Longest field goal in SEC history: Harrison Mevis' walk-off kick lifts Missouri past Kansas State

For a moment, it appeared as though Missouri had cost itself an attempt at a game-winning field goal in the final seconds of its game Saturday against No. 15 Kansas State.

Harrison Mevis had other ideas.

REQUIRED READING: Missouri stuns Kansas State football with 61-yard game-winning field goal

The Tigers’ senior kicker made a 61-yard field goal as time expired to deliver his team a shocking 30-27 win against Kansas State at Memorial Stadium in Columbia, Missouri.

The kick was the longest in SEC history, eclipsing the previous long of 60 that was set in 1984.

Harrison Mevis' history with long field goals

While 61 yards represents a new milestone, Mevis is known for his big leg.

The 5-11, 243-pound Indiana native, affectionately known as the “Thicker Kicker,” has made a habit of successfully converting field goals from distances that many of his college kicking counterparts could only dream of.

After Saturday’s walk-off 61-yarder, Mevis is now 11 of 15 from 50 yards or longer over the course of his four seasons at Missouri. His previous career long was from 56 yards.

His historic kick Saturday broke an SEC record of 60 yards, set most recently in 1984 by Florida's Chris Perkins and Georgia's Kevin Butler. The first 60-yarder in conference history came from Tennessee's Fuad Reveiz in 1982. In a 2017 story, AL.com identified the mark as one of 15 SEC records "that will never be broken," identifying it as such because the kicks from Perkins, Butler and Reveiz came with the ball placed on a flat tee, a practice that was banned in 1989.

Up until his game-winner Saturday, Mevis had been uncharacteristically inaccurate this season. He missed three of his first six kicks this season, including a 53-yarder early in the second quarter that would have stretched the Tigers’ lead to 13-7.

REQUIRED READING: Kansas State football vs. Missouri recap: Tigers win on 61-yard Harrison Mevis field goal

How Harrison Mevis' field goal contributed to a thrilling finish to Missouri vs. Kansas State

Mevis’ field goal was only one part of a chaotic finish to the game.

With the ball at the Kansas State 39 and six seconds remaining, Missouri was set to attempt a 56-yard field goal to win the game. Inexplicably, though, the Tigers were unable to get the snap off in time and were charged with a delay of game penalty, moving them back five yards.

In his postgame press conference, Missouri coach Eliah Drinkwitz took responsibility for the mishap, describing it as "completely bone-headed."

"Sometimes, your players bail you out," Drinkwitz said. "That’s what they did there. We’ll learn from it and move on.”

The following play, they tried to gain some of that yardage back with a quick Brady Cook pass, but it was batted down with three seconds left on the clock.

Although the 61-yarder was five yards more than Mevis’ career long, Drinkwitz still sent his kicker out and, surely enough, his faith was rewarded.

Even as Mevis’ kick sailed through the goalposts and sent the home crowd of 62,621 into a frenzy, there was still some uncertainty about whether it would count.

As the field goal attempt was mid-air, one of the referees standing underneath the uprights appeared to throw a flag. After the kick was made and fans stormed the field, the officials gathered together in the corner of one of the end zones. Following a short discussion, they determined that the game was over and the Tigers had won before exiting the field.

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Missouri's Harrison Mevis kicks the longest field goal in SEC history