Recap: Missouri vs. Baylor

By Sports Network

Columbia, MO (Sports Network) - Nick Florence threw for three touchdowns and ran for another as he led the Baylor Bears to a 40-32 win over the Missouri Tigers in Big 12 Conference action at Faurot Field.

Florence converted 32-of-43 passes for 427 yards and survived three sacks as the Bears (4-5, 1-4 Big 12) beat Missouri (5-4, 1-4) for the first time as Big 12 foes. Also having a huge game for Baylor was Kendall Wright who caught 10 balls for 149 yards and two scores.

The Tigers were paced by quarterback Blaine Gabbert who hit on 30-of-51 for 468 yards and two touchdowns, but he was taken down four times behind the line of scrimmage by the visiting defense. Having a monster game down the field was Dana Alexander with 13 catches for 214 yards and a TD in the losing effort, the fourth in the last five games.

Missouri scored the first points of the afternoon on a one-yard touchdown run by Derrick Washington on the first possession of the contest.

Baylor responded with a Dary Stone 22-yard field goal and a Florence eight- yard TD run, but the PAT was blocked, leaving the Bears with a 9-7 edge.

The Tigers moved out to a 20-9 advantage as Grant Ressel knocked through back- to-back field goals of 33 and 46 yards, while Alexander grabbed an 84-yard TD pass.

Florence brought the Bears back with an eight-yard TD pass to Lanear Sampson with 1:09 remaining in the first half, but before the second frame could end Gabbert combined with Wes Kemp on a seven-yard scoring strike to make the score 27-16 heading into the break.

Florence and Wright combined on their first touchdown pass of the game, a 13- yard effort to open the second-half scoring, while Stone converted a 35-yard field goal to draw the Bears to within a point at 27-26.

The first points of the second half for the Tigers came courtesy of a safety recorded by Dominique Hamilton.

Baylor again responded, this time with a 59-yard touchdown pass between Florence and Wright, followed by a Terrance Ganaway one-yard TD run, pushing the visitors to a 40-29 advantage.

Unable to get back into the end zone, Missouri had to settle for a late 46- yard field goal by Ressel in what became an eight-point win for the Bears.

Ranked 91st in the nation heading into the week with just 123.6 ypg on the ground, the Tigers came up with a season-low 10 net rushing yards on 25 attempts.

Similarly, Baylor gained a mere 38 yards on 28 attempts, the team coming into the weekend ranked 92nd in the country with an average of just 122.1 ypg on the ground this year.