Mizzou offense can't match up in 38-17 loss to No. 3 Texas A&M
The Missouri Tigers knew they had a big task ahead of them when they hosted No. 3 Texas A&M at Faurot Field on Saturday.
A true freshman making his first start at quarterback. The SEC leader in receiving touchdowns by a tight end out with a separated shoulder. An offensive line that has struggled going against one of the strongest defensive fronts in the country.
Add on a couple of explosive plays from the Aggie offense and it was just too much for Mizzou to overcome as the Tigers lost 38-17 and dropped to 6-3 overall and 2-3 in SEC play. Ending a hope for a College Football Playoff berth.
“I felt like our players laid it on the line,” Missouri coach Eliah Drinkwitz said. “I thought they fought and fought, kept giving ourselves chances. But ultimately, poor coaching by me at the end of the day.”
The Tiger defense did everything it could early in the game, trying to give freshman quarterback Matt Zollers the chance to shock the world in his first start.
Mizzou forced a punt on Texas A&M’s first drive then did it again on the second.
But after a 40-yard Ahmad Hardy run on the Tigers’ first play from scrimmage, Mizzou amassed just 5 total yards on two sets of downs in response.
Losing momentum
Mizzou punted back to Texas A&M and this time, the Aggies broke through.
Texas A&M went 59 yards on nine plays, taking advantage of some soft Mizzou zone defense, before Aggie quarterback Marcel Reed hit Ashton Bethel-Roman on a 4-yard toss, fitting the ball in just ahead of the hand of Mizzou corner Toriano Pride going for the deflection.
The Tigers had no response, though did get a first down before punting once again.
The Tiger defense got back to work, forcing consecutive punts. But they surrounded a Mizzou turnover on downs as a promising Tiger drive, helped by Aggie penalties, ended on downs.
The Tigers originally lined up for a 50-yard field goal, which was well short and off the mark. But a Texas A&M offsides call gave the Tigers a chance on fourth-and-6 and they sent the offense back out for a try. The pass hit the turf though, and Texas A&M took over once again.
Mizzou regained control with 1:57 left before the break trailing just 7-0, and after garnering a first down, decided to try for a score going into halftime.
“They had three timeouts, so we wanted to get the first, first down,” Drinkwitz said. “And then once we got the first, first down, we tried to see if we could get points.”
Instead, Zollers was hit in the backfield by Daymion Sanford, knocking the ball directly into the hands of Dalton Brooks rushing around the back side. Brooks carried the ball down to the Tiger 2, setting up an Aggie touchdown that put A&M up 14-0 at the break.
“Ultimately, they had a blitz on and they were able to swing the Mike to the field and had a free hitter,” Drinkwitz said. “So that’s my fault for scheme. I gave the OK to try to get the first down there. And I should have said throw the screen instead.”
Though that score essentially took the game to halftime, it seemed to break the back of the Tiger defense.
Before the fumble, Missouri’s defenders had stopped Texas A&M on 4-of-5 drives for a total of 162 yards. After the fumble, the Aggies scored on 5-of-6 drives before essentially ending their own series after a Tiger muffed kickoff to run the clock under a minute.
Second half
The Tiger offense produced 147 yards in the first half. But performed better after the break, amassing 182 yards and three scoring drives.
The ignition switch for the Tiger offense was a big kickoff return from DaMarion Fowlkes. Fowlkes caught a kick near the goal line on the right side, then worked his way to the left sideline and down the field for a 55-yard return. He set the Tigers up at the Texas A&M 40 early in the third.
Zollers and the Tigers needed eight plays to finally find the end zone.
Zollers hit Hardy with a 5-yard pass, then Hardy put up runs of 4 and 2 yards to gain a first down. After an incompletion, Hardy ran for 3 yards before an offsides set up 3rd and 2. Jamal Roberts took the next carry for 8 yards to get a first down at the Aggie 13.
Roberts took the next run 9 yards, then lined up in the wildcat and kept a run up the middle for a 4-yard touchdown.
The score cut the Texas A&M lead to 21-7 with 6:49 left in the third.
The back breaker
Mizzou’s defense seemed to have a three-and-out to follow up the score. But Texas A&M faked a punt and Brooks rushed for a 48-yard gain to garner a first down. Five plays later, Texas A&M kicked a field goal.
“We had max return called because we thought we were going to be able to generate some space for Kevin (Coleman),” Drinkwitz said. “And when you have max return called, you’re not really in a great position to defend the fake. We had one guy over there, but that wasn’t going to be enough.”
The Tigers drove 52 yards on 10 plays in response to set up a 49-yard field goal from Oliver Robbins. It was the first official kick of his college career after his 50-yard attempt was wiped away earlier.
The kick cut the Aggie lead to 24-10. But Texas A&M needed just six plays to drive 76 yards, highlighted by Rueben Owens breaking free for a 57-yard touchdown run.
“They kept us in it as long as they could,” Drinkwitz said of the Tiger defense. “Ultimately, the time of possession kind of put us in a bad spot. … Fake punt, when we had the momentum, that’s kind of when the wheels fell off for us defensively. … After that, we weren’t able to stop the run.”
Late response
The Tigers responded five plays later when Hardy broke open for a big run of his own, going 45 yards for a touchdown to cut the lead to 31-17.
After not scoring on their first seven drives, the Tigers scored 17 points on four drives to cut the lead to two scores once again. But it was too little, too late.
But the Mizzou defense was gassed and Texas A&M was able to drive down for another score. This time Owens only had to go 1 yard for the touchdown.
The stadium emptied out, and with the fans went the Tigers’ comeback hopes. And the biggest hopes of the Tiger season.
On the ensuing kickoff, the ball kicked above the Tigers’ returner and Texas A&M regained possession on Mizzou’s 15. The Aggies were able to run the clock down to 29 seconds as Jamarion Morrow took three consecutive runs up the middle following an EJ Smith run to the right.
Stats
- Zollers was 7-of-22 passing for 77 yards.
- Roberts rushed 17 times for 110 yards and a touchdown.
- Hardy rushed 13 times for 109 yards.
- Donovan Olugbode was the Tigers’ leading receiver with three catches for 74 yards.
- Triston Newson led Mizzou with 11 tackles, including a tackle for loss.
- Chris McClellan was second for the defense with seven tackles.
- Darris Smith had Mizzou’s lone sack.
Texas A&M led 464-284 in total yards, 243-207 in rushing yards and 221-77 in passing yards.
The Aggies were 7-of-14 on third down, Mizzou was 5-of-13.
Texas A&M was 1-of-2 on fourth down, Mizzou was 0-for-1.
Up next
Mizzou (6-3, 2-3 SEC) will look to rebound when it hosts Mississippi State at 6:45 p.m. next Saturday for senior night.
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