Missouri’s top dog at wide receiver has one of the most fitting names in college football.
Luther Burden III is certainly a load to bear for opposing defenses. One of 10 semifinalists for the Biletnikoff Award – given annually to the best pass catcher in college football – Burden does most of his damage out of the slot, giving him space to work the field and use his quick-twitch athleticism.
“He can play. He’s a football player for sure,” Ohio State cornerback Denzel Burke said. “He can play ball.”
The joust between Ohio State’s secondary and Missouri's passing attack, starting with Burden, will go a long way in determining who comes out victorious between the Buckeyes and Tigers in the Cotton Bowl on Dec. 29.
“I’m looking forward to that matchup,” nickel Jordan Hancock said. “He’s a great ballplayer. He’s got other (good) receivers there too, good running back, great quarterback. So I’m excited to go out there and compete.”
Burden has piled up 83 receptions for 1,197 yards and eight touchdowns in 2023. He’s tied for 10th nationally in receptions and stands alone at 10th in yards. He earned second-team All-American honors from both the AP and CBS Sports in addition to being a first-team All-SEC selection by the conference’s coaches and media.
A dangerous weapon out of the backfield as well, Missouri uses Burden on plenty of jet sweeps – which count toward his receiving stats due to the short forward toss most teams employ on the play now – to stretch defenses horizontally.
As Ohio State's full-time nickel, Hancock is the most likely to line up against Burden on a given down.
“(It’s a chance to) show everybody that I can hang in there and play on Sundays going against somebody else that’s going to play in the NFL,” Hancock said.
Ohio State stands atop college football in pass defense, allowing a mere 147.4 yards per game. It will need to be at full force to stop not just Burden but Missouri’s explosive passing offense as a whole.
While the Tigers are a solid 30th nationally in passing yards per game, they excel at pushing the ball downfield and creating explosive runs after the catch, ranking 13th in the country in yards per pass attempt.
Quarterback Brady Cook has thrown for 3,189 yards and 20 touchdowns with six interceptions, completing 66.4% of his throws. When he’s not looking for Burden, former Oklahoma wide receiver Theo Wease is his go-to with 639 receiving yards on the year. Former Ohio State receiver Mookie Cooper is third on the team with 429 receiving yards.
Cook also has 253 rushing yards and eight touchdowns on the ground. He’s a weapon to watch with his feet, especially in the red zone.
“They’ve got threats all over the field,” safety Sonny Styles said. “Running back is really good, receivers are really good. I think it’s huge in college football when you see a quarterback able to extend plays and run. (Cook) is a run threat, so I think that makes the offense even more dangerous.”
Missouri likes to roll with a lot of 10 (one running back, no tight ends) and 11 (one running back, one tight end) personnel to push extra receivers onto the field and try to generate big plays.
“There’s a lot of receivers on the field, chance for explosive plays, receivers out of the backfield, things like that,” safety Sonny Styles said. “Just got to keep studying them.”
Beyond the face-off with Burden and the Tigers’ receiving corps, Ohio State’s secondary is also eager to generate some takeaways in the Cotton Bowl.
In a six-point game where one or two plays could have swung things in Ohio State’s favor, the Buckeyes lost the turnover battle 2-0 as they lost to Michigan 30-24 on Nov. 25. Hancock is intent on not letting that happen again.
“We want to go out there and make turnovers. That’s what my mind is on,” Hancock said. “Getting an interception, getting a forced fumble, something of that kind.”
Ohio State’s secondary will get a chance to cap its season with a statement performance against Burden and company on ESPN in exactly two weeks. Kickoff is at 8 p.m.
“They’ve got a pretty good group of receivers, it should be a fun game,” Burke said. “Go out there and match up and just do what we do.”
