Missouri got more than a win over Kansas on Friday night. It got Cayden Green back in the lineup, and the Tigers looked plenty happy to have him.
Green, Missouri’s starting left tackle, returned from a torn meniscus and helped the 23rd-ranked Tigers beat the Jayhawks 38-21 at David Booth Kansas Memorial Stadium. Eli Drinkwitz made sure Green’s night got its due, handing him one of three game balls after the Border War victory.
"Cayden Green. Captain.
Warrior," Drinkwitz said afterward. "Underwent a minor procedure 10 days ago, and not very many people thought he could come back and play.
In his mind, there was never a shadow of a doubt."
That "minor procedure"? Just a little somethin' somethin' to repair a torn meniscus.
"I had to get that cleaned up," Green said afterward, adding: "They just trimmed it, so I'm good. It's just pain management and getting the swelling down. It should be fine."
Green started and played all night after missing Missouri’s opener against Arkansas-Pine Bluff, and his return came earlier than expected. He was supposed to be out until the Tigers host Troy next Saturday, Sept. 19, but after spending much of the previous 10 days in the training room - "eight hours a day," he said - he felt good enough to go against Kansas, the school he grew up hearing about in Lee’s Summit.
"As a Missouri kid, it's a hard game to miss," Green admitted, "especially hearing them talk all that stuff all week."
Drinkwitz said Green worked his way quickly back into first-team reps, and by Tuesday he felt convinced the lineman could handle it.
"Anytime he's in the huddle, you feel good," Drinkwitz said.
There was still some back-and-forth over how much Green should practice once he was cleared, and Drinkwitz admitted he tried to be careful with a player who was a first-team All-SEC pick last season and is projected to be an All-American this year, with a potential first-round future in the 2027 NFL Draft.
"He was back practicing, and he was full go, and we were like, 'Man, I don't know,' but he refused," Drinkwitz said. "We were pulling him out of practice, and he was like, 'Coach, I need three more reps.'
"But that guy, man, he's exactly what a captain's all about. I'm super proud of him.
I'm super proud of his leadership. In a day and age when you have all of this other stuff out there, it still mattered to him to play football for his teammates and this brotherhood.
"Everybody at the University of Missouri can understand, that's big time."
Green’s version was simpler.
"It's hard to go into a game without getting good-on-good reps and getting to work on the stuff you need to work on," he said. "We were going back and forth a little bit, but I think it all worked out."
And it did. Missouri piled up 469 yards on offense, with Green helping keep Austin Simmons upright and opening lanes for Jamal Roberts. Simmons completed 19 of 29 passes for 292 yards and three touchdowns, while Roberts rushed for 125 yards, highlighted by a career-long 64-yard touchdown run.
Missouri still had work to do on the ground, though. The Tigers ran for 177 yards on 41 carries, and without Roberts’ long score, that total drops to 113 yards on 40 carries - 2.8 yards per carry.
"We've got a lot to work on," Green said. "I felt like we were a lot more physical, but we have to get stuff cleaned up.
Same for me. I have stuff to clean up.
I have to start faster and all that. Once I got settled in, it just was what it was.
"Winning's hard, so we're going to enjoy this."
The night also came with a bigger piece of history for Missouri. The Tigers improved to 59-54-9 all-time against Kansas and stretched their winning streak in the series to five straight, matching the program’s longest run in the rivalry. The last five-game streak before this one came from 1938-42.
Drinkwitz gave game balls to three players after the win. Receiver Cayden Lee earned one after catching six passes for 120 yards and a touchdown, his third career 100-yard receiving game and first since Nov. 2, 2024, when he had five catches for 127 yards against Arkansas at Ole Miss. Linebacker Robert Woodyard Jr. got another after posting six tackles and two third-quarter takeaways - a forced-and-recovered fumble and an interception - that helped spark Missouri’s 21 unanswered points.
Green got the third.
After the game, he stood at midfield waving the Missouri state flag. Drinkwitz briefly left a postgame interview with FOX to stop his players from potentially planting the flag in the ground, saying he wants them to win with class.
Inside the locker room, the coach made sure the evening’s biggest efforts were recognized.
"The game knows," Drinkwitz said. "The game rewards those guys who value toughness and give it for their teammates, and that got rewarded tonight."
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