‘It felt like we were clicking’: Inside Mekhi Wingo’s pick-six play for Missouri Tigers
Mekhi Wingo may be a defensive lineman for Missouri, but he’ll proudly tell you he’s a running back at heart.
So when he saw fellow defensive lineman Trajan Jeffcoat leap into the air and tip the pass of North Texas quarterback Austin Aune early in the fourth quarter, sending the ball flying in his direction, he knew “that was my chance right there.”
Wingo intercepted the ball at the 40-yard line and took off toward the end zone, sprinting all the way down the sideline for the defensive touchdown to put Mizzou up 41-14 with 11:39 left in the game. The freshman was immediately surrounded by a mob of teammates, the group jumping around in excitement and proudly embracing him in a celebratory huddle.
“I think that was the best thing to happen this season for us, for real,” defensive back Kris Abrams-Draine said after the game.
The pick-six marked the first score for the Mizzou defense this season. But more than that, it was a much needed positive play for a defensive line that had been destroyed by opposing offenses in the weeks prior, leading Jethro Franklin to be replaced by Al Davis as the group’s position coach last Sunday.
After allowing an average 306.8 rushing yards per game to opponents entering Saturday’s game — worst in the FBS — the defensive line held the Mean Green to 188 rushing yards. Mizzou hadn’t kept an opponent to under 200 yards on the ground since Week 1.
The defense also had 10 tackles for loss, three sacks and forced two turnovers in addition to Wingo’s interception and score in the win over North Texas.
“I thought they played pretty well,” MU coach Eliah Drinkwitz said of the defensive line’s performance. “Specifically we had several negative plays. I thought they rushed the passer really well and then obviously anytime that you get a big man touchdown that’s a pretty good day at the office.”
Following that touchdown, running back Tyler Badie — who had three scores of his own Saturday — went up to Wingo and congratulated him. The running back wasn’t sure if the young defensive lineman would be able to get all the way to the end zone.
“I thought you was gonna be tired and go out of bounds,” Badie recalled telling his teammate. “But he scored, so that’s the best thing.”
After the game, Drinkwitz proudly remarked that Wingo was his first commitment of the 2021 class when asked about the touchdown. The Saint Louis product out of De Smet Jesuit High School has made an immediate impact in his first season with the Tigers.
“Plays extremely hard, practices hard, does things the right way. A great leader for our football team,” Drinkwitz said. So it means a lot (to see him get the touchdown).”
For Wingo, celebrating the pick-six felt more special because of how the play came together. The interception was caused by another teammate, by another defensive lineman. The position group had struggled more than any other for Mizzou this season, but Saturday gave them something on which they can build.
“It felt like we were clicking,” Wingo said. “We were playing off each other more this week, not just playing for ourselves. … We just knew we had to figure it out and hopefully this is a step in the right direction.”
This story was originally published October 9, 2021 at 9:54 PM.
