Coming off of a 30-21 loss to No. 2 Georgia, No. 14 Missouri (7-2, 3-2) will be looking to bounce back when it hosts No. 13 Tennessee (7-2, 3-2) in front of its fourth straight sell-out crowd.

Tennessee is coming off of a 59-3 win over UConn and a win Saturday will lead them into a similar situation the Tigers were in a week ago, which is an opportunity to play Georgia next week and control the Southeastern Conference East division with a win (if Georgia loses to Ole Miss this week).

Kickoff Information

Time: 2:30 p.m. CT

Location: Faurot Field, Columbia, Mo.

TV: CBS (Brad Nessler, Gary Danielson, Jenny Dell)

Radio: Tiger Radio Network (Mike Kelly, Howard Richards, Chris Gervino)

Series history: Tennessee leads 6-5

Spread: Tennessee -2

Mizzou Injury Report

CB Ennis Rakestraw: Probable

QB Brady Cook: Probable

HB Cody Schrader: Probable

WR Theo Wease: Probable

WR Luther Burden III: Questionable

DT Realus George: Questionable

Since Josh Heupel's arrival to Tennessee in 2021, the Volunteers have had Eli Drinkwitz and Missouri's number. In 2021, the Vols came to Columbia and defeated the Tigers 62-24 before beating them 66-24 in Knoxville last year, which means they've outscored Mizzou 128-48 in two games.

Now, the Volunteers' offense has changed a bit from last year. Tennessee had the No. 1 passing attack in the nation led by quarterback Hendon Hooker and wider receivers Cedric Tillman and Jalin Hyatt.

This year, the Vols have the third best rushing attack led by running backs Jaylen Wright, Dylan Sampson, Jamari Small and quarterback Joe Milton.

So, that means the Vols always have someone fresh in the backfield.

"They're really good at running back and they've got really good depth and all three of them are tough runners," Drinkwitz said during Media Day on Tuesday. "They've got great speed (and) good vision. The first guy (Wright), especially back-end players, don't normally bring them down. So, we have to do a good job of maintaining gap control and having overlap players in our defense."

Drinkwitz is right about the backs and the qualities they possess. However, the last thing he said about Wright will be huge for this Missouri team that has struggled with tackling all year.

Wright is the team's lead back and is third in the SEC in rushing with 826 yards and three touchdowns on 110 rushes (7.5 yards per carry).

Five hundred and thirty, or 64%, of his 826 yards come after contact. That ranks 24th in the FBS and among running backs with 50 or more carries, his 4.26 yards after contact per attempt is third in the nation.

On top of that, he's also got 30 runs of 10 yards or more and is a receiving threat out of the backfield with 19 receptions for 111 yards.

Sampson and Small are similar when it comes to yards after contact.

Sampson has recorded 405 yards (225 after contact or 55%) and seven touchdowns (leads the team) on 71 carries.

He also has 14 receptions for 160 yards and a touchdown.

Small has 415 yards (218 after contact or 52%) and two touchdowns on 81 carries.

Milton has rushed for 265 yards and five touchdowns (second on the team) on 59 carries (4.5 yards per carry), and only 76 yards or 28% of his yards have come on scrambles.

So, gap discipline and tackling will be big keys to stopping the run. Mizzou has 88 missed tackles on the season and is averaging 9.78 missed tackles per game.

Despite Milton's threat rushing the ball, he's still putting up numbers leading the Vols' 58th-ranked passing attack by completing 65.4% of 2,016 yards, 15 touchdowns and four interceptions.

Over the last five games, he's completed 69.5% of his passes for 1,091 yards, seven touchdowns and two interceptions.

Tennessee has seven players with 100 or more yards, led by receiver Squirrel White, who has 45 receptions for 556 yards and two touchdowns.

Missouri needs to focus in on the run but not overcompensate because Heupel and his passing attack can still dial it up and move the ball through the air.

Despite no defensive players being named to the preseason All-SEC team, the Vols have consistently had one of the better defenses in the nation.

Tennessee is ranked 21st in the FBS, allowing just 319.6 yards per game.

