Much of the fabric from which this year’s edition of Mizzou football was woven was resilient and certainly traveled to Nashville.

The Tigers either trailed or tied for much of Monday’s Music City Bowl against Iowa. But Iowa’s successes were almost always followed by Mizzou, who immediately responded with success of their own. The largest Hawkeye lead of the game (10) was quickly erased by a Josh Manning touchdown late in the third quarter.

In fact, Mizzou picked up a win despite the loss, as the Sound of Music City was a sweet victory for Eli Drinkwitz’s crew. The Tigers defeated the Hawkeyes 27-24, which coincidentally was the score the last time these two teams met in the 2010 Insight Bowl, which went to Iowa. This time it was the team from the Show-Me State that earned a postseason victory.

Blake Craig, who has struggled with consistency all season, hit field goals of 52 and 56 yards on consecutive drives to give Mizzou a 27-24 lead. When Iowa attempted a game-winning drive late in the fourth quarter, Brendan Sullivan was stuffed with a quarterback sneak on fourth down. Iowa had no timeouts left and Brady Cook took a knee to the enthusiastic cheers of the Mizzou faithful in attendance.

Early in the fourth quarter, it appeared the Tigers had found the spark they needed to take the lead. Toriano Pride Jr. intercepted Brendan Sullivan just before midfield. It was just the third MU interception since Week 4 and first since Week 10.

Iowa was without its star running back, Kaleb Johnson, as he withdrew from contention with a presumed NFL future. But there wasn’t much of a drop in production at all, as Kamari Moulton and Jaizun Patterson combined for 173 rushing yards on 23 carries.

Iowa made some early haymakers as its often icy offense melted in the Tennessee sun early. After Iowa forced a punt on Mizzou’s opening drive, the Hawkeyes marched right down the field, with Terrell Washington Jr. capping a seven-play, 80-yard touchdown drive with a six-yard jet sweep. But the Tigers responded with an efficient touchdown drive that covered 85 yards in 10 plays. Cook accumulated 87 total yards, including an eight-yard score to Theo Wease Jr. for a touchdown.

The score didn’t last long, however, as Kaden Wetjen took the ensuing kickoff 100 yards for a touchdown. The Hawkeyes dominated on special teams as Marquis Johnson went down on his first two kick returns, which led to short gains.

As momentum picked up again for Iowa, so did Mizzou’s offensive efficiency. This time, the Tigers needed just seven plays to go 75 yards, as Marquis Johnson caught a lob pass for a touchdown. Both offenses then cooled off and exchanged punts before Iowa finally launched an 11-play, 90-yard touchdown drive. Moulton stormed into the end zone with 49 seconds left, giving Iowa a 21-14 lead that it would extend into halftime.

The Hawkeyes averaged 7.5 yards per play in the first two quarters, a number they hadn’t achieved over an entire game since September 28, 2019 (!). Iowa experienced unprecedented efficiency on offense; Unfortunately for Kirk Ferentz’s crew, it came to a standstill when their team needed it most.

In his final game with the Black & Gold, Cook totaled 200 yards by halftime – 140 through the air and 60 on the ground. He would finish with 287 passing yards and two touchdowns, as well as 54 rushing yards. From both a statistical and empirical standpoint, Cook was arguably the closest Monday to an elite dual-threat since the Buffalo game, in which he passed for 228 yards and ran for another 62, along with two rushing scores. quarterback had believed.

Johnson had the most productive receiving effort of his career, catching seven passes for 122 yards and the aforementioned touchdown. With Luther Burden III sidelined and Wease Jr. out of the game due to injury, Johnson took on a much larger role, and he played it terribly well.

The Tigers achieved their second straight season of at least 10 wins for the third time in program history (2007-08, 2013-14). Although MU didn’t achieve the dreams it set out to achieve before the season, the Tigers still finished 2024 on a high note.