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Every week, PowerMizzou.com publisher Gabe DeArmond answers questions from Tiger fans in the mailbag. This format allows for a more expansive answer than a message board post. Keep your eye out each week to submit your question for the mailbag or send them to powermizzou@gmail.com. On to this week's inquiries.
tjtigerfan02 asks: Not fully understanding the medical redshirt rules, since no one is talking about it Cale Garrett does not have that option?
GD: I don't think anybody really understands the term "medical redshirt" and I include myself in that. But as I understand it, you can only get a medical redshirt if you're applying for a sixth year of eligibility because you lost two years to injury. Obviously Garrett doesn't fit that. The regular redshirt rule is that you can play in four games. Garrett played in five. I understand Mizzou fans saying "But he only played in one half more than the rule, they should make an exception." You do that and you have to make an exception for everybody. What would then stop a team from playing a freshman in five games and saying "He got banged up and only played in one extra game, can he get another year?" It just opens up Pandora's Box.
In addition, we don't know if that's anything that interests Garrett. He should be healthy by the time the NFL Draft comes along. And I don't really know what he'd do next year that he hasn't done in the first three-and-a-half that is going to significantly change his draft status. I guess you could say "he can prove he is healthy" but he can do that during the draft process, hopefully, and training camp. And if he comes back and plays another year for free, that's another 12 to 14 games and 90 practices where he could get hurt again. I'd say the chances are very, very high that Garrett has played his last game for the Tigers.
ConstantlyDisappointedTiger asks: Assuming he is done for the season, has Cale Garrett played himself into a position where he could get drafted or be an UDFA?
GD: Oh there's no doubt he'll be in a camp as an undrafted free agent at worst. I think he'll have a chance to go on the third day of the draft. And he's a guy that's going to impress with his intelligence and work ethic. He'll sell out on special teams, which is going to be his path to making a roster. I don't think anybody's drafting him to come in and be a starting linebacker from day one, but I think he can make a team.
mexicojoe asks: Not counting the SEC, if you could vote one team “off the island” in each of the other Power 5 conferences, who would it be?
GD: Nobody because I have no issue with the conferences. But for the sake of answering your question:
Big Ten: Rutgers. They do nothing. Including delivering the NYC TV market
ACC: Syracuse. They should be in the Big East playing Georgetown and Villanova and Providence in basketball every year
Big 12: Kansas. Out of principle
PAC 12: UCLA. Be better at sports. There's no reason you shouldn't be.
TigerinCincy asks: Is the Landshark the most ridiculous mascot in the power 5? Followup question... has anyone asked Ole Miss about naming their mascot after a Jimmy Bufffett themed beer?
GD: I mean, the Jayhawk isn't even a real thing. And there's a team named the Banana Slugs. And I still don't understand why the Auburn Tigers' ralllying cry is War Eagle. My favorite teams I ever covered were both high school teams in South Dakota. One was the Rapid City Central Cobblers, which I just always enjoyed that their mascot was a shoemaker. The other was the Lead Golddiggers, which makes sense because it was people digging for gold, I just always preferred to believe it was more about women who were searching for rich guys to marry.
Jarod_Smith44 asks: How do you see the gameplan for Ole Miss changing with Taylor Powell at QB or Kelly Bryant without his full mobility?
GD: I assume if Bryant plays (which they say he will and I will believe when I see it), you kind of take the designed runs out of the game plan. Maybe not completely, but you have to be careful how much you do it. I have to assume that Larry Rountree and Tyler Badie become a big, big part of the game plan. And that's true if you're playing Powell too. I really don't know how mobile or athletic Powell is because I haven't seen a whole lot of him in live action. But I think you have to assume Missouri's going to look much more traditional in the running game regardless of who takes the snaps.
TgrWeir asks: What are you hearing about basketball practices? What are you hearing about the freshman?
