Welcome to Four Down Territory where I’ll give you three thoughts on Missouri football or college football in general. Then, the last thought will be whatever I want it to be.
1. Tigers did what they needed to do and the depth is as advertised.
There was only so much to learn from a Murray State-Mizzou game. My most notable observation was that there were no true slip-ups. It wasn't like last year versus South Dakota and MTSU where you could tell the Tigers were holding back or trying to figure out who they were or what they wanted to put on film.
That wasn’t the case in Week 1.
Brady Cook didn't have his best game, but he still had an adequate showing by completing 19-of-30 passes for 218 yards and a touchdown. The third-year starting quarterback helped lead the team to four scoring drives (three touchdowns) in his two and a half quarters of action. He did leave some points on the board with some overthrown passes but he has one more week to work on that before Mizzou hosts Boston College in Week 3.
His backup
Drew Pyne went 10-of-11 for 82 yards and led three scoring drives (one touchdown). Running backs
Nate Noel and
Marcus Carroll showed they will be a formidable duo out of the backfield to replace
Cody Schrader.
The wide receiver group looked good and even though it was Murray State, it's a good sign that a player like
Daniel Bood led the team in receptions and receiving yards. How often will the sixth or seventh receiver lead the team in receiving this year? Probably not many more times but it lets you know that the team has actual depth.
On defense, it was even better. The team held the Racers to 85 total yards and no points. I couldn't tell the difference between a first-string defender and a second-team defender.
Starting WILL linebacker
Triston Newson had five tackles and a tackle for loss and starting MIKE linebacker
Chuck Hicks had two tackles.
Backup MIKE
Corey Flagg also had five tackles and a tackle for loss while backup WILL Khalil Jacobs had two tackles and a tackle for loss and
Chuck Hicks had two tackles.
Do you see how the production of the linebackers didn't drop off? That's how it felt at every position. The Racers didn't prove to be the most formidable opponent but at least the Racers didn't show signs of life once platoon swaps were made.
During fall camp, head coach
Eli Drinkwitzsaid something along the lines of having a real two-deep that he’s happy about, and I see why. It’s only the first week, but could this team be better than last year’s Cotton Bowl team that had six NFL draftees?
2. Apparently, Mizzou's season starts in Week 3.
On my Week 1 bingo card, I didn't have Virginia Tech being upset by Vanderbilt.
The Hokies were supposed to be an upper-echelon ACC team and still might be but losing to Vanderbilt is just something you can't do if you’re trying to compete in the conference.
Virginia Tech received five votes to win the conference in the preseason poll and was selected to finish sixth out of 17 teams. Fortunately for the Hokies, it's 2024. They can lose one game, and win their conference to make the College Football Playoff. They probably can't lose again and still have a road game against Miami (FL) and a home game versus Clemson.
On the flip side, how about Vanderbilt? I’ve been saying, ‘Mizzou’s season doesn't get started until Week 6 at Texas A&M.’ The Commodores shut that narrative down by upsetting a decent Virginia Tech team, meaning when they roll into Columbia in Week 4 they'll likely be 3-0 with a credible win.
Boston College also proved last night that I shouldn’t be overlooking them with their showing versus Florida State. Part of that could be that Florida State is not a good team but the Eagles still had to go to Tallahassee and do the job.
So, Mizzou’s next two opponents following Buffalo are better than I thought. Do I think either of them will beat Missouri? No. But Mizzou has to show up. I don’t think they can sleepwalk to wins.
I’m willing to bet most people (myself included) believe that Vandy was a glorified Group of 5 team disguised as an SEC team. Some may still think that and I don't know if that's wise.
Quarterback
Diego Pavia looked the part. He completed 12-of-16 passes for 190 yards and two touchdowns. He also had 26 rushes for 104 yards and the game-winning touchdown in overtime. I don’t know how well Vandy will do, but it probably won’t be the dumpster fire most people expect it to be with the reigning SEC Player of the Week at the helm.
