Oklahoma State Holds off Drew Lock, Missouri to Win 2018 Liberty Bowl

Quarterback Taylor Cornelius closed out his collegiate career in style, as he led the Oklahoma State Cowboys to a 38-33 win over the No. 23 Missouri Tigers in the Liberty Bowl at Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium in Memphis, Tennessee.

Missouri senior quarterback Drew Lock had a chance to complete a 16-point comeback, but he was stopped short on a fourth-down running play deep in Oklahoma State territory to end the game.

Cornelius made a strong case to be considered in the 2019 NFL draft, as he threw for 336 yards, a Liberty Bowl record-tying four touchdowns and two interceptions.

According to Cowboy Football, Cornelius became just the third player in program history to account for 40 or more touchdowns in a single season:

With the win, Oklahoma State improved to 7-6 and extended its bowl winning streak to three in a row.

The Cowboys also avoided finishing below .500 for the first time since 2005, which was head coach Mike Gundy's first year at the helm.

Mizzou dropped to 8-5, but still managed its best record since going 11-3 under Gary Pinkel in 2014.

In a losing effort, Lock led the way for Missouri offensively, as he threw for 373 yards and three touchdowns, and may have helped his cause as a potential first-round draft pick.

The Tigers had a balanced offensive attack with sophomore running back Larry Rountree III rushing for 204 yards and one score yards as well.

Rountree performed well despite the equipment crew misspelling the name on the back of his jersey, as seen in this photo from Austin Litterell of the Chickasha Express-Star:

Missouri carried a 16-14 lead into halftime, but it stalled in the third quarter and was unable to make up for a 16-point deficit in the fourth quarter despite the offense finally coming to life.

Much like the game as a whole, the first half was a back-and-forth affair that saw the teams trade scores.

The Cowboys opened the scoring with a 30-yard touchdown pass from Cornelius to wide receiver Dillon Stoner, but Missouri took the lead with a field goal followed by a five-yard touchdown pass from Lock to wide receiver Dominic Gicinto in the second quarter.

While Lock drove the Tigers 97 yards on their first touchdown drive, his most impressive play of the opening half came on the field goal drive when he connected with wideout Emanuel Hall for 58 yards.

Hall left the game in the second half with an undisclosed injury in what was the final contest of his college career.

Cameron Teague of the Columbia Daily Tribune felt Lock showed NFL talent evaluators something on the deep pass to Hall:

The Cowboys answered back quickly following Lock's first touchdown pass, as Cornelius threw a seven-yard score to receiver Tyron Johnson.

With just 3:35 remaining in the first half, Lock threw a 16-yard touchdown strike to tight end Kendall Blanton, who was filling in for injured superstar tight end Albert Okwuegbunam.

A missed extra point meant Mizzou led just 16-14 at the break, but that advantage didn't hold up for long.

Cornelius came out firing in the third quarter with a nine-yard touchdown pass to Tylan Wallace just 3:11 into the frame.

Jalen Knox lost a fumble on the ensuing drive for Missouri, and the Cowboys cashed in with a four-yard touchdown run by Chuba Hubbard to give the Pokes a 28-16 lead.

Mizzou could only muster a field goal on its next drive, but Lock showed why he may be one of the top quarterbacks in the 2019 draft class.

On a third-and-16 play, Lock rolled out and threw a strike off his back foot to Barrett Bannister for a 30-yard gain.

Alec Lewis of The Athletic said the throw was reminiscent of Kansas City Chiefs quarterback and potential NFL MVP Patrick Mahomes:

Gabe DeArmond of PowerMizzou.com also made the Mahomes comparison:

A field goal cut the deficit to nine for Missouri, but it wasn't a fitting end to the drive given some of the remarkable throws Lock made.

Andrew Carter of Let It Fly Media expressed his belief that Lock could be a star with a better supporting cast than the one he had around him at Mizzou:

Cornelius went to work on the next drive with a 32-yard completion to Johnson followed by a 46-yard touchdown toss to Johnson on the next play.

With that touchdown, Cornelius tied the Liberty Bowl touchdown pass record with four.

Kyle Weatherly of KSWO-TV pointed out that while the fifth-year senior was inconsistent throughout 2018, he was at his best for much of Monday's game:

Cornelius had a chance to essentially put the game away after Missouri turned the ball over on downs, but he made his first big mistake of the day as Oklahoma State was approaching the red zone.

He was picked off by Cam Hilton, and on Mizzou's next play, Lock threw an 86-yard bomb to Johnathon Johnson for a touchdown.

The Tigers curiously kicked the extra point rather than going for two, but the score put them back within nine.

Cornelius made another bad decision on the next drive when he forced the ball down the field rather than throwing it away, and he was once again picked off by Hilton.

George Schroeder of USA Today was among those who were puzzled by the throw:

Once again, Missouri capitalized on Cornelius' miscue with a 55-yard touchdown run by Rountree to make the score 35-33 in favor of Oklahoma State with 11:50 remaining.

After the Cowboys failed to convert on a fake punt, Mizzou had a chance to take the lead, but kicker Tucker McCann's 42-yard field goal attempt was blocked.

That allowed Oklahoma State to tack on a field goal of its own and extend the lead to five with 5:54 left in the game.

Lock drove the Tigers into Oklahoma State's red zone, but after Rountree was stuffed on second and third down, the Cowboys prevented Lock from picking up the first down on a read-option play.

While Lock's collegiate career ended in disappointment, he acquitted himself well and may have established himself as the top quarterback prospect in the 2019 class.

With both Lock and Cornelius graduating, the Tigers and Cowboys may be teams in transition offensively next season, although Missouri will hope former Clemson quarterback Kelly Bryant is the answer under center.