The Missouri Tigers must have had a really, REALLY good halftime chat Saturday afternoon at the Edward Jones Dome.

Their first half against Illinois was a mess. They trailed 13-3 and fell into big-time trouble in this final Arch Rivalry game.

Mizzou yielded 157 first-half yards on the ground. The Tigers allowed shifty Illini quarterback Nathan Scheelhaase to run for 85 yards on 13 carries.

Running back Mikel Leshoure gashed the Tigers for 74 yards on 11 carries. Missouri seemed baffled by the Illini option scheme. Fans began suffering haunting Navy flashbacks.

Missouri’s offense sputtered during the first two quarters. Quarterback Blaine Gabbert’s fumble killed one potential scoring drive.

A high snap led to Grant Ressel’s missed 47-yard field goal. Another potential scoring drive died when receiver Wes Kemp dropped a wide-open pass down the middle.

But the second half was a whole different story. Tactical adjustments and spirited defensive and offensive efforts allowed Missouri to rally to its 23-13 victory.

"We showed our guts," Gabbert said. "We responded positively, we came out in the second half and dominated."

The MU coaching staff made some schematic changes and players on both sides of the ball stepped up.

“It was a tale of two halves,” Illinois coach Ron Zook told reporters after the game. “They made some adjustments and got their team ready to play in the second half.”

Mizzou’s defense opened the second half with a three-and-out stop. The offense responded with a crisply executed touchdown drive.

The defense delivered another three-and-out stop . . . and the Tigers seized firm control of the game.

They out-gained the Illini 147-10 in the third quarter. They earned nine first downs to Illinois’ one.

“It was obvious they did a good job,” Zook said, “but as much as Missouri adjusted, we didn’t come out  with the amount of intensity that was needed.”

Gabbert fueled the comeback with his scrambling 7-yard TD pass to T.J. Moe in the left corner of the end zone.

"We had to make a play on our own," Gabbert said. "It was a double move. It was covered really well. I had to leave the pocket and T.J. is good abound finding the zones. He's knows what I'm looking for, being an ex-quarterback and he sat down perfectly.

Although they still trailed 13-10 heading into the fourth quarter, the Tigers were rolling downhill. Gabbert put them ahead with a 6-yard touchdown pass to Michael Egnew and Ressel tacked on a couple more field goals.

Gabbert completed 34 of 48 passes overall for 281 yards and the two touchdowns. Moe finished with 13 catches for 101 yards and his TD. Egnew caught 10 passes for 60 yards and his TD.

Defensive end Aldon Smith was monstrous, moving around in the defense, spying on Scheelhaase and recording 10 tackles. Oft-maligned cornerback Carl Gettis snagged a critical one-hand interception.

This wasn’t a pretty performance. The officials flagged the Tigers for seven penalties totaling 80 yards.

Some of those calls appeared borderline, but that was of no consolation to coach Gary Pinkel. His team has plenty to work on as it enters the soft portion of its pre-conference schedule.

But the second-half turnaround against a desperate Illinois team gives Missouri plenty to build upon.