Missouri vs. Syracuse halftime score: Tigers take 17-10 lead over Orange into locker room

Missouri junior quarterback James Franklin wasted no time Saturday night.

He needed all but three plays to get the Tigers on the board, a 70-yard touchdown strike to freshman wide receiver Dorial Green-Beckham, giving Mizzou a 7-0 lead over Syracuse at Faruot Field in Columbia, Mo., Saturday.

It would end up 17-10 at halftime, behind Franklin's 237 yards and two touchdowns, and, in a tight game, could be asked to throw more in the second half.

The Orange responded to the Tigers' early score with a 44-yard field goal from Ross Krautman. Missouri would come right back, scoring again, on a 30-yard touchdown pass from Franklin to Jimmie Hunt. They ended the first quarter leading 14-3.

Missouri tacked on an Andrew Baggett 20-yard field goal at the end of a 10-play, 67-yard drive in the second quarter, bumping the lead to 17-3. Junior RB Prince-Tyson Gulley's touchdown brought the Orange back to 17-10 on a one-yard plunge, ending the scoring for the half.

The Tigers have outgained Syracuse 237-119 through the first two quarters, but hold only a touchdown lead due to Gulley's 45 yards on 12 carries.