Missouri Tigers 2018 Football Preview

Missouri Tigers 2018 Football Preview

Opening Statement: After a 1-5 start last fall, the Tigers went on a 6 win tear, only to finish with a loss to Texas in the Texas Bowl. That is still something to build on for Barry Odom and his staff, who enter a critical year 3 of their tenure with an 11-14 record overall. Offensively, Missouri brings a scary attack that ranked 8th nationally in yards per game, but they also have to drag around a defense that ranked 82nd nationally in yards allowed per game, and 108th nationally against the pass. If the Tigers cannot find improvement on defense, we could see a golden opportunity for this football team go to waste.

Breakdown Offense: Drew Lock is one of the top 5 QBs in college football, and will return to Columbia after shaking off a shot at the NFL for one more season. Lock passed for 3964 yards and 44 TDs last fall to just 13 INTs, but he needs to lower those turnover numbers and increase accuracy this fall, as he completed just 57.8% of his passes last season. Micah Wilson remains as the backup, as he attempted just 10 passes last season as the reserve, while completing just 5 of them.

The Tigers lose leading rusher Ish Witter, but Damarea Crockett has jumped over Larry Roundtree to take the starting job in spring ball. Both should get ample carries in the offense this fall. Crockett rushed for 481 yards and 2 scores last fall, while averaging 6 yards per carry. Roundtree rushed for 703 yards and 6 scores, while averaging 5.58 yards per carry. Dawson Downing, who carried 20 times as a freshman, is the 3rd back on the depth chart, with Isaiah Miller providing a bit more depth.

Emmanuel Hall and Johnathon Johnson are back at WR this fall, but leading receiver J'Mon Moore is gone. Hall caught 33 passes last fall, while Johnson added 41 receptions. Hall averaged over 24 yards per catch last season, and will be a major deep threat for Lock. Johnson averaged over 17 yards per catch, and can spread the field as well. Nate Brown, who caught 11 passes last season, is the 3rd receiver to start. Richaud Floyd, Justin Smith, Daniel Elinger, Steven Spadaratto, and Barrett Banister will provide some depth, but not much experience.

Albert Okwuegbunam is back as the starter at TE after catching 29 passes and a team leading 11 scores last fall. He is one of the better red zone TEs in the nation heading into the season. Kendall Blanton is back as the primary backup as well, and Logan Christopherson left spring ball as the 3rd TE.

The offensive line returns intact with Yasir Durant (LT), Kevin Pendleton (LG), Trystan Colon-Castillo (C), Tre'Vour Wallace-Simms (RG), and Paul Adams (RT) all back in action. Hyrin White and Larry Borom provide depth at Tackle, while Case Cook and Samson Bailey are the OG reserves. Jonah Dubinsky is the backup at C.

Breakdown Defense: The defense allowed 31.8 points per game last fall, and allowed 30 points or more 8 times. If the Tigers are to move forward from the middle of the SEC pack, that cannot continue moving forward.

The major issues start on the line for the Tigers, as only one starter returns in DT Terry Beckner, Jr. He totaled 11 TFLs from the middle last season, and is a major building block, but he needs some assistance. He tied for the team lead with 7 sacks, and ended up with 2 PBUs and 5 QB hurries. He totaled 38 tackles as well. His partner in the middle is penciled in as Walter Palmore at NT, but look for Kobie Whitseside to push him in camp. Whiteside is a riser who played in 12 games as a freshman last season, and may be the better long term option. Jordan Elliott could be in play here as well. Rashad Brandon and Markell Utsey provide some depth.

The Tigers need to find 2 new starters at DE as well. Tre Williams and Chris Turner, both sophomores, will likely land those roles. Experience and production are a concern here. Nate Anderson and Franklin Agbasimere are the backups heading into the fall. They totaled a combined 3 TFLs last season. This is a red flag position, as if the young players do not develop quickly, the Tigers will not have much of an edge rush.

The news is significantly better at LB, as all 3 starters return in Terez Hall, Cale Garrett, and Brandon Lee. Garrett led the team from the MLB spot with 105 tackles last season and finished with 10 TFLs. He added 3 sacks as well. Hall finished 2nd on the team in tackles with 85, and also finished 2nd on the team with 12.5 TFLs. He added 3 PBUs in pass coverage from his SLB spot. Lee finished with 42 tackles last fall, and added 5 TFLs. Aubrey Miller, Jamal Brooks, and Joshua Bledsoe are the key reserves.

Both CBs return in DeMarkus Acy and Adam Sparks. Acy, a junior, finished with 3 PBUs last season and added 48 tackles. Sparks ended up starting as a freshman last fall, and totaled 4 PBUs, and added 2 INTs. He totaled 43 tackles on the year. Finis Stribling IV and Christian Holmes are the key backups.

The Tigers must find 2 new starters at Safety. Joshua Bledsoe could make a move from LB to start at SS, or Ronnell Jenkins could beat him for the job in fall camp. Jordan Ulmer is also in the mix. Cam Hilton is the leader at FS heading into the fall, with Tyree Gillespie adding some competition to the mix.

Breakdown Special Teams: Tucker McCann was rock solid last season as a sophomore, as he hit 15/17 FG attempts. He needs to be a bit sharper on PATs, as he missed a pair of them last fall, finishing 51/53.

Cory Fatoni is simply one of the better Punters in the nation, as he averaged 44.31 yards per punt last fall. He is back as well.

Roundtree should be back on KR duty, as he averaged over 21 yards per return last fall, while Floyd is one of the best in the business on PR duty, averaging 19.82 yards per return with 2 scores last fall.

Final Analysis: Missouri has few worries offensively speaking. With Lock and a bevy of weapons and a stable line returning, the Tigers should continue on their mission of scoring tons of points and moving the football at will. The major questions will come in fixing the defense, which is loaded with questions up front and in the Safety spots. The LB corps should be quite busy with a young set of ends who have not produced. Odom needs to win, and he needs to win now. I don't see him going anywhere this season, but if the Tigers do not show some serious improvement, he will be on the hot seat at the very least, and could be in real trouble entering 2019, 2 year extension aside. I do not expect the Tigers to push for the SEC East title, but they should be pushing for 2nd or 3rd in the division this season. Anything less would be a letdown.