Missouri seeks more production from run game

Missouri’s run game imposed its will at times last year.

The Tigers melted the final 8 minutes, 8 seconds from the clock in a win last November at Mississippi with a 15-play drive — 13 running plays and two kneel downs — but such dominance has been absent in 2014.

Missouri ranked 16th in the nation in rushing last season, averaging 237.9 yards per game, with a robust 5.7-yard average per carry — ninth-best in the nation.

This season, before the SEC gauntlet has even started, the Tigers only average 4.8 yards per carry and rank 52nd in the nation in rushing offense (185.5 ypg).

“We’re not moving people like we moved people last year, and we’ve got to get better at that,” offensive coordinator Josh Henson said.

Against Indiana, Missouri finished with 172 yards on 35 carries.

Of course, junior Russell Hansbrough picked up 110 yards on two runs, so the Tigers managed only 62 yards on the other 33 carries, including eight rushes for a loss and 20 runs that netted three yards or less.

“We have to get more efficient,” Missouri coach Gary Pinkel said. “We need to have more 6-yard, 5-yard, 7-yard runs. Certainly, you want the big runs. You want to be able to keep those, but you want more consistency in our running game.”

Missouri, 3-1, will need a better performance from the run game to upset No. 13 South Carolina at 6 p.m. Saturday at Williams-Brice Stadium in Columbia, S.C.

“Our coaches have been talking to us, and we all agree that we could do better jobs staying on our blocks just a little bit longer and finishing the plays,” said junior Brad McNulty, who takes over at for Anthony Gatti at left guard.

Gatti suffered a torn ACL in the first quarter against Indiana.

The Tigers also shuffled the right side of the line, moving junior Connor McGovern back to right guard, where he started all 14 games last season, and sliding junior Taylor Chappell into the starting lineup at right tackle.

“We’re just trying to get the right combination in there and see how it works out,” Pinkel said. “We thought that was the best shot right now and we’ll see what happens. Looking at the film, that’s what we came up with.”

Missouri’s staff hopes the changes light a fire under the offensive line.

“We’ve got to do a better job of running the football, and it starts up front,” first-year offensive line coach A.J. Ricker said. “It’s a mentality thing, and we’ve got to do a lot better job.”

McGovern said Missouri has yet to replace Max Copeland’s communication skills.

“You’d always see Max pointing and yelling, so we’re kind of missing a communication thing, which I hope that I can help fill,” McGovern said. “Especially moving back to guard, I think I can help a little bit more with making the calls and stuff.”

Losing left tackle Justin Britt, who is now the starting right tackle for the Seattle Seahawks, surely is a factor as well, but the Tigers aren’t interested in excuses, only improvement.

“We need to focus on the small fundamentals of the game,” Morse said. “We need to focus on our hand placement and coming off the ball with a purpose. I think right now we’re coming off the ball too worried about trying to react to the defensive lineman instead of picking a point, driving and then reacting.”

This story was originally published September 23, 2014 at 1:48 PM with the headline "Missouri seeks more production from run game."