Missouri Tigers: 2014 Football Preview
By Derek Franks
BY DEREK FRANKS with BEN BROWN
High hopes. That seems to be the theme for Mizzou in the upcoming season. It’s a far cry from where they were a year ago. Most expected the team– including yours truly– to have a losing record. But those of us who did underestimated the young players on that team and the changes that were made during last offseason. That won’t happen again. This team is rock solid. Let’s take a deeper look at the team that looks to defend its SEC East title with the 2014 campaign.
Mizzou head coach Gary Pinkel has an exciting group of players to coach this season. Mandatory Credit: Dak Dillon-USA TODAY Sports
2013 Record/Finsh: (12-2, 7-1 SEC), defeated Oklahoma State 41-31 in AT&T Cotton Bowl
Key Returnees: QB Maty Mauk, RB Marcus Murphy, WR Bud Sasser, OT Mitch Morse, C Evan Boehm, DE Markus Golden, DE Shane Ray, LB Kentrell Brothers, DT Matt Hoch, DT Lucas Vincent, S Braylon Webb
2014 Starters: QB Maty Mauk, RB Marcus Murphy, RB Russell Hansbrough, TE Sean Culkin, C Evan Boehm OT Mitch Morse, OT Connor McGovern, OG Mitch L. Hall, OG Anthony Gatti, WR Bud Sasser, WR Darius White, DE Markus Golden, DE Shane Ray, DT Matt Hoch, DT Lucas Vincent, LB Donavin Newsome, LB Kentrell Brothes, LB Michael Scherer, CB John Gibson, CB Aarion Penton, S Braylon Webb, S Ian Simon
Breakout Players:
LB Mike Scherer
LB Kentrell Brothers
RB Marcus Murphy
The Schedule
One reason for Mizzou fans to be optimistic that the Tigers can finish in the same fashion that they did in 2013 is that the 2014 tilt is not nearly as daunting as it was a year ago.
It’s no easy task making it through the SEC schedule; that’s not a secret. But Missouri faced 8 bowl-bound teams last season and faced tougher non-conference teams; and foes like Texas A&M and Vanderbilt are expected to be weaker this time around. The Tigers will have to make it through South Carolina, Georgia and Florida all in a row once again.
But even if the team only gets one win out of those, one could easily see the team going unbeaten elsewhere, thus finishing 10-2. That’s an optimistic outlook, but not an unrealistic one. This year, bowl-bound Ole Miss gets swapped with SEC West bottom-feeder Arkansas, and the toughest non-conference game, Central Florida, no longer has its star quarterback and the game is played in Columbia.
OFFENSE
The Missouri Offense has come under a lot of fire during the off season as fans and critics everywhere are skeptical about whether or not they can “replace” all of the talent they lost. But let’s just get this out of the way—the team’s offense is improved upon itself from a year ago. Here’s a brief breakdown of the offense for 2014.
Quarterbacks: The Tigers are sitting pretty at the leading role on the offense. First year starter Maty Mauk is—from all indications—going to be a star in years to come and may already be a step up from James Franklin.
What will be certainly welcomed is a season where the same player remains the starting quarterback for the whole season. Tiger fans are parched from this sort of consistency due to injuries in the past couple of seasons.
Maty Mauk will be exciting to watch in 2014. Mandatory Credit: Denny Medley-USA TODAY Sports
Mauk is confident and a tough leader, and he has a strong arm. He throws vertically more so than Franklin did and he can—and will—take off running. An injury to Mauk creates a precarious situation, but the Tigers are more than formidable with a super talented youngster in Eddie Printz and experienced back up in Corbin Berkstresser at the ready.
Running Backs: While losing the star of the offense in Henry Josey to graduation, Mizzou once again has a lot to be excited about from the running game. Marcus Murphy and Russell Hansbrough combined for 1,286 yards and 13 touchdowns in co-starring back up roles.
They now lead the way in 2014. Murphy is expected to move around between the backfield and the slot receiver position because he has the route running capability and the hands. But let’s not leave out his ability to run—especially behind good blocking.
He has impeccable vision and can find holes and read defenses. He’s smart and explosive. And he can return kicks. Hansbrough is agile as you can get. His footwork and speed will be welcomed in the backfield and he may find himself on more snaps than previously thought. Look for Morgan Steward to have a few carries in big-back situations.
Offensive Line: If there’s any spot on the entire team that is absolutely top-notch, it’s the offensive line. Any Tiger fan who had to sit through 2011 and 2012 will tell you that is a fantastic thing to hear. If the line stays healthy, it will ensure a winning season for Missouri.
