Notebook: Front seven keys historic defensive performance
Early in the second quarter, as Arkansas quarterback Ty Storey took a shotgun pass and dropped back to pass, Missouri defensive tackle Jordan Elliott tore through the Razorback offensive line. Missouri had just scored a touchdown two plays prior to take a 14-0 lead, and Arkansas needed to answer quickly if it were to have any hope of keeping the game competitive. Instead, Elliott slammed into Storey’s blind side, jarring the ball from his right hand. The ball bounced around on the wet turf before fellow defensive lineman Akial Byers fell on it in the end zone. Byers’ first career touchdown was the second in 38 seconds for Missouri, and it all but ensured that the Tigers would win a third straight matchup against the Razorbacks and an eighth game on the season.
That defensive score was the highlight, but Missouri’s front seven dominated Arkansas all game long in a 38-0 rout that was full of defensive “firsts.” The game served as the Tigers’ first shutout of a conference opponent since joining the SEC, the last being a 14-0 win over Iowa State in 2010. Elliott finished the game with three sacks (the first Missouri player to do so since Marcell Frazier against Arkansas in 2016), and Missouri as a team racked up five, a season-high. Those contributed to Arkansas’ first-half rushing total of -21 yards, the fewest by an FBS team in a half of any game this season. The Razorbacks’ total yardage, 187, was the fewest by a Division I opponent since Florida had 151 in 2013. It was the first time since 2012 that an opponent has held Arkansas under 200 yards of total offense.
Head coach Barry Odom described the game as a “very dominating performance” by the defense.
“The defensive performance was as solid as we’ve had,” Odom said. “It was good to see them to that with tackles for loss, sacks, quarterback hurries. … I think we’re getting close to playing our best ball.”
Before the game, Elliott said, he had a feeling his performance would be “special.” After all, he was celebrating his birthday Friday, and several of his family members traveled to watch him play. The Texas transfer said it’s the first time he’s seen his family in about a year. But Elliott had no idea he’d be this dominant. Not only did he record his first three sacks of the season, he also moved an Arkansas guard back into the backfield and forced backup quarterback Connor Noland backward, leading to a sack from Terez Hall. He also added a tackle for loss and assisted on another stop in the run game.
Middle linebacker Cale Garrett said that, when one of the defensive linemen is having as dominant a game as Elliott did Friday, it makes the job for everyone else on the front seven “a breeze.”
“You can just say, 'Here Jordan, go make the play,'” Garrett said. “And I think any time he wanted to he could have made a play, and he did.”
Aside from Elliott’s individual dominance, players said, what made Friday’s defensive performance so impressive was that the rest of the defensive line didn’t just sit back and watch. Byers, a Fayetteville native who had two solo tackles in addition to his touchdown, said the rest of the line fed off Elliott’s play. Hall said the defensive line occupied the Arkansas offensive line so well that he didn’t see a single Razorback blocker reach the second level in the first half.
“They were too busy worrying about (the defensive linemen) up front,” Hall said. “The d-line was going hard. I didn’t even touch (an Arkansas lineman) until the third quarter, late in the third quarter.”
Hall and the rest of the starting linebackers took advantage of the strong defensive line play to put forth an impressive performance of their own. Garrett led the way with six total tackles and surpassed 100 on the season, becoming the first Missouri player to reach that mark since Kentrell Brothers in 2015. Brandon Lee contributed four tackles and broke up a pass. Hall, a senior playing his final game at Faurot Field, grabbed his first career interception in addition to his sack. He joked after the game that he had “prayed to God” for an interception prior to the end of his college career.
Odom said the tandem of Garrett and Hall are able to be so effective because they approach practice and film study with the same enthusiasm they show on gameday.
“They’re gifted, they’re talented athletically and skillset-wise, but more importantly than that (is) the work that they put in on being a student of the game and their football IQ,” Odom said.
Arkansas didn’t exactly provide the toughest test for Missouri’s defense. The Razorbacks fumbled three snaps, turned the ball over twice and rushed for just 52 yards on the game. But the performance marked a second straight game in which the Tiger defense dismantled an opposing offense, especially with its pass rush. Missouri now has 16 sacks on the season. Eight have come in the past two games. Five of the Tigers’ 15 takeaways and two of their three defensive scores have come in that span.
Garrett said the difference between Missouri’s early-season defense and the one that shut out Arkansas is that it’s not just him or just Elliott or just Terry Beckner Jr. having a good game. The rest of the front seven has become more consistent and learned to get in on the action when one of the group is playing well.
"It seems like we always got somebody in our front seven that’s willing to — you could say it was their day,” Garrett said. “... They’re all freak athletes and they all have that ability, so I think usually you can count on one of those guys up front a game to step up and play big for us, and it’s extra special when they all are.”
Rountree surpasses 1,000 yards
For the third season in a row, Arkansas native Damarea Crockett didn’t get the opportunity to suit up against his home-state school. Crockett injured his ankle last week against Tennessee. In his absence, the Tigers rode Larry Rountree III in the running game, handing him the ball a season-high 29 times. Rountree converted the carries to 119 yards, and in the process, he eclipsed 1,000 yards on the season.
It’s the third season in a row the Tigers have had a back top 1,000 yards. Ish Witter did it last season, and Crockett did so in 2016. Rountree admitted it was a preseason goal to top 1,000 yards — he said he hoped Crockett could reach the milestone as well — but coming into the game he was more focused on simply establishing the rushing attack amid the wet conditions.
“We have goals, but we don’t think about it too much,” Rountree said. “But we know, coming into the game, if we’re running the ball, it’s going to be a good day. If we’re not running the ball so well, it’s iffy.”
When asked about the achievement of rushing for 1,000 yards, Rountree and Odom both praised the offensive line, and specifically offensive line coach Brad Davis.
“Those guys have done a tremendous job,” Rountree said of the offensive line. “They work their butts off every day in practice. … I swear, coach Davis works those guys hard in practice, so when we get into the game, there’s no sense of being tired.”
Fayetteville natives make an impact
Missouri has a surprising number of Arkansas natives on its roster, including three from Fayetteville high school. Byers, with his two tackles and fumble recovery for a touchdown, had the biggest day, but slot receiver Barrett Banister and backup quarterback Taylor Powell both saw the field as well. Banister had two catches for 12 yards. Powell’s only completion of the game went to him.
Byers, who grew up a Razorbacks fan, said it wasn’t lost on him that his first career score came against his home-state school.
“That made it way more special to me,” Byers said, “because we wanted to just get them on out of here.”
Odom finally grasps winning record
Missouri’s win Friday didn’t just clinch its first eight-win season under Odom and its 17th in its 129-year history. The win pushed Odom’s career record as a head coach to 19-18. In Odom’s three-year career as a head coach, this marks the first time his winning percentage has topped .500.
Odom also continued his November dominance with the win. Missouri is now 10-2 during the month under Odom and 8-0 in the past two seasons.
Injury Report
No new Missouri players appeared to get injured during Friday’s game, but the team was without several regular contributors. In addition to Crockett, tight end Albert Okwuegbunam missed his third consecutive game with a shoulder injury. Cornerback Adam Sparks missed his fourth straight due to what the team has termed a shin injury. Wide receiver Nate Brown missed his sixth contest of the year due to a lingering groin injury.