Columbia News

In his first road start, Beau Pribula led the No. 16 Missouri Tigers to a 23-17 double-overtime win against Auburn at Jordan-Hare Stadium in Auburn, Alabama, on Saturday.

The victory marked a turnaround from Missouri's overtime loss to Auburn in 2022 and evened the series record at 3-3. The win was also the Tigers' 22nd consecutive victory over an unranked opponent and their 14th comeback win in the fourth quarter over the last three seasons. Missouri is now 7-1 in games that go into multiple overtimes.

With this win, Missouri secured bowl eligibility and improved its season record to 6-1 overall and 2-1 in Southeastern Conference play. Auburn's record dropped to 3-4 overall and 0-4 in the SEC.

"What a gutsy win," said Missouri head coach Eli Drinkwitz. "Incredibly proud of the staff and players. For them to keep fighting — it was really, really ugly — but they just kept fighting, kept fighting. Then obviously in overtime, I thought our defense was just dominant."

Missouri came from behind in the fourth quarter to tie the game at 17-17. Ahmad Hardy scored his second rushing touchdown of the game and his 11th of the season after Auburn committed two penalties. Pribula also completed a key 27-yard pass to Donovan Olugbode, who led the team with five receptions for 69 yards.

On defense, Zion Young led with two of Missouri's five sacks. In regulation, Missouri drove from its own 8-yard line but an interception by Jay Crawford ended their last chance to win in regulation. In the first overtime, after Auburn's Alex McPherson missed a field goal attempt, Robert Meyer missed a field goal for Missouri, sending the game into a second overtime.

In double overtime, Pribula completed a 12-yard pass to Kevin Coleman Jr., ran for 6 yards, Jamal Roberts ran for another 6 yards to the 1-yard line before losing 2 yards. Pribula then scored on a 3-yard run. The defense held Auburn to just 6 yards on four plays in their final possession.

Auburn began the scoring with a 12-play drive ending in a touchdown by quarterback Jackson Arnold. Toriano Pride Jr. intercepted Arnold in the first quarter, setting up a field goal for Meyer. Chris McClellan sacked Arnold, helping set up Hardy's first touchdown run for a 10-7 lead. Both teams missed opportunities late in the second quarter, including a Pribula interception and missed field goals by McPherson.

Auburn regained the lead in the third quarter with an 86-yard drive and later added a field goal. However, Missouri's late rally forced overtime and eventually secured the win.

Missouri will next play against Vanderbilt at FirstBank Stadium in Nashville, Tennessee. The game is scheduled for Saturday, October 25 at 2:30 p.m. CT on ESPN.