoma team in Norman – where Mizzou has not won since 1966.
But that’s not going to stop the team from still moving forward at full throttle to try and accomplish their goal.
“There’s still a lot of football left, a lot of opportunities left. The reality of it is, like I told them in there, we’re probably not playing for the conference championship now with two losses, but we’re darn sure playing for the playoffs, ” Drinkwitz said, “And so it becomes a one-game season, week in, week out. We’ve already accomplished one of our goals, which was to qualify for a bowl game. And so now it’s free football to see what kind of opportunity we have next.”
The equation is simple: win out and you’re in, with signature victories over the aforementioned Aggies and Sooners. The odds are stacked heavily against Mizzou in its quest for the playoffs now, but the Tigers are simply too talented to act like 2025 is a lost year with a third of the regular season remaining.
And another lofty, but more achievable goal remains possible: a third consecutive 10-win season, which would be the first in program history.
As Drinkwitz said, there’s a lot of football left: four regular season games, to be exact, plus at least a bowl game. Few people expect a run to the playoffs from Mizzou anymore, but not many anticipated Matt Zollers taking the Tigers within an inch of forcing overtime, either.
Mizzou is down, but not out quite yet.
