Mizzou football survives Auburn in double OT thriller. Here are five takeaways

The Missouri Tigers knew their first road game of 2025 wasn’t going to be easy.

When you hit the road to play at Jordan-Hare Stadium, it’s almost never easy — regardless of how Auburn is performing that season.

And the conditions proved to be challenging once again, as an SEC-winless Auburn had No. 16 Mizzou on the ropes and fighting throughout a double OT thriller. But the MU Tigers survived a late interception, penalty issues and even a missed field goal in the first extra period to win — yes, win — 23-17 late Saturday night.

“We talked all week about (how) the game was played between the lines, not to let the exterior factors of the noise and the stadium affect us,” coach Eli Drinkwitz said. “The guys did a great job, and I just thought there was a refusal to lose.”

Certainly this game went the distance.

It wasn’t quarterback Beau Pribula’s finest hour. He went 23-for-40 passing with 252 yards and two interceptions. But he was the hero in double overtime, running in the game-winning score.

Even with a failed two-point conversion, Mizzou kept its composure while the defense kept Auburn out of the end zone to secure the SEC win. The Tigers are bowl eligible at 6-1 (2-1 SEC), though they have their sights set even higher.

“It was really, really ugly, but we just kept fighting, kept fighting,” Drinkwitz said.

Here are five takeaways from Mizzou’s road win...

A late meltdown almost cost Missouri

Ahmad Hardy ran for a game-tying touchdown in the fourth quarter. Then the Mizzou defense earned a stop.

Pribula had the ball, and the Tigers drove to the Auburn 30-yard line with about 30 seconds left. They were in position for a walk-off field goal. But here’s what actually unfolded:

Pribula was sacked for a loss of 7 yards. Then, Pribula threw a backward pass that went out of bounds, for a loss of 6. On third down, Missouri was called for a false start — a loss of 5 — and Pribula’s pass attempt on third-and-28 was intercepted.

That sequence sent the game to overtime, when again, Missouri failed to capitalize in the first period and missed a 38-yard field goal. It brought back feelings from the last game, when Pribula was intercepted in the final minute against Alabama.

But this time, Missouri was able to survive.

Missouri’s defense saved this game

Of course, there were some big plays early from Auburn that Mizzou’s defense had trouble stopping.

Notably, Auburn’s offense marched down the field for an opening-drive touchdown. The secondary allowed Jackson Arnold’s 46-yard dart to Cam Coleman in the second quarter, and Jeremiah Cobb was ready right out of halftime for his 41-yard run.

But this defense was the reason Mizzou stayed in this game for as long as it did.

The defensive line took advantage of a weak Auburn O-line, sacking Arnold five times. Toriano Pride hauled in Arnold’s first interception since September 2024.

The MU Tigers held Auburn (3-4, 0-4 SEC) scoreless in two extra periods, fittingly ending the game with pressure in the backfield on fourth down that blew up the play before it could get started.

“We just kept the main thing the main thing,” edge rusher Zion Young said. “We held our composure.”

Mizzou’s offense can learn from this one

The box score will show Mizzou had plenty of chances. The Tigers had 33 minutes of possession. They had 343 yards. But they scored only 17 points until the second extra period.

The run game, uncharacteristically, struggled to get going. Hardy, an early Heisman hopeful, finished with two touchdowns, but the Tigers only totaled 64 yards between their two leading running backs.

Another mark to note: Mizzou had four second-half drives leading up to Hardy’s fourth-quarter touchdown. The Tigers punted on all four of those, including one three-and-out.

An inconsistent day for Beau Pribula

The final result was a win, and that is important for this Missouri team. But MU’s quarterback will continue to be under the microscope after an inconsistent performance.

The deep passing game never got going. Pribula’s longest pass was a 27-yarder. Arnold’s longest, by comparison, was 46 yards.

In fact, that’s a notable number for Pribula, who averaged 6.3 yards per attempt: Pribula hasn’t connected for a pass over 30 yards since Sept. 13 against Louisiana.

Turnovers are another pressing issue.

Pribula has thrown two interceptions in each of his last two games, and at least one interception in each of his last five. Including a fumble returned for a touchdown against Kansas, Pribula has committed at least one turnover against every FBS opponent he’s faced in 2025.

“I think just having a better plan, kind of thinking through and having a better plan internally in terms of what I need to do to execute when they bring zero (all-out blitz),” Pribula said.

Penalties made a big difference — both ways

Penalties hit Missouri hard against Alabama last week, and the Tigers continued to look undisciplined at times Saturday.

Missouri was tagged for only four penalties, but those flags totaled 50 yards.

On defense, the Tigers committed a defensive PI, roughing the passer and personal foul. The DPI from Marvin Burks led to Auburn’s opening touchdown drive, and Nicholas Rodriguez was responsible for 30 of the penalty yards.

The false start, as mentioned, also came at an inopportune time.

But the Auburn Tigers also had their penalty issues. They gifted the Tigers 30 yards on one play: Auburn’s Jay Crawford was hit with a defensive pass interference call while guarding Marquis Johnson, and Auburn defensive end Keyron Crawford was flagged for unnecessary roughness after the play.

That gave Mizzou new life and a first down — eventually leading to Hardy’s game-tying touchdown with about five minutes left in regulation.

“We’re a tough football team,” Hardy said. “We just gotta keep being tough.”

This story was originally published October 18, 2025 at 11:26 PM.

Maddie Hartley

The Kansas City Star

Maddie Hartley is a former journalist for the Kansas City Star, The Star, KC Star