Studs and Duds For Loss Against Florida

The Missouri Tigers suffered their third loss of the season on Saturday against the #10 Florida Gators 41-17. The Tigers have a bye week to recover, but face #5 Georgia the following week.

STUDS

Devin Nicholson

Stats:

Total Tackles: 13 (7 Solo)

The sophomore from Michigan was one of the few bright spots in an ugly game against Florida. Nicholson made his presence felt throughout the game and complemented Bolton very well at the linebacker position.

Nicholson started five games last year as a true freshman once Cale Garrett went down with an injury. The experience that Nicholson gained last season is paying dividends this year.

Nicholson plays extremely smart for a young player and is the right-hand man for Nick Bolton. The buzz around Nicholson isn’t as high as it should be because he is playing next to one of the best linebackers in the country.

Nicholson is putting together a solid season and is showing Mizzou fans that the linebacker position is in good hands once Bolton departs.

Nick Bolton 

Stats:

Total Tackles: 10 (3 Solo)

Tackles For Loss: 1.5

Yes… of course, Nick Bolton made the studs list once again. Bolton continues to prove week in and week out that he is one of the best linebackers in the country.

Against Florida, Bolton was still electric despite an overall bad performance from the Tiger’s defense.

Bolton was flying around the field making big plays all evening. Bolton’s hit on Kyle Trask in the second quarter led to a pick-six for Jarvis Ware.

The play from Bolton pops out on the screen and he is constantly making game-changing plays. The duo of Bolton and Nicholson has kept the ship from completely sinking on the defensive side of the ball.

Jarvis Ware 

Stats:

Total Tackles: 3 (1 solo)

Interceptions: 1

Touchdowns: 1

Ware made the play of the game when he returned a pick for a 59-yard touchdown.

The junior from Apopka, Florida has been a stable force for the Tiger’s defense since his freshman year.

Ware played in ten games as a true freshman, and last year Ware took over one of the full-time starting positions at corner.

Ware is a physical corner that is not afraid of contact and he has improved his coverage skills this season. The attention and hype have been around true freshman, Ennis Rakestraw, but Tiger fans can’t forget about what Ware brings to the table.

The pick-six by Ware was a great moment for the Florida native and was a reminder that Ware has the potential to play on Sundays.

DUDS

Mizzou’s Running Game

Stats:

Rushing Yards: 40

Touchdown:1

Mizzou’s running game has been fantastic all year but struggled against Florida. The offense was only able to gain 40 yards on the ground.

Larry Rountree III, who has had an All-SEC caliber season, was shut down by Florida and was only able to gain 36 yards rushing on 14 carries.

Tyler Badie, the change of pace back, only received 2 carries which netted -2 yards. It has been head-scratching to see how Drinkwitz has used Badie. Badie isn’t great in between the tackles running back but is electric when he gets into space.

The scheme this week is more at fault than the players on why the running game was nonexistent. Drinkwitz has to find a way to get Badie more chances and has to stay committed to the run game throughout the contest.

Harrison Mevis

Stats:

1-2 FG

Long: 29

Harrison Mevis has been terrific all season leading up to the Florida game. In the year Mevis is 8/10 on field goal attempts and he is perfect on extra-point attempts.

The reason why Mevis made the duds list this week is because of his missed field goal in the second quarter against Florida.

Mevis missed a 31-yard field goal in the first quarter after Mizzou went on an 11 play, 71-yard drive. The drive was promising for the offense and if Mevis made the field goal it would’ve tied the game up at 3-3.

The missed field goal wasted a promising drive and it killed the momentum that Mizzou had.

Mizzou’s Secondary

Stats:

Passing Yards Allowed: 345

Passing Touchdowns Allowed: 4

Mizzou’s secondary got picked apart on Saturday and allowed Florida to do whatever they wanted in the passing game.

Kyle Trask was able to spread the ball around and keep Florida’s offense moving. Six different Florida receivers finished the game with multiple catches.

The secondary has been a weakness for Mizzou all season long, and Saturday was no different. If Mizzou wants to consistently beat good teams, their pass coverage has to improve.