After each game this year, PowerMizzou.com will take a look at three things we learned, two questions we have and offer up a prediction for the future.
THREE THINGS WE LEARNED
1. Missouri's offense last week wasn't just a product of playing Eastern Michigan. The Tigers put up more than 400 yards. Drew Lock threw for 376 and the vast majority of them were in the book by halftime. J'Mon Moore was an ankle tackle (and a fumble) away from setting the school record for receiving yards. On what looked like it might be a win-defining drive, Ish Witter and Damarea Crockett moved the sticks on the ground. The Tigers can put up points. They didn't put up enough on Saturday, but they no longer have to pack it in when the other team gets to 20 points.
READ: FIRST FIVE POST-GAME REACTION
2. The defensive line didn't all pack up and go to Miami. Charles Harris had three sacks, four tackles for loss and was an eyelash away from even bigger numbers. The Tigers made some plays in the backfield. They hit the quarterback. Rickey Hatley said after the game it wasn't a scheme adjustment, it was an attitude adjustment. The Tigers looked a little bit more like the defensive front that has been one of the SEC's best over the last three years. Not completely, but a whole lot more than they did the first two weeks.
3. Tucker McCann can kick a football through the uprights. McCann made his only two field goal attempts, from 33 and 46 yards. He made every extra point. He put every kickoff in the end zone. There would have been some nerves if he'd gotten the chance to attempt a game-winner for sure, but at least Missouri fans would have had hope he could have made it, which is something not many had seven days ago.
TWO QUESTIONS THAT REMAIN
1. Can Missouri slow down on offense? Barry Odom has said they can. And the Tigers did move the ball on the ground on a long drive that could have put Mizzou up two scores. But they still did it very quickly. The Tigers took over with 13:35 left on the clock and ran on 14 consecutive plays to start the drive. But after a Lock interception in the end zone, Missouri had run 15 plays in just 5:49. It's still nearly three plays per minute. Missouri could have zapped another ten to 15 seconds every time it snapped the ball. If the Tigers do that, maybe Georgia doesn't have time for its game-winning drive.
2. What to do opposite Aarion Penton? Penton was beaten on the game-winning pass, but he played a very good game. He had three tackles and three pass breakups and defended the first and second down passes to the end zone prior to the game winner. But the drive was kept alive by a pass interference call against John Gibson on third and ten when the pass was overthrown and contact was unnecessary. Missouri has a lockdown corner (or close to it) on one side. The Tigers still need an answer on the other side.
AND A PREDICTION
Missouri will pull an upset this season. The Tigers were underdogs in the two games they've lost. They'll be underdogs against LSU, Florida and Tennessee for sure, and quite possibly against Arkansas. The team we've seen the last two weeks is good enough to win at least one of those. And it's gotten better each week so far.
