The good feelings from Week 1 have faded some as Missouri suffered a sobering 40-12 loss to Kansas State on Saturday that exposed several areas in need of improvement while going up against a formidable defense that doesn’t get quite as much national attention as it perhaps deserves.

Things particularly fell apart on offense on a day in which bad quickly went to worse, and despite some good moments for the defense it couldn’t overcome letting “The Deuce” get loose.

Here are 3 storylines from Saturday’s blowout loss:

1. Luther Burden contained

The Tigers wide receiver had 1 touch just ahead of the 5-minute mark of the second quarter, going into the locker room at halftime with a mere 1 reception for 3 yards. That number didn’t change as Burden finished the game with that same receiving stat line along with 1 carry for 6 yards.

This says more about the absolute dominance of the Kansas State defense than Burden — between the talent of the Wildcats’ 3-3-5 defense, the inability of the Mizzou offensive line to get the job done and some of the errors made by the quarterbacks and the offense overall, it was difficult for the former 5-star recruit to even get a chance. Burden’s frustration was clear on a play in the first half where he had several steps on a Kansas State defender on what would have been a huge chunk play, but quarterback Brady Cook overshot him.

It’s important to remember just how much of a star Burden was in the season opener, in which the Tigers routed Louisiana Tech, 52-24. Burden finished that game with 3 receptions for 17 yards and 1 touchdown. He was more impressive than the stat line would have implied, with an exceptional one-handed catch and another touchdown that came out of the Wildcat formation. Burden should be expected to be used in trick plays, something that Mizzou could have incorporated more into this game.

2. Cook can’t settle in

Inexperienced quarterbacks take a while to develop, and it is rare that any of them are an overnight success. Such has been the case with Cook, who once again flashed on the deep ball and with his mobility but struggled in some other areas.

He made a poor time management decision that took precious time off the clock ahead of halftime, had some notable underthrows and overthrows that cost Mizzou some potential opportunities and needed to do a better job of visually manipulating defenders.

That especially showed when he was intercepted by Kobe Savage on an underthrown ball at the 9:20 mark on a play in which Cook gave everything away with his eyes. It didn’t help that the offensive line allowed Cook to get banged up some, but there’s a lot of growth that needs to happen and Cook’s performance at this point — while there have been some bright spots — has left the door open for some potential questions at quarterback.

The Tigers made a switch at quarterback to veteran Mississippi State transfer Jack Abraham at the 2-minute mark of the third quarter. But it didn’t last, as Missouri ultimately made its way back to Cook in the 4th quarter. Cook finished the game 18-of-27 passing for 201 yards, with 1 touchdown and 1 interception. He also carried the ball 7 times for 61 yards with 1 rushing score. Abraham was 0-of-3 passing with 2 interceptions.

For now, it looks like things will roll on the way they have been at quarterback. That’s probably in the team’s best interest, following the mentality that “if you have 2 quarterbacks, you have 0 quarterbacks.”

“Brady’s our quarterback,” Tigers head coach Eli Drinkwitz told reporters after the game. “I was just trying to light a spark.”

3. Defense needs work but shows potential

Three consecutive 3-and-outs forced at the start of the 3rd quarter were among the highlights for a defense that at times got the better of Kansas State quarterback Adrian Martinez. But it was no secret that Deuce Vaughn had Missouri’s number. The Wildcats running back was able to gash Mizzou on the ground, carrying 24 times for 145 yards and 2 touchdowns. He added 1 reception for 4 yards and has showed the ability to play a role in the passing game when called upon.

While some of it was Kansas State’s own doing, Martinez finished with a sub-50-percent completion rate, and the Cats converted just 4 of 13 third-down attempts. In the first half, Mizzou held the Wildcats’ highly touted ground game to 89 yards and 14 points. But it’s easy to see how the unit could have been tired out from being on the field so much.

Mizzou should catch a break and be able to tweak some things in next Saturday’s meeting with Abilene Christian.