Jamal Roberts rushed for 122 yards and a touchdown, and DaMarion Fowlkes scored on a 68-yard punt return Saturday night to lead No. 20 Missouri to a 27-17 victory against visiting Troy in Columbia, Mo.
Missouri (3-0) forced a pair of Troy turnovers and converted them into touchdowns in a 24-point second quarter, and the Tigers pitched a shutout on defense in the second half.
Troy (2-1) scored the first 10 points of the game, kept Missouri off the scoreboard in the first quarter, and trailed by only a touchdown early in the fourth.
Blake Craig’s 35-yard field goal and Fowlkes’ long return got Mizzou even at 10-all in the second quarter with 9:39 to go.
The Tigers took the lead after Sione Laulea intercepted Goose Crowder and returned the ball 28 yards to the Troy 18. On the ensuing drive, Austin Simmons made his best throw of the game on third-and-4 from the 12, rolling left before finding Donovan Olugbode for a score in the back of the end zone.
On the first play after kickoff, Mizzou’s defensive line — notably Daeden Hopkins and Langden Kitchen — collapsed the pocket on Crowder, who was sacked and stripped near Troy’s 25. Jason Dowell recovered the fumble and returned it to the 13.
Roberts ran around left end for a touchdown on the next play, with tight ends Brett Norfleet and Jordon Harris making effective blocks on the outside.
Craig’s extra point made it a 24-10 lead for Mizzou with 1:44 left in the half. However, Crowder struck late to keep the Trojans close.
After chewing up clock seemingly to keep Mizzou’s offense off the field, Crowder unleashed a 55-yard bomb to Howard Kinchen with 6 seconds left in the first half to cap a 75-yard drive.
Both teams went scoreless in the second half until Craig’s 36-yard field goal extended Missouri’s lead to 27-17 with 7:18 left in the fourth quarter.
Down by 10 points, Troy’s Ethan Head missed a 54-yard field-goal attempt with 2:46 left in the fourth quarter.
Crowder threw for 230 yards and two touchdowns, including a 76-yard score to TK Keyes on the second play of the Trojans’ opening possession.
Troy outgained Mizzou 323-224 in total offense and limited Simmons to 91 yards on 10-of-19 passing after the Ole Miss transfer had two prolific games to start the season.
