Five questions with Jacob Bogage, Sports Editor, The Maneater
1. Both teams’ quarterback situations are eerily similar. Both starters are out with injuries, but both teams have backups that are capable of filling in. How impressed was Missouri with the performance that Maty Mauk put on against Florida, and was it better than anticipated?
You could say it was better than anticipated. Coach Gary Pinkel said after the game he gave Mauk a hug and told him he was proud of him, but not impressed. I guess Pinkel saw something in Maty that the rest of Mizzou Nation didn’t. That said, Mauk put up gaudy numbers in high school, so I suppose he could get away with airing it out against any defense.
2. Everyone outside of Missouri is surprised by the fact that the Tigers are leading the SEC East as we near November, but I’m assuming the people closest to Mizzou knew this could happen. With that being said, what is the atmosphere like around Columbia concerning the No. 5 Tigers?
That would be a poor assumption. People thought the Tigers would be headed back to a bowl game, but the SEC East crown? You’re kidding me. Columbia (Mo.) is buzzing about this team. This is a football town and the home of homecoming. People are walking on clouds.
3.* The Tigers have already knocked off Georgia and Florida, and with a win over South Carolina, they would almost guarantee themselves the SEC East title. So how important is this game against the Gamecocks? Would it be safe to assume that there hasn’t been one as important as this in quite some time?*
In terms of the SEC East title, not that important. Even if Mizzou loses to USC, if the Gamecocks drop a single East game (and remember, they still play a talented Florida team), the Tigers take the East. Plus Mizzou still has two more East games after this Saturday against conference bottom-dwellers Tennessee and Kentucky.
4. What do you think has been the key to this 7-0 start for the Tigers, and do you think Mizzou will be able to handle all of the sudden attention they are getting after shooting up to No. 5 in the BCS and AP polls?
Probably the element of surprise. Mizzou wasn’t supposed to be here. Players say the team’s goal coming into the season was making a bowl game; now, it’s to run the table. The defense might be the best in the conference, and the Tigers have takeaways in their last 37 games — the longest streak in the BCS. Quarterback play has been off the charts. No one expected this out of Missouri, and it might be too little too late for the rest of the conference to catch up.
5. Everyone who faces South Carolina has to deal with Jadeveon Clowney. Last week, Tennessee left one man on him for a large part of the game, and the junior responded with five tackles, including 2.5 for loss, and he was constantly in the backfield. How do you think Missouri will handle Clowney, and has there been a lot of talk surrounding him this week?
The media have really been the only ones talking about Clowney. Pinkel discussed him a little bit at media day and so did center Evan Boehm, but otherwise, the game plan doesn’t seem to be changing too much. I think Mizzou’s up-tempo spread will neutralize Clowney (we’ve all seen his conditioning or lack thereof). Look for offensive coordinator Josh Henson to air the ball out in the first half and run hard in the second. The Tigers’ trio of tailbacks — Henry Josey, Russell Hansbrough and Marcus Murphy — are all healthy this week.
Prediction: Missouri Tigers 42, South Carolina Gamecocks 24
I picked against the Tigers at Georgia and paid for it. At home against Florida, too. Not this time. Maty Mauk wins the quarterback battle over Dylan Thompson by leaps and bounds, in part because Thompson spends a good quarter of the game on the ground and turns the ball over twice. Clowney tires by mid-third quarter, and Josey runs it down the Gamecocks’ gullet. When it’s all said and done, Mizzou will have its season on cruise control, and USC will lose its top-25 ranking.