Grades from Mizzou football’s 45-41 upset over LSU, and a look ahead to Vanderbilt
Every time the Missouri Tigers were hit by a punch from visiting LSU, Mizzou never faltered in its 45-41 win Saturday on Faurot Field. They never “flinched,” MU coach Eliah Drinkwitz said, as he picked up his first win as the Tigers’ top guy.
That was despite playing without three starters and key depth pieces because of COVID-19 and injuries. It was an impressive effort from a team coming off a tough loss to Tennessee last week.
It wasn’t all perfect — especially the fumbles. But Mizzou quarterback Connor Bazelak was special with the ball, throwing for more than 400 yards in his second career start. The offense hummed. Drinkwitz’s scheme and creative play calls picked apart the LSU defense.
The Tigers got their first marquee win under Drinkwitz and will have a shot at the .500 mark when they face Vanderbilt next week.
Here are this week’s grades for the offense, defense and special teams, along with a look ahead to Vandy.
PLAY OF THE GAME
Joshuah Bledsoe’s fourth-down pass break-up: LSU had one more shot at the end zone after failing on the first three downs from inside the 1.
On LSU’s final chance, it saw the ball trickle away harmlessly on the ground after Mizzou safety Joshuah Bledsoe made a spectacular play for the pass break-up. While it was Bledsoe on the final play, the MU defense pointed to a team effort that completed Drinkwitz’s first win at Columbia.
GRADES
Offense: A. After combining for 31 points through Mizzou’s first two games, the Tigers exploded for 45 points with Bazelak leading the way. Bazelak threw for 406 yards and four touchdowns, Larry Rountree III ran for 119 yards and backup wide receivers shined in the win.
Mizzou was without two starters in Keke Chism and Damon Hazelton, but that didn’t faze the potent offense. The only blemish was a pair of fumbles, one of which was recovered by LSU. Otherwise, it was a banner day.
Defense: C+. The Mizzou pass defense was torn up by a one-dimensional LSU, which threw it all over the secondary. LSU quarterback Myles Brennan finished with 430 yards and four touchdowns, while wide receiver Terrence Marshall had 235 yards and three touchdowns.
But when it mattered most, Mizzou’s defense delivered. While 41 points isn’t ideal, part of that was on MU’s fumbling issues. LSU capitalized by scoring 17 points off Mizzou’s three turnovers as the defense was set up for failure in brutal field position.
Special teams: D-. Mizzou’s worst side of the ball Saturday. There was a fake punt that gifted LSU great field position, though the aggressive call had logic behind it. Where the Tigers faltered was on two separate muffed punts by true freshman Kris Abrams-Draine. The first wasn’t his fault as an LSU defender was pushed into Abrams-Draine before he caught the ball. The second was a simple drop. While he recovered the second muff, the punt game was a struggle for Mizzou all game long.
Kicker Harrison Mevis missed a field-goal attempt for the first time in his career, though it was a 56-yard try. The true freshman, though, did knock in a career-long 51-yarder, and it’s evident Drinkwitz trusts his rookie kicker.
NEXT UP
Mizzou (1-2) finally makes it out of its absolutely brutal start to the 2020 season, where it faced three straight ranked teams. Next up is an 0-3 Vanderbilt team that, after an intriguing start against Texas A&M, was blown out by LSU and South Carolina in recent weeks.
Don’t sleep on Vanderbilt. Mizzou will likely be favored in a game for the first time this season (after starting the year as double-digit underdogs for three games). But that doesn’t mean the Tigers can be caught underestimating the Commodores. Mizzou was upset by Vanderbilt last year that started a five-game losing streak, so the Tigers will look to take care of business next week.
Mizzou quarterback spot set, but there’s still a role for backup. The Tigers relied heavily on Bazelak’s arm against LSU and he’s presumably the starter going forward. But expect to see a healthy dose of Shawn Robinson, the backup. Drinkwitz said they planned to have Robinson in the LSU game more, but Robinson was nicked up with an ankle injury that kept him out after the first play of the game.
This story was originally published October 10, 2020 at 7:30 PM.