Arch Manning, No. 7 Texas rally for win over No. 18 Missouri, avoid letdown on road

COLUMBIA, Mo. - In his finest game of the season, Arch Manning threw for 297 yards and three touchdowns, two of them to his running backs, to lead seventh-ranked Texas to a 34-20 win over No. 18 Missouri on Saturday afternoon.

Manning's 28-yard TD pass to Raleek Brown with 5:03 left gave Texas its first lead of the game.

The Longhorns (7-2, 4-2 SEC) then hold off the Tigers' (6-3, 3-3) in the final two minutes to seal the win. Warren Roberson forced a fumble by Cayden Lee that Graceson Little returned to the Missouri 6. Brown then scored on an 8-yard run to put the game out of reach.

The third quarter produced no certainty about the outcome but plenty of fireworks. The two teams scored four times in five offensive possessions and the Tigers missed a 46-yard field goal on the only other series of the period.

Missouri seemingly had the biggest play of the game when Naeshaun Montgomery caught a short 8-yard pass in the right flat against a blitzing defense and shrugged off would-be tackler Jelani McDonald to take it 72 yards for the go-ahead touchdown and a 20-13 lead.

The sophomore receiver's first touchdown of his career also marked the longest gainer of the year against the Longhorns and the first 50-yard-plus play by a Texas opponent all season.

However, the Longhorns responded with a curious scoring drive of their own. Aided by a pass interference call against Missouri and a review that went Texas' way and rewarded it with a 16-yard gain on a fumble recovery by Emmett Mosley V when Missouri thought it had a sack or an incompletion.

Jermaine Bishop Jr. gathered in a 25-yard touchdown pass on a Missouri busted assignment allowing the freshman receiver to run free for the second score of his career and a 20-20 tie.

Texas and Missouri swapped field goal after field goal although Missouri botched two of its. Each had a field goal in the third quarter, but the Tigers missed their second of the game after Ryan Niblett's fumble on a kickoff.

The game was knotted at 10-10 at intermission after the two teams traded field goals. Texas was fortunate that Missouri's Blake Craig pushed a 38-yard field goal wide right midway through the second quarter.

Gianni Spetic, who has missed just one field goal in his first 14 attempts with a 53-yard wide right against Oklahoma, booted his fifth straight on a 27-yarder. That followed a blocked punt by linebacker Jonathan Cunningham - Alex January blocked an Ole Miss field goal this year - and set up a 30-yard drive highlighted by a 22-yard pass to Ryan Wingo.

Missouri surprisingly came out flinging the ball despite a stout running game that has produced 12 touchdowns. Austin Simmons threw 21 passes in the first half and completed a 2-yard out pattern to Brett Norfleet for a touchdown on the Tigers' opening drive of the game.

Texas' offense sputtered for much of the first half but had a credible running attack behind Brown and scored its only touchdown on a perfectly executed reverse screen pass to Derek Cooper for 24 yards.