MTSU football takes Missouri to the wire before falling 23-19: Here's what we learned

Middle Tennessee State football took Missouri to the wire, but fell short 23-19 Saturday in Columbia.

The Blue Raiders (0-2), who were playing their second consecutive SEC opponent, cut a two-TD lead to 23-19 after a safety with just over six minutes left. However, a drive that reached the Missouri 42 stalled after a fourth-down incompletion.

Missouri (2-0) scored consecutive touchdowns late in the third and on the first play of the fourth to take a 23-10 lead before the Blue Raiders cut it to 23-17 midway through the fourth and then came up with a safety to make it 23-19.

However, the Blue Raiders failed to convert on a fourth down inside Tiger territory and the hosts were eventually able to run out the clock.

"Our offense, our defense, man we battled," MTSU coach Rick Stockstill said. "We competed. I'm so proud of this team. When you put up with two SEC teams on the road, that's tough sledding. But we're not going to make excuses. We're going to come back and get ready for Murray State."

MTSU will be at home Saturday (6 p.m., ESPN+) against Murray State.

Here are five things we learned from the game:

Late penalty costly for Blue Raiders

A pass interference penalty with just under three minutes left proved to be a back-breaker for the Blue Raiders.

Missouri, leading 23-19, was facing a 3rd-and-21 when a flag was thrown for pass interference on the Blue Raiders on an incomplete pass that would have given the ball back to MTSU.

It was only the sixth penalty of the game (41 yards) for MTSU.

Consecutive second-half TDs the difference

After holding Missouri to just 10 points through the first 40-plus minutes of the game, MTSU's defense began to wear late in the third and early in the fourth.

The Blue Raiders allowed back-to-back touchdowns, one at 4:58 left in the third, and the other just seven seconds into the fourth, allowing Missouri to turn a 10-10 game into a 23-10 lead.

"They got 21 right there, the last of the first half and the first two possessions of the second half," Stockstill said. "We competed our tails off to make it a one-score game. We were moving (on the last possession), we just weren't good enough in the end to find a way to knock it in."

The second touchdown was a 49-yard strike from senior Brady Cook to Oklahoma transfer Theo Wease on what was a busted coverage, leaving Wease wide open to streak down the sideline.

The Blue Raiders did get a stop on Missouri's next possession and scored with 6:57 left to cut it to 23-17, eventually cutting it to a four-point game.

Different first half than opener vs Alabama

MTSU’s first-half performance against Missouri was a complete opposite of how things went in the opener at Alabama.

The Blue Raiders held the Tigers to 148 yards and just 3.1 yards per rush in the first two quarters and trailed just 10-7. Missouri finished with just 316 total yards.

That kept MTSU in the game, a big difference from a 21-0 Alabama run late in the second quarter which put the Crimson Tide up 42-0 at halftime.

Most of Missouri’s first-half yardage came on its final drive of the second, going 71 yards on 16 plays and taking the lead with a Cook keeper from the 1. Cook passed for just 67 yards in the half.

Cook had a bigger second half, finishing 14-of-19 for 204 yards and two touchdowns.

MTSU loses player to targeting for second straight week

The Blue Raiders took a hit to their defense late in the second quarter when redshirt sophomore safety Jakobe Thomas was called for targeting after a tackle inside the 5 on Missouri’s first scoring drive.

Cornerback Deonte Stanley was called for targeting on the first drive in the loss to Alabama.

Since the penalty occurred in the first half, Thomas will not be forced to miss any portion of the next game.

Vattiato shows his running skills

MTSU quarterback Nick Vattiato didn’t enter the season with the same reputation as a runner as last season's starter Chase Cunningham. But he hasn’t been shy to use his legs to move the chains thus far.

After a 25-yard scamper against Alabama, Vattiato had three runs of more than 10 yards in the first half against Missouri.

"We missed out on some opportunities," said Vattiato, whose team settled for a field goal in the third quarter after moving the ball inside the Missouri 5. "Unfortunately that's football sometimes. We talked about making improvements from last week, and we did make those improvements. I'm proud of the way everyone fought."

He added an 18-yard scamper in the fourth quarter that helped set up a touchdown (Vattiato to Olson for seven yards) that cut the Missouri lead to 23-17.

Vattiato finished with 13 carries for 34 yards, just one yard shy of team leader Frank Peasant (13-35). Through the air Vattiato was 22-of-36 for 214 yards and two touchdowns.

This article originally appeared on Murfreesboro Daily News Journal: MTSU football: What we learned about 23-19 loss at Missouri