Mizzou’s Path to Victory Over South Carolina in Week 12

If there’s anything to take away from their three SEC wins, you should never count out the Missouri Tigers.

When Vanderbilt forced the game into overtime, they found a way.

When starting quarterback Brady Cook was in the hospital as the offense struggled against Auburn, they found a way.

When Oklahoma scored a go-ahead touchdown with two minutes left on a recovered fumble, the Tigers found a way.

“They’ve all been uniquely different,” head coach Eli Drinkwitz said in a press conference this week. “They’ve all had a little bit different flavor to it. So, I think it’s just all three phases of the game and needing to work together to find ways to win.”

Missouri enters their Week 12 as 14-point underdogs. Cook was listed as doubtful on Friday night.

Missouri has been undefeated at home, but its roadtrips have gone about as good as David Spade and Chris Farley’s in “Tommy Boy.” The Tigers ran into College Station, Tx, undefeated and left maimed as a team and in public perception, dropping 12 spots in the rankings. A trip to Alabama in Week 9 ended with Cook suffering a second injury as Missouri fell 34-0.

Both of those games were decided by the second quarter, if not earlier. Texas A&M took a 17-0 lead 33 seconds into the second quarter and Alabama took Drew Pyne’s first pass attempt for a interception near the end of the first half.

Though Cook is doubtful and starting wide receiver Mookie Cooper is already listed as out, the Missouri offense have made one step toward full health this week: leading rusher Nate Noel is progessing toward full health. Noel’s availability could be cruical to Missouri’s chances against the Gamecocks.

Noel returned to action for the Tigers in Week 11 against Oklahoma after missing Week 9 against Alabama with a foot injury he suffered in Week 8 against Auburn. But in the win over the Sooners, Noel only took 10 of Missouri’s 46 carries.

“It was feeling pretty good on Saturday,” Noel said of playing with the injury against Oklahoma. “I feel like I’m getting closer and closer to 100%. I’ve been working with my trainers and strength staff and I feel like I’m getting very close to that mark.”

Without Noel in the lineup, Missouri’s run game has relied on the powerful Marcus Carroll and the shifty Jamal Roberts. Against Oklahoma, Roberts rushed for 54 yards on 13 carries and Carroll for 25 yards on 13 carries.

On 46 total carries, Missouri rushed for 135 total yards, with 70 coming in the second half. Establishing the run game in the final two quarters to take the pressure off backup quarterback Drew Pyne, filling in for an injured Brady Cook.

“I thought we did a nice job of finding tough yards,” head coach Eli Drinkwitz said of the performance against Oklahoma. “We didn’t run for a ton of yards against [Oklahoma], but we did outrush them in the game, and I thought that was the separator for us.”

Although Missouri’s first two touchdown drives ended with passes from Pyne, the play selection tells the story on how the Tigers made it down to the end zone. On the two drives, Missouri ran 13 runs compared to just five passes. The runs went for 49 yards and the passes for 36.

“We knew we needed to establish the run to take some pressure off of him [Pyne],” Drinkwitz said. “I thought he delivered. I thought he did a really nice job stepping up in the pocket.”

Success from Noel, Carroll or Roberts not only takes pressure off Pyne and yards off his plate, but also forces the defense to be wary of the threat of both the run and pass game. Especially with Missouri’s outside zone blocking scheme that can seamlessly open up the play action pass.

“It opens up so much more in their passing game because of what they’re able to do in the run game,” South Carolina head coach Shane Beamer said on a conference call Wednesday.

Whether it is Pyne at quarterback or Cook is able to make his return against South Carolina, the Missouri run game will be crucial to the Tigers upsetting South Carolina. With Cook dealing with an ankle and hand injury, he’ll likely be limited in some fashion.

Additionally, the Missouri offensive line will doing with an adjustment as Drake Heismeyer fills in for Connor Tollison. The three-year starter suffered a season-ending leg injury in the third quarter against Oklahoma.

Redshirt senior Drake Heismeyer will fill in for Tollison after allowing zero pressures on 14 snaps against Oklahoma. He’s played on special teams each of the last four seasons and has appeared in eight games along the offensive line through his career.

“He’s played quite a bit of football,” Drinkwitz said of Heismeyer. “He just hasn’t played in the role that we’re going to ask him to play now. He’s a very smart young man. … It’s really just going to be about stepping into that moment and owning the moment. We have a lot of confidence in him.”

With uncertainty at center and quarterback, Saturday’s game feels like another for Missouri that will reveal its direction early on. How quickly the Tigers can establish the run game will be a significant part of the direction it heads in.

Against Alabama and Texas A&M, Missouri rushed for a combined 25 yards in the first quarter before everything piled up against the Tigers.

Establishing the run game and early for Missouri will not only open a struggling and hampered pass offense, but also keep the pace of the game in check. Against Texas A&M, Missouri’s average first quarter drive lasted 3.7 plays and just 1:42. Against Alabama, 4.3 plays and 2:50. It wasn’t until the third quarter when Missouri was able to convert a third down without the help of a penalty on Alabama.

A consistent run game to find any sort of rhythm and more first downs early on could be the solution for road games that have quickly gotten out of hand for the Tigers.

No matter who is in at quarterback for Missouri, a consistent, effective rushing attack will be crucial to its offensive attack. A disciplined offensive attack might not have as much fireworks as the thrilling fashion the Tigers have secured victories in so far this season, but its possibly the best half against a dangerous South Carolina team.

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