No. 12 Football Faces SEC East Road Test At No. 2 Georgia

COLUMBIA, Mo. – The No. 14 University of Missouri football team hits the road Saturday for a key Southeastern Conference East Division matchup at No. 1 Georgia. The teams will kick it off on Saturday, Nov. 4 at 2:30 p.m. CT inside Sanford Stadium in Athens. The game will air on CBS and Tiger Radio Network. 

MU (7-1, 3-1 SEC) is coming off a bye following a 34-12 win over South Carolina retaining the Mayor’s Cup for the fifth-straight season. The Tigers are off to a 7-1 start for the fifth time in program history, most recently in 2013, when the Tigers went on to finish 12-2 and captured their first SEC East Division title. Mizzou leads the nation in red-zone offense and have logged six-straight games scoring at least 30 points. This is the third-straight year UGA has held the No. 1 ranking when facing Mizzou. MU is 0-18 all-time against a team ranked No. 1 in the AP poll.

THE SERIES
Saturday’s game marks the 13th meeting between the Bulldogs and the Tigers. UGA leads the series, 11-1, including a 10-1 record in SEC play. MU’s lone win came during the 2013 season, 41-26, in Athens.

MISSOURI TIGERS
Head Coach Eliah Drinkwitz
Record at Mizzou 24-20 (Fourth Year)
Overall Record 36-21 (Fifth Year)

GEORGIA BULLDOGS
Head Coach Kirby Smart
Record at School 89-15 (8th)
Overall Record Same

GAME INFORMATION
Facility Dooley Field at Sanford Stadium
Capacity 92,746
TV CBS
Radio 1580 AM / 105.1 FM / SiriusXM 135 or 192
Online The Varsity Network: “Search Mizzou”
Series Record Georgia leads 11-1
In Columbia, Mo. UGA leads 4-1
Last Meeting Oct. 1, 2022 (H), UGA W, 26-22

TV: CBS
• Play-by-Play: Rich Waltz
• Analyst: Aaron Taylor
• Reporter: Amanda Guerra
• Online: CBSSports.com
• Mobile App: Paramount+

RADIO: TIGER RADIO NETWORK
• Play-by-Play: Mike Kelly
• Analyst: Howard Richards
• Sideline Reporter: Chris Gervino
• Host: Matt Michaels
• Engineer: Jeremy Washington
• Local: 1580 AM / 105.1 FM
• Satellite: SiriusXM 135 or 192 and on the SXM App
• App: Mizzou Tigers / The Varsity Network: “Search Mizzou”

THE COACHES
ELIAH DRINKWITZ is in his fourth season as Mizzou’s head coach. He had led the Tigers to bowl appearances in each of his first three seasons, joining former head coach Warren Powers as the only two MU head coaches to achieve that feat. Additionally, only Powers won more games in his first two seasons at MU (1978-79, 15) than Drinkwitz (11). Prior to taking the Mizzou job, Drinkwitz was 12-1 as the head coach at Appalachian State in 2019. He had previous stops as the OC at NC State, Boise State and Arkansas State.

Kirby Smart is 89-15 in eight seasons leading his alma mater, including back-to-back National Championships.

STREAKS, STORYLINES, SIDEBARS … 
• Mizzou is playing its 133rd season of college football and is the 33rd FBS school to reach the 700-win milestone.
• Head Coach Eliah Drinkwitz has led Mizzou to a bowl in each of his first three seasons — and hit the six-win threshold in season four — only the second coach in school history to do so along with the late Warren Powers (1978-84). 
• The 2023 roster features 32 players who have started at least four games in the collegiate career at the FBS level. 
• Thirty-eight student-athletes on the team are from Missouri, including eight from the 573 area code, 19 from the St. Louis metropolitan region, nine from the Kansas City area and two from southwest Missouri.
• Mizzou finished nonconference play undefeated for the 10th time since 2000, and first since 2018.
• MU leads the NCAA FBS in red-zone offense, converting at a 97.1-percent (34-of-35) clip.
• MU has averaged 470.2 ypg in the last five games and sit fifth (SEC) and 30th (FBS) in yards per game (443.0).
• QB Brady Cook has logged 300+ yards passing in four of the last six games, including a career-best 411 yards against LSU. His 2,259 passing yards rank him third in the SEC and 15th in the NCAA FBS. 
• CB Kris Abrams-Draine leads the SEC and is No. 2 in the FBS in passes defended (14). He’s t-6th nationally with 4 INTs.
• WR Luther Burden III is fifth nationally with 905 receiving yards and tied for sixth overall with 61 catches. 
• True freshman speedster Marquis Johnson would lead the NCAA FBS in yards per catch (29.8), but sits just under the 2.0 receptions per game threshold. He has nine catches for 268 yards and three TDs.
• RB Cody Schrader is No. 2 in the SEC in rushing (102.8 ypg) and tied for the conference lead with nine rushing TDs.
• MU’s defense held UK to seven points and 149 yards total offense after trailing 14-0 at the end of the first quarter.
• K Harrison Mevis has scored 357 career kicking points and needs 5 points to tie Jeff Wolfert’s MU record (362).
• Attendance is up 8.5% over 2023, a mark which leads the SEC and ranks among the Top 15 Power 5 teams.
• Limited tickets remain for the Tigers’ final two home games against Tennessee and Florida.

