Tigers en-Gage passing attack, knock off Baylor

COLUMBIA, Mo. -- To hear his coach, Justin Gage's school-record receiving day was just scratching the surface.

Gage caught 13 passes for 236 yards, the best ever at Missouri, in a 41-24 victory over Baylor Saturday. He caught two touchdown passes and threw for a third score on a reverse.

"He's still not a great receiver," coach Gary Pinkel said. "He does so much with raw ability. He's getting better, but I think he can get 50 percent better."

Gage, a quarterback in high school, isn't arguing that point.

"I totally agree with him," Gage said. "There's a lot of things I can work on. I've got a long ways to go."

Gage has 65 receptions on the season. That's second-best in school history and 10 behind Victor Bailey's 1992 record with two games to play. He beat the single-game record of 229 yards receiving by Linzy Collins against Kansas in 1990.

"Anytime a receiver sees as many balls as I saw, it feels good," Gage said. "We were just moving the ball and that was the biggest part."

Gage also is only the second player in school history with three double-figure receiving games in a season, joining Bailey in 1992. He topped his previous best of 12 catches against Oklahoma State on Oct. 13, 2001, and finished two receptions shy of Kenny Holly's single-game school record also set in 1992.

"He's a good athlete," Baylor safety Samir Al-Amin said. "He's tall, he's fast, and he pretty much caught everything they threw to him."

Baylor also was at a disadvantage with two injured cornerbacks.

"I'm not an excuse-maker," Baylor coach Kevin Steele said. "But when you have one of the better receivers in this league and you're down to your third or fourth corner and we all sat here and said what matchup hurt you the worst, I think we'd all win the prize on that answer."

Kirk Farmer was 23-for-34 for a personal best 360 yards and three touchdowns and Zain Gilmore scored twice for Missouri (4-5, 3-4 Big 12), which led 34-3 at halftime. The Tigers, who had a season-best 531 yards in total offense, have next week off and finish at Kansas State on Nov. 24 and at Michigan State on Dec. 1.

Missouri needs to win both to qualify for its first bowl game since 1998.

"We've just got to go out there and get it done," linebacker Jamonte Robinson said. "Preparation is going to be the key."

Reggie Newhouse caught three touchdown passes from Greg Cicero in the second half for Baylor (2-7, 0-7), which has lost seven in a row this season and 28 straight in the Big 12 since beating Kansas Oct. 10, 1998.

"These guys are fighters, they're good guys," Steele said. "But the game is four quarters."

Newhouse was the main weapon with 12 catches for 131 yards for the Bears, who have been outscored 242-67 the last five games. But Newhouse also fumbled on a punt return to set up Missouri's second touchdown of the first quarter.

Newhouse tied the school records for receptions and touchdown receptions.

In the first half, Gage caught 10 passes for 188 yards and Farmer was 17-for-24 for 281 yards, exceeding his previous best of 247 yards against Oklahoma State earlier this season. Gage caught a 9-yarder from Farmer for the game's second score, passed 9 yards on a reverse to Ben Frederickson to make it 20-3 in the second quarter, and caught a 42-yard sideline pass at the end of the half to set up a 3-yard run by Gilmore.

Gage's 31-yard catch with 5:55 to go was Missouri's lone score of the second half, making it 41-14.

Missouri, which had lost its two previous games to Texas and Colorado, had 204 yards total offense in the first quarter alone and took a 14-3 lead. The Tigers added three touchdowns in the second quarter for a 34-3 advantage.