Army stuns Missouri in Armed Forces Bowl on last-second FG

Army defensive back Leo Lowin (31) moves in to make the stop on Missouri quarterback Brady Cook (12) as he runs the ball in the first half of the Armed Forces Bowl NCAA college football game in Fort Worth, Texas, Wednesday, Dec. 22, 2021. (AP Photo/Emil Lippe)

FORT WORTH, Texas — Cole Talley kicked a 41-yard field goal as time ran out and Army rallied to beat Missouri 24-22 in the Armed Forces Bowl on Wednesday night.

After the Tigers took a 22-21 lead on a touchdown with 1:11 to play, third-string quarterback Jabari Laws led Army (9-4) downfield to the Missouri 24-yard line, setting up Talley’s game-winner.

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Army backup quarterback Tyhier Tyler came on after starter Christian Anderson was injured early in the fourth quarter and threw a 14-yard touchdown pass to Brandon Walters to give the Black Knights their first lead, 21-16. Anderson and JaKobi Buchanan scored on TD runs of 22 and 10 yards, respectively, for Army.

Redshirt freshman quarterback Brady Cook threw a 6-yard touchdown pass to Keke Chism with 71 seconds left to put the Tigers (6-7) ahead, but their two-point conversion attempt failed. Cook also ran for a 30-yard score in his first collegiate start.

Missouri played without second-team All-America running back Tyler Badie, who was held out by coach Eliah Drinkwitz in advance of the NFL draft. Starting quarterback Connor Bazelak was sidelined because of a leg injury.

Cook completed 27 of 34 passes for 238 yards and ran for 53 more.

Buchanan led Army in rushing with 68 yards on 21 carries. Elijah Young was the Tigers’ top rusher with 75 yards on 13 carries.

THE TAKEAWAY

Missouri: The Tigers began the game short-handed in the secondary and lost multiple players in the first half, leading Army to open up its passing game more than usual in the second half.

Army: The Black Knights’ option offense depends on patience and trust — and delivered at the finish. While only 5 of 14 on third downs, they were 5 for 5 on fourth downs to put themselves in position to win.

UP NEXT

Missouri: After the Tigers open at Middle Tennessee State next season, they’ll host former conference rival Kansas State. The season finale against Arkansas will also be at Faurot Field.

Army: The Black Knights won’t face any Power Five teams next season for the first time since 2004 (except for the reworked 2020 schedule). The first two games will be against Group of Five heavyweights Coastal Carolina and UTSA, and the Army-Navy game will return to Philadelphia.

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