For the third time on the road this season, the Missouri Tigers failed to come away with a victory.

Missouri fell to the South Carolina Gamecocks 34-30 after a decisive end, as quarterback LaNorris Sellers threw a 15-yard touchdown to running back Raheim Sanders with 15 seconds left in the game.

Quarterback Brady Cook had already hit receiver Luther Burden III down the field for a 37-yard touchdown at 1:10 of the fourth quarter, but the one-handed catch was quickly rendered useless by the South Carolina offense .

The loss brings the Tigers to a 7-3 record (3-3 in SEC). Despite their best efforts to come back late in the match, the poor end to the second half created a hole too big to climb out of.

Running back Nate Noel hadn’t returned to the same level of production as before the onset of foot injuries before the Week 6 game against UMass.

Today that has changed. Noel led the game on the ground with 150 rushing yards on 27 attempts, his longest being a 23-yard fumble to the right at 8:49 of the third quarter. Cook struggled to find some stability until the fourth quarter of his return game, finishing with 237 passing yards on 21 of 31 completions and a touchdown.

Missouri had to emphasize the running game to extend drives and get field goal opportunities, and Noel rose to the occasion behind a strong day from the offensive line. Running backs Kewan Lacy and Marcus Carroll only carried the ball three and two times, respectively.

Noel had a 1-yard touchdown run at 9:12 of the fourth quarter, helping the Tigers take a 22-21 lead at a pivotal point in the game. He should have scored a touchdown at the very start of the fourth quarter, but a clock error by the South Carolina coaching staff brought the score back.

Although it ultimately wasn’t enough, Noel was the only constant factor in the offense.

The secondary has been an area of ​​Missouri’s defense that has struggled in recent weeks, and against South Carolina, it didn’t take long for them to turn around.

The Gamecocks took a 21-6 lead in the first half, as Sellers had 209 passing yards and three touchdowns. He hit receiver Nyck Harbor with a 26-yard touchdown at 7:27 of the first quarter, as well as a 38-yard touchdown to receiver Jared Brown with 39 seconds left in the second quarter.

The common theme between the two scores? The secondary was exposed.

Whether it was communication issues on the field or a lack of preparation, the Tigers continually allowed South Carolina’s offense to make big yardage gains. On Harbor’s touchdown, a mix-up between cornerback Dreyden Norwood and safety Marvin Burks Jr. led to him being as open as he did.

Whenever Sellers looked to pass, most of the time he was successful. The defensive line and linebackers managed to keep the Gamecocks from getting much going in the running game for most of the contest, but the secondary failed to hold up even down the stretch. decisive match.

At the two-minute timeout of the second quarter, Missouri trailed the Gamecocks only 7-6.

This score has become much more important.

Coming out of the timeout, Sellers hit receiver Joshua Simon over the middle of the field for a six-yard touchdown at 1:57. Simon found himself without coverage in the end zone, giving South Carolina an easy opportunity to make it 14-6.

With the ball back in their hands, one would have expected the Tigers to try to extend the drive until the end of the half and at least get within field goal range. However, they instead scored a hat-trick in 24 seconds.

Noel gained six yards on two snaps and quarterback Brady Cook hit receiver Theo Wease Jr. for a single yard, dropping him on 4th and 3. Instead of continuing to pass the ball or hit a receiver who was in position to secure a first down, a short pass gave the Gamecocks another scoring opportunity with 1:33 remaining.

In less than a minute, the aforementioned 38-yard touchdown pass to Brown gave South Carolina a 21-6 lead. Sellers completely dismantled Missouri’s secondary, but still left 39 seconds on the clock for Cook and the offense to make something happen.

Well, that’s not quite the case. Despite sufficient time and three timeouts available, the Tigers were unable to get within range of baskets. A short completed pass by receiver Mekhi Miller could have given kicker Blake Craig another scoring opportunity, but it was overturned and ruled an incomplete pass.

In one of the most crucial parts of the game, Missouri failed to handle it properly. He allowed multiple scores in two minutes, while failing to use his offensive opportunities to prevent a two-point lead.