It was close. No. 12 gave No. 2 all it could handle. But Missouri football came up short against one of the best teams in the nation.
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Georgia scored a late field goal to finish off a 30-21 win over Mizzou in Athens.
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Here are our postgame grades from Missouri’s close tussle with Georgia on the road.
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Missouri’s offense
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Missouri’s offense wasn’t great. It stalled at times. But the collective unit gave Georgia a real test.
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The Tigers put themselves in a position to go ahead in the fourth quarter, as the running game finally got going late.
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MU also got the offense going early with a 39-yard bomb from Brady Cook to Luther Burden. It’s proof that Missouri’s offense can find success against all kinds of defenses.
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Would Missouri have liked to sustain more offensive drives? Without question, but against a defense like Georgia finding success isn’t a given.
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The Tigers didn’t do enough, as evidenced by the bad turnover in the fourth and by stalling in the second and third quarters.
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Grade: C
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Missouri’s defense
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Georgia’s offense hasn’t been as explosive as in past years, to be sure, but the Bulldogs still present a threat by virtue of being one of the best teams in the nation.
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Credit Missouri and Blake Baker: The Tigers’ defense gave Missouri a chance.
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Baker’s blitzes hampered the Bulldogs. UGA quarterback Carson Beck was sacked only six times entering Saturday. Missouri sacked Beck three times. Darius Robinson and Ty’Ron Hopper played like NFL players.
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Still, Georgia adjusted. The Bulldogs’ offense exposed those blitzes with throws over the middle on well-timed plays.
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Even after that adjustment, Missouri’s defense didn’t break. When Georgia intercepted a pass and threatened to seal the game with a touchdown, the Tigers’ defense didn’t break.
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In order to pull off the upset, that’s what the MU defense needed to do. Could the defense have forced a turnover? Sure, but the end result was a chance to knock off Georgia. That’s all you can ask for in a game like this.
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Grade: B
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Mizzou RB Cody Schrader
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The Schrader Show occurs every Saturday, and it’s a beloved show if you’re a true football fan.
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Schrader took his time and kept peppering the Georgia defense with his stretch plays and runs right into the heart of the defense.
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Eventually, the defense cracked.
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Schrader got the Georgia defense to break at the perfect time. In the fourth quarter, with Missouri trailing 24-13, Schrader scored a 12-yard touchdown to get Missouri back into the game.
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Like the defense, he gave MU a chance against Georgia on the road.
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Schrader’s 3- and 4-yard gains in the first three quarters turned into 12- and 13-yard gains in the fourth.
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Grade: A
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Mizzou coach Eli Drinkwitz
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At the end of the first half, Missouri forced Georgia to punt. The Tigers had 45 seconds to get into field goal range with two timeouts.
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The officials ruled a stretch play to Schrader in bounds. Drinkwitz opted to argue the call instead of calling a timeout to preserve time — and perhaps try to get Harrison Mevis into field-goal range.
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Drinkwitz took those two timeouts into the break.
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Still, that strange end to the half aside, Drinkwitz had this team ready to play Georgia on the road. The head ball coach’s maturity and grasp on how to prepare a talented Tigers team to give them the best chance to win.
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This game came down to the fourth quarter, while Missouri entered as a two-touchdown-plus underdog.
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Grade: B+
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The Star has partnered with the Columbia Daily Tribune for coverage of Missouri Tigers athletics.
Esta história foi publicada originalmente 4 de novembro de 2023, 18h15.