The changes made by first-year offensive coordinator Josh Henson were awarded with great success in 2013. By using the tight end in a more blocking role, and by closing the gap between the linemen, he did wonders. This year should be no different. While the team lost Justin Britt, it has 5 players who have been starters in the past. Including stars Mitch Morse— an offensive captain— and Evan Boehm, who was voted to the preseason All-SEC team.
Receivers: The receiving core is by far the biggest question mark on the offensive side of the ball. But with a solid quarterback, running game, and offensive line in place, it makes having such a raw set of receivers much more manageable.
Still, the team lost players that accounted for 75 percent of their catches, 77 percent of their yards and 86 percent of their scoring from a year ago. It’s going to be a challenge. Expect senior Bud Sasser to step up and be the leader—both numbers wise and as a leader for the young players.
In addition, Jimmie Hunt brings experience as well as Darius White, both of whom will have to step up maybe more than their stat sheet would have suggested a year ago. Tiger fans should have confidence in freshmen Lawrence Lee, Nate Brown and Desean Blaire. They will take time to learn, but they will make an impact with their talent early on. All in all, faith in Maty Mauk and the offensive line should make Mizzou nation breathe a little easier in 2014, despite the loss of talent from last year’s team.
Led by DE Markus Golden, the pass rush is expected to once agains be the star of the defense in 2014. Mandatory Credit: Dale Zanine-USA TODAY Sports
DEFENSE:
The Tigers defense was a beast in 2013. There wasn’t a quarterback in the country that looked forward to facing that defensive line. This season may be in a similar vain. The Tigers will get after quarterbacks in 2014. And the quarterbacks they face won’t be nearly as talented as the ones they did a year ago. That combined with strong leadership from players like Markus Golden, Lucas Vincent and Kentrell Brothers, gives the Tigers the ultimate opportunity– despite some serious youth in the secondary– to batter opponents this year.
Line: The defensive line was ferocious for Missouri in 2013. The Tigers pass rush was perhaps their most exciting and reliable quality. The team lost its two best pass rushers in Michael Sam and Kony Ealy, but many believe they have refilled those shoes quite nicely.
The star of the show on D for Mizzou will be defensive end Markus Golden. Quarterbacks and running backs for Missouri’s opponents will get to know that name very well—on tape before the game, and on the field during it. Shane Ray also joins him as the other end. Between them are other feisty animals like senior Matt Hoch, redhsirt senior Lucas Vincent and sophomore Harold Brantley, all of whom will hold their own in 2014.
Linebackers: The question mark on defense will be here. Losing Andrew Wilson and Donovan Bonner were bigger hits than people may give them credit for. They were the anchors for the 2013 defense.
Lucas Vincent. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports
Now the impressive Kentrell Brothers moves from the edge to hold down the middle.Joining Brothers are two youngsters, redshirt sophomores Michael Scherer and Donavin Newsome but are backed up by experienced players Darvin Ruise and Clarence Green. Only time will tell if this is going to be enough or if Mizzou will be weak in the line backer position in 2014.
Secondary: While they also took a hit, the secondary is still in decent position. It’s just a matter of working in the young players and getting them adapted early.
Safeties Ian Simon and Braylon Webb are solid while the less sure position is still cornerback. Many have faith in red shirt sophomore John Gibson, who’s been impressive during the offseason. But an injury during practice may slow him down at the start. The other starter, sophomore Aarion Penton, is both young and small, as are the other corners on the team.
While the passing defense may be in a softer spot than it was a year ago, the Tigers also don’t face too many passing juggernauts in 2014.
PREDICTIONS:
Derek’s Take:
If this team stays relatively healthy, I don’t think it’s outlandish to call for a 10-win season. The Tigers should come out of their non-conference tilt unscathed and march into the toughest part of their schedule—South Carolina, Georgia and Florida– without a blemish to their record. Outside of those games, undefeated isn’t unrealistic. The rest of the SEC East figures to be a cakewalk, as does the season finale with Arkansas. If Missouri is able to be somewhat competent in the linebacker and secondary on defense and the wide receivers are able to grow up fast, this is a team that absolutely can compete once again for the SEC East title. -DF
Ben’s Take
This season I expect the Tigers to go 10-2. They are a talented bunch and even with some big player losses from this past season, the Tigers have a lighter schedule and a lot of talented guys to step up in their place. They have a young team that will only get better next year with only a few guys graduating this upcoming year. It will be another fun year of Tiger football and I bet they’re going to win another SEC east crown, even with a loss to Georgia head-to-head. -BB