A Mizzou football midterm examination: better defense, but Tigers need more touchdowns

Halftime of the season finds the Missouri Tigers football team discouraged about how the first half has gone. But a rally is not out of the question.

The Tigers stand 2-4 overall and winless in three SEC games. But Mizzou has been good enough to keep each league game close. No team has played top-ranked Georgia better, a game so close that voters in the AP’s weekly Top 25 poll knocked the Buldogs out of the top spot for a week.

But Missouri cannot seem to finish games. In coach Eli Drinkwitz’s first two seasons, the Tigers are 4-4 in games decided by one score. This season, they’re 0-3 in those games.

Perhaps the odds will break Missouri’s way in the season’s second half. With six games down and six remaining, here are six observations about the season:

1. Stop being strangers to the end zone: The Tigers average 25.2 points per game, but against Power Five programs that number falls to 16.5 points. Mizzou has six touchdowns in those contests, and the first one was a final-play score in a big loss at Kansas State. In all games, the Tigers have 15 offensive touchdowns. They rank in the bottom half of most national offensive statistics. No numbers better explain their first-half doldrums. Missouri simply doesn’t cross the goal line enough.

2. Brady Cook’s development: It’s been slow-going for the Tigers’ starting QB. Cook ranks outside the top 10 in the SEC in passer rating and yards per attempt. He’s coming off a game at Florida in which he threw a pick-six and had another pass intercepted at the Gators’ 5.

But Cook is in his first year as a starter, and he’s been operating behind an offensive line that had a poor first half. On the SEC’s conference call this week, Drinkwitz said he’s considering giving freshman Sam Horn game snaps. “But they have be to earned, not given,” Drinkwitz said.

Cook’s best stat: 163 rushing yards and two touchdowns. His running ability remains an asset. Cook’s worst stat: Six interceptions against five touchdown passes. The Tigers have too much talent at wide receiver for that position group to have a mere three touchdown catches in six games.

3. Too many yellow hankies for the O-line: Twenty penalties in six games, and three games with at least four. Holding, false starts — the flags never seem to stop for the MU offensive line. Overall, Missouri ranks 101st nationally in penalty yards per game at 66.17. With a limited offense, Mizzou cannot afford to give away yards. Oddly, the two most penalized teams in the SEC are Alabama and Tennessee.

4. Victory in the transfer portal: Mizzou is getting excellent production on both sides of the ball from players who started their careers elsewhere. Defensively, linebacker Ty’Ron Hooper, who played three seasons at Florida, leads Mizzou with 7 1/2 tackles for loss. Safety Joseph Charleston (Clemson) has a pick-six.

The Tigers’ top two running backs, Nate Peat (who came from Stanford) and Cody Schrader (Truman State) have combined to average about 110 yards per game. They’ve helped soften the blow of losing Tyler Badie, the league’s top running back last season.

5. More on Hopper: The defense is vastly improved. Returning players like end Isaiah McGuire and DB Martez Manuel have stepped up. But nobody is playing outplaying or filling the a stat sheet quite like Hooper. He has 37 tackles, three pass breakups, two sacks, an interception and a forced fumble. “That’s one heck of a player,” McGuire said. Credit where it’s due: new defensive coordinator Blake Baker is earning his paycheck. Through a half-season, Hopper is Missouri’s top all-conference candidate.

6. Adjusted expectations: Because the Tigers were starting over at quarterback, we figured a 6-6 record and bowl appearance would signify a successful season. But now, with MU off to a 2-4 start, a record worthy of bowl consideration would mean Mizzou has beaten at least three conference opponents, including some in upset fashion. Giving away the game at Auburn and missing a giant-slaying opportunity vs. UGA changed expectations. Our new projection: 5-7.