Johnny Falduto- 23 Sports
On Saturday, the Missouri Tigers traveled to Athens where they handed a 43-6 loss to the undefeated Georgia Bulldogs. The Bulldogs were recently named the consensus number one overall seed in the first round of College Football Playoff rankings.
The Tigers went without starting quarterback Connor Bazelak in the game due to a knee injury he suffered late in last week’s win over Vanderbilt. Mizzou had to rely on backups Tyler Macon and Brady Cook to take on one of the statistically most dominant defenses in all of college football this season.
Missouri was able to tack on the first points of the game with a Harrison Mevis 36-yard field goal mid-way through the first quarter, but from that point on, it was all Bulldogs. By the halfway point of the third quarter, Georgia had scored 40 unanswered points to take a 40-3 lead in route to a 43-6 final score.
Following the game, Mizzou head coach Eli Drinkwitz noted that he was proud of the way his team fought. “I thought we came out with the right energy and attitude.” He continued, “We got a three-game season left and our backs are against the wall…. We need everybody pushing in the same direction to try and get this thing to a bowl game, and that’s what our total focus is.”
Quarterbacks Tyler Macon and Brady Cook split reps for the Tigers offense throughout the game, a move that Drinkwitz described as simply, “trying to see if one of them could really spark us and sustain it.”
Macon, who started the first offensive possession of the game, finished 6-13 for 74 yards passing and 42 yards rushing. Cook finished 14-19 for 78 yards passing and 32 yards rushing, while running back Tyler Badie added 41 yards on nine carries.
Despite its struggles against the run all season, Mizzou defense gave up just 168 yards on the ground. Most of Georgia’s damage came through the air from quarterbacks Bennett Stetson and JT Daniels, who combined for 337 yards and three touchdowns.
With the toughest game on the schedule behind them, the Tigers travel back to Faurot Field to take on the South Carolina Gamecocks on Saturday, November 13th at 3:00PM.
