COLUMBIA, Mo. — Missouri stunned Nebraska with a quick flurry of extreme athleticism by Brad Smith. The Huskers were knocked woozy. They were bedazzled. But they recovered quickly, regrouping even before halftime.

In the second half, however, Missouri doled out punishment in a more methodical manner, and mistake-prone Nebraska finally succumbed Saturday before 60,641 fans at Faurot Field.

The Tigers’ 41-24 Big 12 football triumph will be remembered as a game of extreme momentum shifts. More than anything, though, it will be remembered as a day when Smith unleashed his wide array of talent in historic proportions.

The senior quarterback established a Missouri record with 480 yards of total offense, rushing for 246 yards and three touchdowns and throwing for 234 yards and another score as the Tigers improved to 5-2 overall and 3-1 in the league.

Smith’s rushing total was the highest Nebraska has ever surrendered to a quarterback.

“He dominated,” said Nebraska coach Bill Callahan. “He’s problematic in a lot of respects.”

If Smith was Nebraska’s biggest problem Saturday, running a close second was the Huskers themselves. They repeatedly stubbed their toes offensively with penalties. They dropped at least six passes. Worst of all, they committed turnovers on three straight third-quarter possessions — two interceptions and a fumble.

The game-changing turnover was the second of the three. Nebraska (5-2, 2-2 Big 12) had somehow weathered Smith’s first-quarter offensive barrage that resulted in a 21-3 lead. Now, in the third quarter with the score tied at 24, the Huskers faced fourth-and-2 at the Tigers’ 33-yard line, seemingly on the verge of their first lead. What a comeback this would be.

Nebraska quarterback Zac Taylor gunned a strike to wideout Terrence Nunn running an inside slant pattern. Nunn broke into the open field for a big gain. However, Missouri free safety Jason Simpson caught Nunn from behind and jarred loose the pigskin at the 8-yard line, and strong safety David Overstreet recovered at the 3.

“That to me was probably the most critical part of the game,” Missouri coach Gary Pinkel said.

Said Nebraska wide receivers coach Ted Gilmore: “I think that one play took the air out of us. We never recovered from it.”

Indeed, Missouri responded with a 10-play, 97-yard drive that Smith capped with a 45-yard touchdown run on a quarterback draw, giving the Tigers the lead for good with 2:38 left in the third quarter.

Taylor’s intercepted pass on Nebraska’s next possession led to a Missouri field goal, and the Tigers put away the Huskers on tailback Tony Temple’s 14-yard touchdown run with 5:37 left in the game.

Those Nebraska fans who long for the bygone days — when the Huskers would routinely grind out victories with a punishing ground attack — won’t enjoy the final numbers from this game.

Smith’s rushing total was the second-highest Nebraska has allowed in 100-plus years of football, trailing only Oklahoma tailback Billy Sims’ 247 yards in 1979. What’s more, the Huskers were held to minus 2 yards on the ground — the fewest they’ve had since being limited to minus 17 by the Sooners in 1951.

Missouri entered Saturday ranked 89th nationally in rushing defense.

Callahan said Nebraska wanted to run the ball more (the Huskers finished with 19 rushes compared with 43 passes). But penalties kept putting the Huskers in precarious positions, he said, and game circumstances “didn’t dictate we run a lot, especially in the second half.”

“Our kids fought back,” Callahan said. “In the second half, we just ran out of gas.”

Perhaps Nebraska’s fatigue was understandable, considering the punishment Smith meted out in the first quarter. He started the fireworks on the game’s second play by lobbing a 50-yard completion to 6-foot-3 wideout Brad Ekwerekwu, who outjumped linebacker Corey McKeon to make the grab, which led to Smith’s 15-yard touchdown pass.

Smith’s 53-yard dash around right end set up Missouri’s second touchdown, and he made it 21-3 with a 79-yard sprint on a trap play straight up the middle. The Tigers finished the first quarter with 290 yards. 

“He’s a senior, right?” said Nebraska defensive line coach John Blake, offering words of hope for the Huskers and anyone else who has to defend Smith the remainder of the season.