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Mizzou football and creative ways to lose; a match made in heaven.
The Tigers lost at home to Kentucky on Saturday 21-17, and I’m gonna guess that each and every one of you reading this know how it happened.
So let’s not dilly-dally. Here are this week’s Knee-Jerk Reactions:
Safe to say there was some controversy at the end
First, here’s the NCAA rule on roughing/running into the kicker:
— Tod Palmer (@todpalmer) November 5, 2022
And here’s the play:
Unreal. Snap over the #Kentucky punter’s head, Goodfellow picks it up and punts it and draws a “roughing the punter” call from his own goal line with a 4-point lead. Awful break for #Mizzou. UK can probably just run out the clock from here. #SEC #CFB pic.twitter.com/7vZYH2qyQc
— SportSource Analytics (@SportSourceA) November 5, 2022
Eli Drinkwitz said postgame that the officials told him the punter was still in the tackle box and still a protected punter. I agree with the first part of that, but I totally disagree with the second. At some point, when a snap goes 50 yards behind a punter and he has to chase it down, he ceases to become a kicker. If that is not clearly stated in the rule, it needs to be. Yesterday. No matter whether or not the officials adjudged this play by the letter of the law or not, the powers that create college football’s rules have to make sure that Will Norris, the man who made the tackle, is not faced with an impossible decision in that spot. How can you expect him to ease up when he sees a ball on the ground and is trying to outrun the punter to grab it? It still boggles my mind that a fumble of this magnitude doesn’t change the kicker into a runner. All-around bad.
To make matters worse, this wasn’t the only crucial call that went Kentucky’s way. With about six minutes to go and Kentucky driving in the red zone, Chris Rodriguez appeared to lose the ball on a running ball and Mizzou recovered. It went to review, and was overturned. To me, it was really close on the line between the elbow being down and the ball moving, but close enough to just go with the call on the field, which was a fumble. Instead, Kentucky got new life on the drive, and scored the go-ahead touchdown on the very next play. It was a key moment, but almost an afterthought at this point. Either way, I don’t blame Mizzou at all for being upset with how that game ended.
The Brady Cook roller coaster continues
After a trip to South Carolina that featured mistake-free football from the sophomore quarterback, the mistakes reared their ugly head again. Cook started shaky in the first half, completing seven of nine passes for 19 yards and losing a fumble on a scramble play. The offensive line play was also inconsistent, causing Cook to take some big hits and come up limping. It wasn’t the same type of starts we had seen against Vanderbilt and South Carolina.
But there are two halves in football, and in the second, Cook gave Mizzou a chance. He completed seven passes of 10+ yards, and ran in two touchdowns, the second of which gave Mizzou the lead in the fourth quarter. Despite being shaken up, he made some key plays to keep the Tigers’ offense moving late in the game.
All in all, this game didn’t really change my opinion on Cook. He is what he is. He has good moments that can keep the offense alive, but he is clearly still committing mistakes that are hard to afford this late into the season. It’s give-and-take. I can’t say I have a strong feeling over whether or not Sam Horn should’ve gotten a chance Saturday, but what I do know is that it would behoove Mizzou and Eli Drinkwitz to find some snaps for the young freshman at some point before the clock hits 0:00 in the Arkansas game. Because you might make a bowl regardless of whether you’re 6-6 or 5-7. I don’t see much to lose anymore. We know what Cook is at this point. Drinkwitz needs to find out what Horn is, too.
Shocker! The defense is still elite
Goodness, where would Mizzou be without Blake Baker, Kris Abrams-Draine, Ennis Rakestraw, Darius Robinson, Isaiah McGuire, etc. etc. etc? The Tiger defense proved again why the defensive coordinator got a contract extension and a raise earlier this week, allowing just 242 yards of total offense and 4.1 yards per play. They racked up six sacks and 11 tackles for loss. Kentucky completed their first three third down conversions in the game, but after that, they went 3-for-13 on plays that included two sacks, three rushes for no gain or a loss, and two pass break-ups by Abrams-Draine.
Once again, a similar script played out for Mizzou; the offense sputters out, leaving the defense in precarious situations to try and stop the opposing offense on a short field. But time and again, this defense has delivered. There simply are not enough good things you can say about this unit, especially considering their poor performance last year. It’s fair to question the extension Drinkwitz received this week, but the administration made the no-brainer call when they decided to lock up Baker through 2025. He deserves it, and then some. And speaking of that other contract extension…
Drinkwitz had some bad moments
The most glaring mistake came in the third quarter, with Kentucky facing 3rd and 1 at the Mizzou 25. Chris Rodriguez ran off tackle to the left, and appeared to be stop for no gain by Isaiah McGuire. But the officials gave a generous spot for the first down. There was a clear replay shot that showed Mizzou had stopped Rodriguez short of the line to gain, so a challenge of the spot likely would’ve been successful. Drinkwitz did nothing. Not even a timeout just to check with his coaches watching replay to see what they thought. It would’ve clearly been 4th and 1 at the same spot. But instead, play continued, and Kentucky eventually found the end zone on that same drive. It’s tough to play the “what if?” game since Kentucky likely would’ve gone for it on fourth down anyway, but that decision to not challenge definitely played a factor in the drive’s result.
Drinkwitz’s offense didn’t provide much hope either. The Tigers were 7-for-10 on third down pass attempts, but only converted 2-of-13 third downs. Too many of those passing plays called for throws short of the sticks. Some of that could be on Cook, but it’s also on Drinkwitz for not putting him in position to get the first. A crucial 4th and 1 play with Mizzou in plus-territory was blown up on a Cook sneak play. The Wildcats loaded up on the interior, and a simple play-action pass to the flat could’ve provided better results. But what might be worse than all of that? Mizzou’s best offensive player, Dominic Lovett, got just one touch – a jet sweep for a four-yard loss – and only two other targets in the game. Because Drinkwitz didn’t do enough to get the ball in the sophomore receiver’s hands, he had what was coming for him on offense.
It’s a draining loss late in the season
Sure, Drinkwitz got the two-year contract extension, which was announced before the game Saturday. But in order for that commitment from administration to be worth it, Mizzou has to win games like this more often. A win could’ve kept Mizzou in at least a tie for third place in the division. That’s not to say that they’re chasing championships, but it illustrates who holds power in the division as we speak. There’s Georgia, Tennessee, and then a clear tier break. If Mizzou wants to step into that next tier, they have to win these close games against like opponents in the conference. Instead, they are 2-4 in the SEC with the four losses adding up to a combined margin of defeat of 18 points. Sure, they’re right there. But right there isn’t good enough anymore. Winners win. Mizzou, to this point, hasn’t done so consistently.
And they sure as hell ain’t winning next week. As I type this, now No. 1 Tennessee is trailing Georgia 24-6. If the Vols get handed their first loss, they will be in full style-points mode for the rest of the season. They will have every incentive to blast every opponent remaining on their schedule to oblivion in order to look better in the eyes of the playoff committee. I expect that offense to show absolutely no mercy against the Tigers in Knoxville. It’ll be a great challenge for this defense, but I think even Baker’s tough group will be no match. That means Mizzou’s best chance at reaching six wins is an upset against Arkansas on Black Friday. I can’t say I expect a win there, but we’ll just have to wait and see, right?
