Missouri

Scouting report: Mississippi State

Published

2 years ago

November 20, 2024

The Missouri Tigers (7-3, 3-3 SEC) dropped a thrilling game against South Carolina to essentially end their College Football Playoff hopes. But there’s still two regular seasons and a bowl game left.

First up, the Tigers will finish the true-road game schedule in Starkville, Miss., where they will face Mississippi State (2-8, 0-6 SEC).

The Bulldogs ended a seven-game losing streak with a 45-20 win against UMass two weeks ago, but dropped a 33-14 game against Tennessee last weekend to stay winless in conference play.

Missouri opened as an 8-point favorite according to Circa Sports.

Here’s a glance at Mississippi State and what Missouri will face at 3:15 p.m. Saturday in Mississippi.

When: 3:15 p.m. CT, Saturday

Where: Davis Wade Stadium, Starkville, Mississippi.

TV: SEC Network

RADIO: Tiger Radio Network

The Tigers and Bulldogs have played only four times with Mississippi State winning the two matchups since Missouri joined the SEC.

The most recent matchup was a 51-32 Bulldog win in Starkville in 2020 and Mississippi State won 31-13 in 2015 in Columbia.

Missouri won 47-30 in a non-conference matchup in Columbia in 1984 and a 14-3 non-conference road matchup in 1981.

Scoring offense: 27.6 (No. 72)

Scoring defense: 34.4 (No. 117)

Rushing offense: 146.9 (No. 82)

Rushing defense: 214.5 (No. 126)

Passing offense: 238.9 (No. 53)

Passing defense: 246.3 (No. 103)

OFFENSE

Michael Van Buren Jr., QB

The 6-foot-1, 200-pound freshman took over the quarterback spot in Week 4 against Florida after transfer senior Blake Shapen hurt his shoulder and was knocked out for the season.

In eight games, Van Buren Jr. has passed for 1,415 yards and completed 107-of-196 (54.6 percent) of his passes. He has nine touchdowns and five interceptions.

His best games came at Georgia and against Arkansas.

At Georgia, he completed 20-of-37 passes for 306 yards, three touchdowns and an interception, and got shoved by Georgia coach Kirby Smart.

Against Arkansas, Van Buren completed 22-of-31 (71 percent) of his passes for 309 yards and two touchdowns, but he did have two interceptions.

He hasn’t had another two-interception game, though he did throw one each against Georgia, Texas A&M and Tennessee.

He has not been a rushing threat this season, never totaling more than 15 yards in a game and racking up -5 yards on 57 attempts this year when including sack yardage.

Davon Booth and Johnnie Daniels, RBs

The pair of running backs have combined for 1,106 yards and eight touchdowns, both averaging between 50-60 yards per game.

Booth, a 5-10, 205-pound senior, leads the way at 597 yards and four touchdowns, while also catching 10 passes for 124 yards and four touchdowns.

Booth has grown into the lead back the past four weeks with games of 79 rushing yards and two catches for 31 yards and a score against Texas A&M, 93 rushing yards and a 54-yard receiving touchdown against Arkansas, 76 rushing yards and a score against UMass and 125 rushing yards and a touchdown against Tennessee.

Booth also often returns kicks, taking 11 back for a combined 281 yards (25.55 per return).

Daniels, a 5-10, 200-pound junior, has 509 yards and four rushing scores to go with seven catches for 72 yards.

His best game was a 92-yard performance against UMass, but he has games of 77 yards and a score against Florida and 75 yards against Texas.

Kevin Coleman, WR

The 5-11, 180-pound junior has totaled about a third of the team’s total receiving yards with 756 on 62 catches with five touchdowns.

He has surpassed 100 yards three times, a four-catch, 103-yard game against Arizona State, an eight-catch, 103-yard performance against Georgia and an eight-catch 100-yard performance against Arkansas.

His touchdowns came one each against Eastern Kentucky, Arizona State, Toledo, Texas A&M and Arkansas.

He has also returned 11 kicks for 134 yards (12.18 per return), but most of that came on five returns against Eastern Kentucky in the first game of the season.

DEFENSE

Isaac Smith, Safety

The 6-0, 205-pound sophomore leads the team with 101 tackles in nine games played. He recorded 20 tackles against Tennessee last week.

He has broken up two passes and forced a fumble against Florida.

Corey Ellington, Safety

A 6-3, 200-pound senior, Ellington leads the Bulldogs with three forced fumbles in just seven games played. He forced one each against Florida, Texas and Arkansas.

He has totaled 39 tackles this year with nine each against Arkansas and UMass, and he has one tackle for loss against Texas to go with three pass breakups.

Brice Pollock, Corner

The 6-1, 190-pound sophomore, leads the Bulldogs with seven pass breakups. He had one each in five of the season’s first six games, then two against UMass.

In 10 games, Pollock has 38 total tackles with his season-high of six coming against both Arkansas State and Texas. He has one tackle for loss coming last week against Tennessee, one forced fumble against Georgia and an interception against Georgia.

Nate Noel vs. Mississippi State’s front 7

The Bulldogs have allowed a lot of rushing yards this year. An SEC team having the No. 126 rushing defense per game out of 133 teams is crazy. The only other power-conference team below No. 120 is Oklahoma State at No. 132 (shoutout my Cowboys, what a year).

Noel, Marcus Carroll, Jamal Roberts and Kewan Lacy all have an opportunity to dominate the game and keep pressure off of Brady Cook as he continues to recover.

If the Mizzou running backs are able to take advantage of a really struggling run defense, that will be big for the Tigers.

Missouri’s offense vs. the red zone

Mississippi State allows a lot of yards and a lot of points. The Tigers cannot continue to struggle in the red zone as they have all year.

