'CoMo Is My Home': Mizzou's Theo Wease Jr. Reflects on Final Game at Faurot Field

COLUMBIA, Mo. — Talking to fellow senior Nate Noel after Missouri pulled off yet another comeback win at home, the emotions finally settle in for Theo Wease Jr. amid a cigar-filled locker room celebration — he'll never play as a Tiger again at Faurot Field.

With snow falling down across mid-Missouri Saturday morning, the makings of a unique senior day were there. In six-year career, Wease hadn't played in wintery conditions before. Unexpectedly, the receiver was getting two firsts in one game.

After a bounce-back performance in the second half, the Tigers finished off the Arkansas Razorbacks for the third season in a row in a 28-21 win. Wease provided 100 receiving yards on four receptions, which included a 70-yard gain with 11:12 remaining in the fourth quarter.

Beyond his own statline or the team's performance, Wease's focus wasn't necessarily on the game itself after he was carried off with a rock in hand. It was putting the past two years, the brotherhood he helped foster and his college career in perspective.

"I didn't start my college career here, but I definitely want to put everything on the line for those guys. They've been through a lot. I just really wanted to finish it out right for them," Wease said.

The first three seasons of Wease's career were spent with the Oklahoma Sooners before transferring to Missouri. He became a key contributor in Oklahoma's offense, but after the departure of head coach Lincoln Riley and injury struggles, he looked for a fresh start in the transfer portal ahead of the 2023 season.

Even though the Tigers had been on a string of middling seasons under coach Eli Drinkwitz, Wease saw something in the program that many might not have. It was going to be a challenge to get it back on its right footing, but he was determined to accomplish a simple goal: Leave it better than he found it.

After an 11-win campaign and Cotton Bowl victory in 2023, along with a chance to secure a 10-win season in 2024, that goal has been reached.

Missouri rebuilt its program into one that aims for a top 25 finish, competes for championships and holds a tight brotherhood — not the "toxic" one that may have existed in past years. Wease has been one of the leading factors of that change.

"At the end of the day, you want to battle with your brothers once you really love the person to the left and right. It just means different," Wease said. "It really doesn't even matter about the outcome of the game, you('re) just going out there and putting it all on the line for the man next to you."

The Tigers still have a bowl game awaiting in December, but the final time at their home field, in front of a filled-up stadium of fans bundled up in coats, is a feeling that can't be matched. It's not the end of the road for this team, but at Missouri, it is.

It's been and up and down road for Wease filled with obstacles, but in the end, he found the home he searched for to wrap up the end of his college journey.

"I'm honestly just speechless thinking about everything we've been through for the past year ... I love Mizzou," Wease said. "I love everything about Mizzou."

Columbia wasn't his only destination, but it's the destination he'll be returning to for years to come.

"It's my home, for sure. It's been nothing but love from the first day I got here," Wease said. "I'm just glad that I was able to finish my college career on the right note."

Read more from Arkansas at Mizzou:

Instant Takeaways From Mizzou Football's Wintery Win Past Arkansas