SportsDirect Inc. staff
Aug 31, 2013

Missouri 58, Murray State 14: James Franklin threw for 318 yards and three touchdowns as the Tigers shook off a slow start to rout the visiting Racers.

Missouri racked up 694 yards — 358 on the ground and 336 through the air — and went on a closing 45-0 run over the final three quarters. Henry Josey rushed for 113 yards and a touchdown, while Russell Hansbrough added 104 yards and two scores for the Tigers.

Murray State had a bright spot in quarterback Maikhail Miller, who passed for 145 yards and a score, rushed for 73 yards and also caught a 5-yard scoring pass. But the Racers were hurt by Miller's three interceptions, as well as a rushing attack that averaged just 3.4 yards per attempt.

Hansbrough had his two touchdowns in the first quarter before Murray State took a 14-13 lead on Jeremy Harness' 5-yard touchdown pass to Miller. From there, it was all Missouri, which opened a 30-14 lead by halftime and never looked back.

Franklin tossed a pair of touchdown passes in the third quarter, followed by Josey's 68-yard touchdown dash that put the Tigers over 50 points in their season opener for the second straight year. Missouri's defense held Murray State to 115 yards after a first quarter in which the Racers had 182 yards.

GAME NOTEBOOK: The Tigers' 694 yards of total offense ranked second in school history, behind only the 744 yards Missouri had against Western Illinois in 2011. … The Racers fell to 0-4 in season openers under coach Chris Hatcher, with all four losses coming on the road to FBS opponents. … Missouri has now won 12 straight season openers.