It's 13th in stopping the run at 97.3 yards per game, fifth in tackles for loss per game at 8.2 and t-eighth in sacks with 30 (3.33 per game) and six players having at least two.

"They play vertical. I think their scheme matches that kind of coaching," Drinkwitz said. "They're similar to our style. They like to bring pressure and multiple pressures, not afraid to pressure and vary the coverage or disguise to it. And they've got some really good players."

EDGE James Pearce has been a force for the Vols and leads the team in pressures with 38 and is 14th in the FBS in sacks with seven. He also has 16 tackles, a pass deflection and a forced fumble.

"He is a dynamic player that provides them a lot of position flexibility to really rush the passer well," Drinkwitz said.

On the opposite side of the line is EDGE Tyler Baron, who is second on the team to Pearce in pressures (29) and sacks (five) and is third in tackles for loss with eight.

Tennessee is also 27th in third-down defense and fifth in fourth-down defense, allowing opponents to convert on just 5-of-21 (23%) attempts.

Mizzou's offense is 58th on third downs, having converted 44-of-107 (41%) attempts and is t-62nd on fourth downs with just five conversions on 10 (50%) attempts.

In a game of evenly matched teams, third and fourth downs will be critical, just like the run game, turnovers, red zone play and rushing the passer.

The Vols will be without one of their best defenders in cornerback Kamal Hadden, who got injured against Alabama and is out for the season. He still holds the team lead in interceptions (three) and pass deflections (eight) and was PFF's highest-graded coverage player for the Volunteers at 90.4.

The 58th-ranked pass defense will have to rely on players like safety Tamarion McDonald, who primarily lines up in the slot and will likely be tasked with guarding Missouri superstar receiver Luther Burden III.

McDonald has recorded 39 tackles, 3.5 tackles for loss, four pass deflections (second on the team) and an interception. He also has a coverage grade of 73.9

Another thing Missouri will have to be watchful for is Tennessee stacking scoring drives together.

In 2021, Tennessee scored on 10 of 11 drives, including eight touchdowns and the game was pretty much over by halftime with the Vols up 33-9.

In 2022, it was much of the same story.

Tennessee scored nine touchdowns, outscored Missouri 38-7 in the second half and had only one drive that didn't end in points.

"Yeah, you have to play complementary football in the sense that when the defense gets stops, the offense has to answer, and if the defense doesn't, then the offense still has to find ways to answer," Drinkwitz said. "That's kind of what happened. Offensively, we weren't able to keep the pace and defensively we've got to do a consistent job of finding stops in the game.

"And I think the pressure they put on here is that they can score so fast. And that's the challenge. You've got to get your cleats in the ground and be able to make routine plays routinely."

1. Cody Schrader gets over 100 rushing yards

Running back Cody Schrader has managed to stack a pair of 100-yard rushing games in his last two games with last week's performance against Georgia being one of the best we've seen in years against the Bulldogs' vaunted defense. Georgia hadn't allowed a running back to rush for 100 or more yards since the 2020 season and Schrader finished with 112 and a touchdown on 22 rushes.

Tennessee has a great run defense, but Schrader has proven he can run against good run defense. So, I think he will get over the 100-yard plateau, which would also put him over 1,000 rushing yards for the season.

Bold predictions record: Last prediction: 0-1, Season: 7-8

Jarod: I'll play to the crowd (literally) and say Mizzou's home-field advantage puts them over the top. It's really a pick 'em, and I can make arguments for either team to win, but the Tigers have already played four games against ranked opponents and they were neck and neck with Georgia a week ago. I believe Mizzou will win and end its four-game losing streak versus Tennessee with a 30-28 win.

Gabe: Tennessee has outscored Missouri 163-60 in the last three matchups between the teams. Which means very little for this game. This Missouri team has bucked just about every trend that had developed over the last three years and this Tennessee team, while good, doesn't strike me as an outfit capable of putting up 60. I'll be surprised if this isn't a close game. I'll favor the home team that has been good in close games. Missouri will win 28-23.

PowerMizzou.com is a proud game day partner of Yuengling Traditional Lager the taste of game-time @yuenlingbeer #LagerUp.

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