LAST TIME OUT – MIZZOU 34, SOUTH CAROLINA 12
• RB Cody Schrader ran for 159 yards and two TDs and the Mizzou defense held South Carolina to four field goals as the Tigers won their seventh straight Homecoming game before a sellout crowd, 34-12.
• QB Brady Cook finished the contest connecting on 14-of-24 passing attempts for 198 yards and one touchdown toss–a 42-yard completion to WR Luther Burden III that gave the Tigers the lead for good. 
• Cook also rushed nine times for a season-high 64 yards and his fifth touchdown of the season.
• Mizzou scored on all three of its trips to the red zone, stretching its streak to 29-straight scoring conversions inside the opposition’s 20-yard line.
• MU’s defense recorded a season-best six sacks. 
• Four of those sacks came on third down, as South Carolina converted only 3-of-13 third-down attempts. 
• Mizzou retained the Mayor’s Cup with its fifth straight win over South Carolina and improved its all-time Homecoming record to 67-40-5. 
• It was also the 700th victory in Missouri history, making MU the 33rd school to reach the 700 milestone.

GEORGIA ON MY MIND
• Saturday’s contest will mark the 13th all-time meeting between Missouri and Georgia on the gridiron, with the Bulldogs holding an 11-1 series advantage.
• Georgia has won nine in a row vs. the Tigers, dating back to MU’s lone win over the Bulldogs in 2013.
• MU’s 41-26 win over No. 7 Georgia in Athens on Oct. 12, 2013 represents its lone victory over a top 10-ranked SEC foe since moving to the league in 2012.
• The Tigers’ 2023 roster includes five Georgia natives: DB Joseph Charleston (Milton), DB Boyton  Cheney (Fayetteville), DL Realus George Jr. (Atlanta), QB Sam Horn (Lawrenceville) and DL Sam Williams (Hogansville).
• Additionally, a pair of Mizzou assistant coaches have ties to the Peach State: Al Davis (DL-Interior) is a native of College Park, Ga., and Kevin Peoples (DL-Edge) spent two seasons (2014-15) on staff at Georgia Southern.
• Georgia WR and St. Louis area product Dominic Lovett and appeared in 25 contests for Mizzou (2021-22), finishing last season with a club-best 56 receptions.

MIZZOU ‘O’ ON A ROLL
• Missouri’s offense topped the 30-point barrier for the seventh time in eight games this season Oct. 21 vs. South Carolina.
• The Tigers are averaging 33.9 points per contest, which ranks fourth in the SEC and 27th nationally.
• Mizzou has topped the 500-yard mark for total offense on three occasions this season and currently ranks 30th nationally in total yards per game (443.0).
• Mizzou’s passing attack ranks third in the SEC, averaging 294.0 yards per outing; the Tigers’ 17 passing TDs on the year also rank third in the conference

IN THE ZONE
• Mizzou’s offense has been nearly unstoppable in the red zone this season, converting 30 consecutive scoring opportunities inside the opponent’s 20-yard line, dating back to the season opener vs. South Dakota.
• The Tigers lead the nation in red zone offense, converting 97.14% (34-of-35) of their opportunities.
• Mizzou has reached the end zone in 24 of those 35 chances, scoring 14 rushing TDs and 10 passing TDs, in addition to 10 field goal conversions.
• Conversely, the MU defense ranks third in the SEC in red zone defense (81.48%), stopping the opposition on five (of 27) trips to date.

TIGERS IN THE POLLS
• Missouri checked in at a 2023 peak position of No. 14 in this week’s Associated Press and US LBM Coaches Polls, marking the Tigers’ sixth consecutive week in at least one top 25 poll this season.
• The current streak (6) is the longest since MU closed 2013 with 11 consecutive weeks in the AP poll.
• Mizzou’s No. 14 position also marks its highest rank in either major poll since its No. 11 ranking in the final 2014 coaches poll.
• MU is one of six SEC squads ranked among the top 16 teams in this week’s coaches poll, joining No. 1 Georgia, Alabama (8), Ole Miss (10), LSU (13) and Tennessee (16).  
• Mizzou is 19-9 (.679) as a ranked team during the SEC era (2012-present).

LIMITED TICKETS STILL AVAILABLE
Reserved seats for the upcoming football game against Tennessee are sold out, but for available group and single-game tickets for remaining home games call 1-800-CAT-PAWS or buy online. Hill Tickets for Tennessee (buy now) and Florida (buy now) are on sale for purchase today!

FOLLOW THE TIGERS
For all the latest information on Mizzou Athletics, please visit MUTigers.com. For up-to-the-minute updates, follow Missouri football (@MizzouFootball) and Coach Drinkwitz (@CoachDrinkwitz) on X. You can also find the Tigers on Instagram and Facebook.