Among the story lines for our game against SECE opponent (and recent nemesis) Missouri, the quest for a 10th win and an upswing heading into the regular season finale against rival and now bowl eligible F$U had to garner top billing. For some, the lingering disappointment of losses to UGA and LSU took a little shine off of the penny. But there has to be merit in finishing the drill, especially if we are in fact a program climbing back toward the top. 10 wins with a chance for 11 isn't quite as sporty as it was prior to the CFP, but some credit is deserved for a team on the cusp of this mark that has positioned themselves with a very one-dimensional offense. Beside that, pride should never go out of style, should it?
Of course it would be boorish for us to look past the always tough Tigers, led by regarded Clemson transfer Kelly Bryant. As feared, Mizzou gave us fits in the first half, sacking Trask several times (4 according to Mick) and stymying the rush (to nobody's surprise) with 5 tackles for loss. Their coverage game was better than imagined. As a result, our normally potent air attack was nulled and the half ended with us only having scored 2 FGs. On the bright side, the D and Greenard (6 tackles and 2 sacks, several pressures) was effective against Bryant and the Tiger's offense, limiting them to a bank shot FG. It wasn't much of a lead, but if you believe in the power of stats, Mizzou doesn't win when trailing at the half. Still, it might have been hard to find any comfort knowing that bit of info.
The second half was different for the offense. Trask, while still pressured, was able to find Hammonds and Perine in the left corner of the end zone on two drives and like that we had a two score lead. The defense kept the pressure on Bryant and stuffed the run (Missouri finished the game with 52 rushing yards), surrendering only a FG. The game ended 23-6 and the specter of past failings against the Tigers was vanquished. Still two more boxes to check on the amended goal sheet.
*Trask is resilient if nothing else. He looked to be able to shake off the sacks and pressures of the touchdown bereft first half and led us to a couple of scores that would be more than enough to secure win #10. For the day he was 23/35 for 282 yards. If there's a knock on his performance, it would be two telegraphed throws that should have been picks. Luckily they weren't and his effectiveness and leadership remains a season bright spot.
*The ball was distributed to 9 different receivers, led by Jefferson's 5 catches. This group is consistently good. Among the highlights were the two TD receptions by Hammonds and Perine respectively. There should have been a third by Toney on a nice toss by Trask, but unfortunately he couldn't hang on to it. Still a little rust I guess. Grimes' penalties were disappointing and out of character. Hope it was just an anomaly.
*EJ was our leading rusher (39 yards I believe) while Perine, Pierce, and Davis combined for less. Our team total was 58 for the game. Obviously the sacks allowed affected this total, but even adding these lost 17, we were still well below a hundred. Our offense could easily play the part of the mysterious one-armed man in the old David Jansen series "The Fugitive."
*While on the subject of EJ, there is some concern that if he doesn't get more meaningful snaps, he'll bolt for greener pastures. Could definitely present problems, but Trask is the guy. While I doubt he would be offended sharing more snaps, I don't think Mullen will risk disturbing the established rhythm much more than what we see. I do think EJ's primary value is running the ball, but he was able to throw a nice ball to Toney today, so who knows what the next two games might hold in this regard.
*We all know that it was Mizzou and not UGA or LSU, but Dr. Pressure had a good plan and we had a consistent and effective rush today against a pretty talented QB. Would have liked to have seen more than the 2 sacks registered, but the guy was pretty slippery. We covered well enough and kept them out of the end zone. Wilson's late INT was a nice cherry. As mentioned, we stopped the run and were pretty good against them on 3rd downs. Similar execution against better opponents is a goal moving forward.
*Wasn't it nice to be on the positive side of the official reviews?
*My blood pressure has been pretty stable lately, so I won't talk about the OL. Anyhow, my cuss jar is overflowing, so...
It seems that the local Nole faithful, despite the reported rebuff from Coach Stoops the elder, are feeling some better about their Taggart-less renegades under the guidance of long-time assistant and now aspiring HC Odell Haggins. To be sure, they'll be better than if WiLLLLLLLie was still in charge, but if we execute our offensive and defensive plans and don't allow turnovers to become a factor, we will be able to take care of business. Regardless of how disappointed we are with our lot this season or how bad we think the F$U program is, this game is always played, as Johnny Ringo might say, "for blood!" No looking past. No let down. We are their Huckleberries. Let's get it done.
Go Gators!