GD: Not much. First, I'm not really asking because we aren't yet to that point in the year. It's still almost exclusively football season. Second because I tend not to believe a lot of the things that come out of practice that I can't actually back up with something I've seen. You're just trusting people who have a clear reason for what they're saying and an agenda of some sort. There is going to be a practice on Saturday before the football game that's open to the public so people will be able to form a few way too early impressions at that point.
NeirCreekTiger asks: Hypothetically, if players receive money for use of their likeness, which jersey would sell the most, Drew Lock, Jalen Hurts, Tua, Trevor Lawrence? Do you think Mizzou sharing 2 decent size markets (STL and KC), and being the lone P5 school in the state makes it a top 25 spot for players going forward who want to make money from their likeness?
GD: The only thing I know is that on that list Drew Lock finishes fourth on that list. You're talking about the three best players in college football for three of the biggest fanbases. Also, Drew Lock's jersey is technically Ronnell Perkins' jersey now and I think Perkins probably also finishes fourth on that list. I don't think the population of KC and STL give any great advantage. Did you see the attendance last week? Regardless of population those other schools (and quite a few more) have bigger fanbases than Missouri.
AustinMUfan asks: There's no debating "Road House" is one of the best films of all time. Mizzou has the only collegiate apparel showcased in the movie as one of the bouncers is wearing a Missouri hoodie in the scene where Patrick Swayze's character "Dalton" addresses the bar staff for the first time. Why hasn't the athletic department jumped all over this monumental advantage and promoted it every year to the department's benefit?
GD: I know this is one of those spots where I should lie. I should Google the movie and find some great quotes and maybe even insert a YouTube click of one of the iconic scenes. Instead, I'm going to tell you the truth and take my beating: I've never seen Road House.
mutigerscott asks: Does then public have access to the transfer portal? If so, what current player or players would you go after if you were the Football HC that are in the portal?
GD: The portal isn't publicly accessible. I've never actually seen it. But I do believe it exists. I don't know every player in it, but if there's a grad transfer defensive end in there that could make a difference next season, I'd probably be making every effort to get on his radar.
MizzouAllDay85 asks: Hypothetically, If bowl ban is lifted and Mizzou wins out would the Wyoming loss keep us out of the playoff or would wins over Georgia, Florida and Bama be enough?
GD: Obviously it depends on what happens elsewhere. If Clemson, Ohio State and Oklahoma are unbeaten and Notre Dame doesn't lose agin or there's another team out there with one loss that is better than Mizzou's one loss, it's possible they'd get left out. But the day you see an SEC champion with three top ten wins not make the playoff is the day the playoff changes. I don't think this is a bridge we're going to need to cross, but if the things in your question happen, I think Mizzou would make the playoff.
TigerCruise asks: What is the big difference between the defense we saw show up vs Wyoming and the defense we've seen the past 4 games?
GD: I think it's mostly two things and they go together. First, the missed tackles have been greatly reduced. Missouri missed 15 tackles against the Cowboys. In the four games since, the Tigers have a combined 21 missed tackles. So you're cutting that number by about 2/3. And Missouri's safeties have played the way they thought they were going to play. Tyree Gillespie and Joshuah Bledsoe were, to put it kindly, very not good in Laramie. They missed four tackles and were simply not good. In the four games since, the duo has combined to miss only one tackle and one or the other has often been the best player on the field.
This is a really boring answer and people hate it. We want to be able to point to certain things and say "that's why they lost" and just change one or two issues and fix it. But more often than not, it just comes down to which team makes plays. Against Wyoming, if you change two or three plays, it goes from a six-point win for Wyoming to a 14-point win for Mizzou. On the flip side, change a couple plays against South Carolina (maybe even just the Ronnell Perkins 100-yard pick six) and that goes from a 34-14 blowout where Mizzou is relaxed in the fourth quarter to a very close game.
