# 1997 Missouri Tigers football team

The 1997 Missouri Tigers football team represented the University of Missouri during the 1997 NCAA Division I-A football season. The 1997 Tigers went 7–5 (5–3 in Big 12 play), ending a streak of 13 consecutive losing seasons. However, the Tigers lost to Colorado State, 35–24, in the Holiday Bowl in San Diego. They played their home games at Faurot Field in Columbia, Missouri. They were members of the Big 12 Conference in the North Division. The team was coached by head coach Larry Smith.
The loss to eventual the national champion, (and then top-ranked) Nebraska in overtime came after the infamous Flea Kicker play. This was a deflection reception off an unintentionally kicked pass as the receiver that was falling and tried pull the ball to his chest with his foot, resulting in a deflection off the foot that another receiver was able to dive a catch.

## Schedule

| Date | Time | Opponent | Rank | Site | TV | Result | Attendance |
| September 6 | 6:30 pm | Eastern Michigan* | | Faurot FieldColumbia, MO | | W 44–24 | 52,514 |
| September 13 | 11:30 am | at Kansas | | Memorial StadiumLawrence, KS (Border War) | FSN | L 7–15 | 38,000 |
| September 20 | 4:00 pm | at Tulsa* | | Skelly StadiumTulsa, OK | | W 42–21 | 40,385 |
| September 27 | 11:00 am | No. 7 Ohio State* | | Faurot FieldColumbia, MO | ABC | L 10–31 | 58,882 |
| October 4 | 1:00 pm | Iowa State | | Faurot FieldColumbia, MO (rivalry) | | W 45–21 | 44,386 |
| October 11 | 11:30 am | at No. 22 Kansas State | | KSU StadiumManhattan, KS | FSN | L 11–41 | 43,510 |
| October 18 | 1:00 pm | Texas | | Faurot FieldColumbia, MO | | W 37–29 | 48,451 |
| October 25 | 11:30 am | at No. 12 Oklahoma State | | Lewis FieldStillwater, OK | FSN | W 51–50 $^{2OT}$ | 33,300 |
| November 1 | 1:30 pm | at Colorado | | Folsom FieldBoulder, CO | | W 41–31 | 43,119 |
| November 8 | 2:30 pm | No. 1 Nebraska | | Faurot FieldColumbia, MO (rivalry) | ABC | L 38–45 $^{OT}$ | 66,846 |
| November 15 | 1:00 pm | Baylor | No. 25 | Faurot FieldColumbia, MO | | W 42–24 | 43,825 |
| December 29 | 7:00 pm | vs. No. 18 Colorado State* | No. 19 | Qualcomm StadiumSan Diego, CA (Holiday Bowl) | ESPN | L 24–35 | 50,761 |
| *Non-conference gameHomecomingRankings from AP Poll released prior to the gameAll times are in Central time ||||||||

## Rankings

Ranking movements Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking — = Not ranked :
| | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week |
| Poll | Pre | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | Final |
| AP | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 25 | 21 | 19 | 19 | 19 | 23 |
| Coaches | — | | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 23 | 20 | 20 | 20 | 23 |

## Coaching staff

| Name | Position | Seasons at Missouri | Alma mater |
| Larry Smith | Head coach | 4 | Bowling Green (1961) |
| Jerry Berndt | Offensive coordinator & quarterbacks | 4 | Wisconsin–Superior (1960) |
| David Mitchell | Running backs | 1 | Arkansas State |
| Andy Hill | Wide receivers | 2 | Missouri (1985) |
| Andy Moeller | Offensive Line | 5 | Michigan (1986) |
| Corby Smith | Tight Ends | 2 | Iowa (1995) |
| Moe Ankney | Defensive Coordinator/Outside Linebackers | 4 | Bowling Green (1963) |
| Curtis Jones | Defensive Line | 8 | Missouri (1968) |
| Ricky Hunley | Inside Linebackers | 4 | Arizona (1984) |
| Jon Hoke | Defensive Backs | 4 | Ball State (1980) |

## Game summaries
### Kansas

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Missouri | 0 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 7 |
| Kansas | 9 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 15 |
at Memorial Stadium, Lawrence, Kansas
* Date: September 13, 1997
* Game time: 11:30 a.m. CST
* Game attendance: 38,000
* Source

### Ohio State

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Ohio State | 7 | 7 | 14 | 3 | 31 |
| Missouri | 7 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 10 |
at Faurot Field, Columbia, Missouri
* Date: September 27, 1997
* Game time: 11:00 a.m. CST
* Game weather: 78°, Partly Cloudy, wind 5-10 S
* Game attendance: 58,882
* Referee: R. Christal
* Box Score

### Nebraska

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | OT | Total |
| Nebraska | 14 | 7 | 7 | 10 | 7 | 45 |
| Missouri | 7 | 17 | 7 | 7 | 0 | 38 |
at Faurot Field, Columbia, Missouri
* Date: November 8, 1997
* Game time: 2:30 p.m. CST
* Game attendance: 66,846