This is why I’m glad the games are played on the field and not on paper.
3. True ballers I noticed over the weekend.
Contrary to popular belief, I don’t get to see too many college football games live because I’m at Missouri’s games. Fortunately, Mizzou played on Thursday and I watched college football on one of my last three free Saturdays until the end of the regular season.
I got to see some people ball out and I just wanted to talk about who caught my eye.
Miami quarterback
Cam Ward, Vanderbilt’s Pavia, USC quarterback
Miller Moss and wide receiver
Kyron Hudson, LSU quarterback
Garrett Nussmeier and wide receiver
Kyren Lacy.
I’ve seen Ward highlights from his time at Washington State but I’m not going to lie and tell you I stayed up late after a Mizzou game to watch him. So, watching his debut for Miami (FL) at Florida was my true introduction and I was impressed.
His game is effortlessly smooth. He’d break a run for about 10-15 yards and get to the sidelines and basically walk out of bounds. He just seemed self-aware at all times and can sling the ball.
Ward completed 26-of-35 passes for 385 yards, three touchdowns and an interception. He also had three carries for 33 yards in the 41-17 win in Gainesville.
I already talked about Pavia but again, I was thoroughly impressed. I know it’s one game but he seems like he can be a real problem for teams in the future.
Moss was phenomenal in USC's 27-20 win over LSU. He completed 27-of-36 passes for 378 yards and a touchdown. He completed 12 passes that were 15 yards or more and more impressively, he didn’t look like a guy making his first regular-season start.
On that final drive, he helped walk LSU down beautifully. He completed 5-of-6 passes for 49 yards on that drive, which included the sideline throw to Hudson, who made his second one-handed catch of the game for a first down plus the extra 15 yards to put the Trojans in field goal range following the targeting penalty.
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Speaking of Hudson, he looked awesome. He started the game by making a one-handed catch in double coverage for a 24-yard gain. He led the Trojans with five receptions for 83 yards.
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On the other side, I was impressed by Nussmeier. Another quarterback who made his first regular-season start. He played well and gave his team a chance to win that's all you can ask for when he's following up a Heisman-winning quarterback.
He completed 29-of-38 passes for 304 yards, two touchdowns and an interception. I won’t weigh the interception as much because it came on LSU’s final offensive play in what would’ve likely not resulted in a touchdown, anyway.
He was efficient and he was dropping dimes.
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However, Lacy popped on my TV immediately. He finished the game with a game-high seven receptions for 94 yards and a touchdown. Four of his receptions came on the opening drive, including the touchdown (and yes, his penalty was dumb after the play). Also, six of his receptions resulted in first downs.
I don’t know if he will be as good as
Malik Nabers, Justin Jefferson or
Ja’Marr Chase but when I watched him play I said, ‘ Oh, he’s the new No. 1 receiver. He’s the next wide receiver up for them.’
I think he's going to be really good.
4. What's the superior three-day weekend? Friday-Sunday or Saturday-Monday?
Labor Day weekend just passed and it has me thinking about what is the better three-day weekend, Friday-Saturday or Saturday-Monday.
The first one feels like a luxury. Most people will do whatever they want after school or work on Fridays anyway, but who is going to turn down an opportunity to get the fun started a few hours earlier? Plus, the finish line of the week just got shorter if the work week or business week ends on Thursday.
For Saturday-Monday, it really feels like a four-day weekend and it shorts the next week. So, we just discussed what happens on Friday regardless of if it's an off day or not. Saturday is Saturday (I hope I'm not supposed to tell you how good Saturdays are) and now Sunday becomes another Saturday. Monday becomes a recovery day or something where you do something small and simple. Plus, when you go back to work or school you're 20% closer to the end of the workweek/business week being completed.
Personally, I’ll take having Monday off over Fridays.
Which is the best three-day weekend for you? And no, you can’t say both.
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