Mizzou at Vanderbilt: Opponent Scouting Report

Don McPeak-USA TODAY Sports

Mizzou hits the road this week to Music City, Nashville, Tennessee, to face the Vanderbilt Commodores. Vanderbilt comes into the game with a 3-2 record, but they can not be taken lightly at all. For starters, it is an SEC road game, which nearly guarantees a tough game, no matter who the opponent is. Second of all, the Commodores only two losses came at South Carolina, 35-25, and home against Ole Miss, 39-35. Vanderbilt has looked very good in their three wins this season, beating Austin Peay, Massachusetts, and UAB, by a combined score of 114-34. Broken down into four categories, here is what Mizzou will see tonight.

QB: Austyn Carta-Samuels: 88 completions in 136 attempts(64.7%) for 1223 yards and 8 TD. Carta-Samuels has also been sacked 9 times, and has thrown 5 interceptions in five games. Carta-Samuels has thrown for 300+ yards twice this season, but has been under 225 in the other three games. Carta-Samuels has also rushed for 73 yards and 4 TD.

RB: Jerron Seymour/Wesley Tate: Seymour has carried the ball 47 times for 286 yards(6.1 Yards per Carry) and 6 TD. His longest carry of the season has been a 58 yard TD run. Tate has carried the ball 55 times for 244 yards(4.4 YPC) and 3 TD. His longest carry has been only an 18 yard run.

WR: Jordan Mathews: The Vanderbilt Commodores have primarily gone to two receivers this season, but Mathews is the most targeted. Mathews has 40 receptions, with the next closest receiver having only 19. Mathews has gone for 586 yards and 4 TD in the short season so far.

Defense: The Commodores are allowing 21.6 points per game, which is good for 44th in the nation. The Vanderbilt defense has allowed more than 25 points only once, being the first game of the year against Ole Miss. The defense has allowed 7 points or less in two games, allowing 3 against Austin Peay and 7 against Massachusetts.

Recap: When Carta-Samuels is protected, he is a powerful offensive weapon, but that is not usually the case this season. If Missouri’s defensive line can wreak havoc, they should be able to make Carta-Samuels uncomfortable and turn the ball over. Seymour and Tate could definitely viable options tonight, as Missouri struggled last week to contain the running game. Although, if Missouri can force Carta-Samuels to make mistakes, Vanderbilt may need to rely heavily on their RB duo, making their offense one-dimensional. Altogether, this should be a great SEC matchup, with Mizzou looking to get to 5-0 and the Commodores trying to improve their record to 4-2