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The day after each game, PowerMizzou.com will hand out a position-by-position grade card for Missouri. Here are the marks from the Tigers’ 24-14 win over Arkansas.
Quarterback: True freshman Connor Bazelak made his first start in just his third career game Friday, and he lived up to the hype — while he was on the field. Bazelak completed seven of nine passes for 80 yards and led Missouri on a 14-play scoring drive, but on the Tigers’ third possession, he fell awkwardly to the turf while trying to scramble for a first down. He hobbled into the injury tent and did not return, with the team calling the injury a knee sprain. That thrust redshirt sophomore Taylor Powell into the starting spot. Powell made a few good throws and a few bad ones. He completed eight of 14 passes for 105 yards and a nice touchdown on a back-shoulder to Jonathan Nance when he recognized that an offsides penalty gave him a free play. He also threw a bad interception on the first play of the second half that led to an Arkansas touchdown. Bazelak showed that a decisive, mobile and healthy quarterback likely could have benefited Missouri during the second half of this season, but Friday also once again highlighted the season-long struggles for the offensive line. GRADE: C
Running backs: Missouri’s yards per carry average didn’t look the prettiest, but the Tigers rushed for their most yards since Oct. 19 against Vanderbilt. That’s a reflection of the coaching staff sticking with the run all game. The Tiger tailback duo of Larry Rountree III and Tyler Badie rushed for 147 yards on 36 carries. Both had multiple runs of more than 10 yards and both found the end zone. Finally, in the last game of the season, Rountree and Badie looked like the kind of one-two punch fans envisioned during the preseason. The question now is whether both will return for next year. GRADE: A
Wide receivers: Missouri had to dip deep down the depth chart due to a rash of injuries at the receiver positions. Interestingly, the Tigers got perhaps their best game from the wideout corps since the Ole Miss game. Barrett Banister continued to look like the most consistent playmaker among the pass-catchers. He caught six passes for 60 yards, including four first downs in a single drive. Facing his old team, Nance made a couple tough catches, including the game-clinching touchdown. Kam Scott showed his big-play ability with a 31-yard catch before he got injured. Tauskie Dove made a huge play by going up and getting a 50-50 ball on a third down in the fourth quarter. Missouri has some playmakers at the position, it just needs more consistency. GRADE: B+
Tight Ends: After missing last week’s game due to injury, Albert Okwuegbunam suited up Friday, but he was a non-factor. In perhaps his final college game, Okwuegbunam showed why he has been so maddening at times in his career, giving questionable effort on one low throw at the goal line and failing to haul in a deep ball on a trick play. He also rarely played in situations where he would have been asked to block. Daniel Parker Jr. did catch a pass, however, and Odom went out of his way to praise his blocking after the game, so he must have done something right there. GRADE: C-
Offensive line: Missouri enjoyed its best offensive output since early October not because of the offensive line play but in spite of it. Arkansas lived in the backfield, recording three sacks and eight tackles for loss in all. Both Powell and Bazelak took huge hits in the pocket. And both Rountree and Badie had one play where they got hit nearly as soon as they took a handoff. The line also got called for three holding penalties. Fixing the line will likely be the number one priority during the offseason. GRADE: F
Defensive line: In a bit of a surprise, Arkansas found some big holes in the running game, especially in the first half. The Razorbacks entered Friday ranked 89th nationally in rushing but ran for 165 yards on 31 carries against Missouri. The Tigers improved quite a bit in the second half, though, and came up big with stops in a couple short-yardage situations. The edge rush continued to be nearly invisible. Tre Williams forced a couple quick throws, but he also committed a roughing the passer penalty. Chris Turner and Jatorian Hansford were non-factors. GRADE: D
Linebackers: It was Jamal Brooks’ turn to play the majority of the snaps at middle linebacker this week. Brooks took over for Devin Nicholson in the first half and played nearly the entire second. (Nicholson had taken over for Cameron Wilkins after Cale Garrett’s season-ending injury.) Brooks played well, finishing with seven tackles, including Missouri’s only tackle for loss. Meanwhile, Nick Bolton was solid as usual, turning in nine tackles and making a nice play to recover and break up a pass down the sideline. The linebackers didn’t make many eye-popping plays but didn’t appear to give up any big ones, either. GRADE: B
Secondary: Missouri’s pass defense numbers look good, with Arkansas having completed 11 of 31 passes for just 77 yards. But that resulted more from the inaccuracy of Jack Lindsey than the play of the Tiger defensive backs. Christian Holmes, starting for DeMarkus Acy, committed another pass interference penalty and gave up a touchdown in the first quarter, and he got largely replaced by true freshman Ishmael Burdine. At the other corner, Jarvis Ware also got flagged for pass interference. The safeties allowed the tight end to sneak free on multiple plays, including one that resulted in a walk-in touchdown. At the end of the day, Missouri’s defense held Arkansas to just 245 yards and 14 points, so it’s hard to be too harsh, but it wasn’t hard to envision how Jarrett Guarantano found so many open receivers last week. Grade: C-
Special Teams: Tucker McCann had a nice day in his final college game, with two 50-plus yard punts and two downed inside the 20-yard line. He also made a field goal. The Tigers allowed one 25-yard kickoff return to Arkansas, but other than that, the special teams were solid, if unspectacular. GRADE: B
Coaching: Yes, Missouri was playing the worst SEC team in recent memory. The Tigers should have won Friday. But Barry Odom and his staff deserve some credit for not only keeping the team motivated and focused in spite of the school’s appeal being denied on Tuesday, but keeping the energy afloat after so many players left with injuries. It would have been very easy for the Tigers to roll over when Arkansas took the lead in the third quarter, and maybe against a better opponent they would have, but the fact is, on Friday, they didn’t. The offensive coaches also stuck with the run more than in recent weeks while also giving the quarterbacks, particularly Bazelak, a few opportunities to turn the ball loose. This season has revealed many flaws in Missouri’s team, most of which ultimately reflect on the coaching staff, but just looking at Friday’s game, the coaches deserve some credit for keeping the team invested. GRADE: B
Final Overall Grade: C
- WR
- OT
- S
- PRO
- APB
- OT
- DT
- OG
- OLB
- WDE