Over the course of a season, there are probably five to ten plays that can make a three or four game difference in almost everybody's record. The teams that make most of those plays end up with really good records. The teams that are on the wrong end of those end up talking about what might have been.
blackgold74 asks: I've read an article, which says Rebel QB Matt Corral is questionable for this week but might play. He seems to be a much better passer than Plumlee . Have you had a chance to check with Ole Miss people on his availability? If he plays how do you think it affects the game? Were you aware, Rebels gained 500 yards + vs. Vandy and Cal, 476 vs. Bama? IMO, Rebels are more dangerous than people think. Just wanted to get your general thoughts on game.
GD: Depth charts don't mean much. Corral has been listed as possible the last two weeks and hasn't played. He's definitely a better passer than John Rhys Plumlee, but Plumlee has some serious speed. I think Missouri is going to have to prepare for both of them.
Ole Miss isn't a bum. They can win. They're 2-1 in the SEC (yes, it's Arkansas and Vandy). They moved the ball against Bama. They have a chance to be a bowl team I think. They've got some guys. Missouri can't roll the helmets out and win...but if they play well, the Tigers should win.
MIZ25! asks: Is Taylor Powell really ready for this? Maybe we should just run the wildcat...kind of kidding
GD: The way Missouri is talking, we're not going to have to find out. Everybody is talking like Kelly Bryant is going to play and take every snap. And maybe he will. I'll believe it when we see it. If he doesn't? The old quote about quarterbacks is that they're like teabags. You never know how they're going to react until you put them in hot water. Is Powell ready? I'm not sure. And I'm not sure anybody else is really sure.
Joshfann43 asks: Are "Courtesy Visits" among local prospects actually a thing or is that just a myth created by fans? What benefits does the player get from that sort of thing?
GD: I think there are times where a kid takes a visit feeling pretty certain he's going somewhere else, but I think it's pretty rare where a guy says "There's no chance I'm going there, but I'll take a visit just so they get some nice headlines." I'm not saying it never happens. I think the Kevin Knox visit is a good example. There wasn't really ever any real chance Knox was coming to Mizzou, I don't think, but he got a chance to hang out with his friend, it boosted the profile of the program his buddy was going to for a weekend and it was a free trip, so why not?
As far as why they'd do it, if somebody told you, "You get to go to a college campus and be treated like a king for 48 hours. You can do that up to five times." Would you do it once or would you do it five times? Cause I know what I'd do.
austinanderson asked: Can you explain the mystery of playing time for Larry Rountree? He is clearly our best RB but seems to be a part-time starter averaging 16 carries a game?
GD: It's two-fold. First, it's a long season and they want to make sure he's fresh for game 10 so you have to weigh how many carries he gets. Second, they clearly feel better with Tyler Badie in there on passing downs. For the season, Badie has played 183 snaps and Rountree has played 167. But Badie has had 114 passing plays and just 69 runs (more than 60% passes) while Rountree has had 102 running plays and 65 passes (about 60% runs). Rountree has 82 carries and Badie just 54, and a lot of Badie's action came in the first game against Wyoming when Rountree was basically benched in the second half. You have to change it up enough that teams don't 100% know what you're doing, but the numbers say that if Badie's on the field, Missouri is much more likely to pass and if Rountree is out there, they're much more likely to run. Also, in the last four weeks, Rountree hasn't played much in the second half because the games have all been blowouts.
Rasmus Peterson asks: Do you think the loss of Lindsey Scott Jr. will have a bigger impact than originally thought? If KB is out for one or more games, he could’ve at least given us the option to keep the same offensive scheme. Do you think the playbook will be significantly limited with Powell behind center?
GD: I really don't. Scott was the third-string quarterback at best. He wasn't going to play in front of Powell and honestly, I doubt he'd have played before Connor Bazelak if extended duty was required. They weren't going to get to Scott unless it was the last resort.
As far as the playbook being limited, I don't think so. Some of the designed runs and such will be called less, but Powell has been in this system longer than Bryant. He ought to know the playbook well enough to run anything they want to run.