Settling for field goals might be enough to win this game, but if the Tigers are regularly sending out Blake Craig, that’s a bad sign. This is not a defense that should be able to stop any of the running backs, Theo Wease or Luther Burden in tight situations.

Mizzou should be reaching the end zone every time it gets to the red zone this week.

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Missouri

Children receive custom playhouses at Habitat for Humanity’s first-ever playhouse build event

Published

30 minutes ago

June 27, 2026

Press Room

Children receive custom playhouses at Habitat for Humanity’s first-ever playhouse build event

Children in the Jefferson City area received custom-built playhouses Saturday during River City Habitat for Humanity’s first Playhouse Build event at Capital Mall.

Local businesses, volunteers and community organizations spent the day assembling and decorating the playhouses. Each playhouse was designed around a child’s favorite colors, hobbies and interests.

The children and their families were presented with the finished playhouses at the end of the event.

River City Habitat for Humanity said the event was created to give children a special place to imagine and play while bringing the community together in support of the organization’s mission.

“A playhouse may seem like a simple structure, but to a child it’s a castle, a clubhouse, a fort, or a place where their imagination can come to life,” Susan Cook, the executive director of River City Habitat for Humanity, said in a news release. “We hope this becomes a tradition that our community looks forward to each year.”

Nine teams participated in the inaugural event, including Hitachi, Samco Business Products, Jefferson City Medical Group, the Home Builders Association, Capital City Business Builders BNI, Jefferson City Parks, Habitat Women Build and community volunteer teams.

Hitachi served as the event’s presenting sponsor.

“Our team was super excited about sponsoring it because we are giving back to the community and we are giving back to little people,” Leanna Ritter, a Hitachi Energy employee, said. “What’s better than little people?”

Scruggs Lumber donated the plywood used to build the playhouses, and Sherwin-Williams donated the paint.

River City Habitat for Humanity has partnered with local families, volunteers, businesses and community organizations since 1993. The nonprofit says it has helped build more than 138 affordable homes in the Jefferson City area.

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Missouri

Lake of the Ozarks ranks among cleanest US lakes, study finds

Published

11 hours ago

June 27, 2026

Press Room

Lake of the Ozarks ranks among cleanest US lakes, study finds

One of Missouri’s largest lakes is among the cleanest in the nation, according to a new report.

A study conducted by Lake.com, a vacation rental platform for properties near or on water, focused on the 100 largest lakes in the United States and their chemical data from Jan. 1, 2020, to July 15, 2025.

The lakes were tested for eight of the most commonly measured characteristics that can suggest their cleanliness, including pH, ammonia and lead.

What’s the cleanest lake in Missouri?

Lake.com rated the Lake of the Ozarks as the fourth-cleanest lake in the country.

The lake earned a 1.85 out of 10 in its pollution score, bolstered primarily by its low pH and sulfate levels, as well as its lack of lead and ammonia.

The report listed the following measurements for the lake:

Dissolved oxygen: 7.5 mg/L
Phosphorus: 0.01 mg/L
Sulfate: 1.66 mg/L
Turbidity: 2.3 NTU
Difference from pH7: 2.3 pH
Pollution score: 1.85/10

What did Lakes.com have to say about Lake of the Ozarks?

“With 54,000 surface acres and 1,150 miles of shoreline, more coastline than the entire state of California, it is the largest non-flood-control man-made lake in the United States. The lake’s distinctive serpentine shape, stretching 92 miles from Bagnell Dam to the lake’s western reach, earned it the nickname “The Magic Dragon.” The lake extends across four Missouri counties, Camden, Morgan, Miller, and Benton, with the city of Osage Beach at the busy southeastern junction of the main channel and the Grand Glaize arm serving as the region’s commercial hub.”

What are the cleanest lakes in the nation?

Lake.com lists these lakes as the cleanest in the nation:

Lake Superior (Michigan/Minnesota/Wisconsin/Ontario)
Lake Chelan (Washington)
Lake Hartwell (Georgia/South Carolina)
Lake of the Ozarks (Missouri)
Lake Pend Oreille (Idaho)
Lake Winnibigoshish (Minnesota)
Kentucky Lake (Kentucky/Tennessee)
Lake Norman (North Carolina)
Lake Mead (Arizona/Nevada)
Flathead Lake (Montana)

What are the dirtiest lakes in the nation?

Lake.com lists the following lakes as the dirtiest lakes in the nation:

Lake Okeechobee (Florida)
American Falls Reservoir (Idaho)
Lake Texoma (Oklahoma, Texas)
Eufaula Lake (Oklahoma)
Lake Clark (Alaska)
Lake George (Florida)
Utah Lake (Utah)
Oneida Lake (New York)
Pyramid Lake (Nevada)
Richland-Chambers Reservoir (Texas)

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Missouri

First-generation-American students remind Missouri politicians why unity, freedom of speech are so important ahead of the nation’s 250th anniversary

Published

21 hours ago

June 26, 2026

Press Room

First-generation-American students remind Missouri politicians why unity, freedom of speech are so important ahead of the nation’s 250th anniversary

Phoenix’s Stage 1 fire restrictions could limit where people can use fireworks ahead of Fourth of July celebrations. Phoenix leaders say professional fireworks shows are still planned, but they’re urging residents to leave the fireworks to the pros. Under the city’s updated rules, fireworks are banned on city property and within one mile of mountain preserves, desert parks and wilderness areas. Pop-up fireworks tents are appearing across the city, but police are already checking for vendors selling without permits. Anyone caught setting off fireworks illegally could face a $2,500 fine, possible jail time and even bigger costs if they start a fire.

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