Missouri Tigers welcomed new defensive coordinator with first shutout since 2020
The Missouri Tigers opened their 2024 season against an opponent that, plainly, they were better than. Much better than, in fact; the Tigers were 50-point betting favorites heading into Thursday’s opening-night matchup.
Very few questions loomed overhead for the top-15 Tigers on the offensive side of the ball, as they returned their quarterback and entire wide receiver room, potentially the best in the nation. The same could not be said, however, for the Tigers’ defense.
Missouri lost five defensive starters to the NFL and its defensive coordinator Blake Baker to conference rival LSU following the 11-2 campaign in 2023. Much was made of the question marks that loomed. One game into the season, not many of those questions remain.
The Tigers shut down their opponents Thursday to the tune of no points and just 85 yards of total offense. Missouri’s 51-0 victory over Murray State was just the second shutout pitched by the Tigers in the Eli Drinkwitz era and the first since 2020.
The victory also represented the first time in the Drinkwitz era that Missouri held its opponent to fewer than 100 yards. Regardless of opponent, that’s an impressive outing.
“Corey Batoon, can’t say how good of a job he did tonight,” a satisfied Drinkwitz said of his defensive coordinator’s first game in Columbia. “Man, that is going to be one heck of a defense in the future. Really pleased with the way we played defense tonight.”
The strong showing by Batoon’s unit was highlighted by a smattering of transfers who all showed out in their first game in black and gold. Perhaps none had a more immediate impact than St. Louis native Toriano Pride Jr.
Pride didn’t have to wait long before making his presence felt. Just 5 minutes, 11 seconds into his MU career, the cornerback stepped in front of a Jayden Johannsen pass intended for wide receiver JK Carter. Pride returned the interception 25 yards untouched for the score, the Tigers’ third touchdown of the opening frame.
“TP set the tone with that,” Tigers linebacker Corey Flagg Jr. said of his teammate’s interception. “Like, we knew somebody’s gonna get a takeaway, but a pick-six?”
“Toriano makes plays,” Drinkwitz said.
The return was set up by fellow transfer defensive end Zion Young, who had pressure on Johannsen and forced an errant throw. Young, formerly of Michigan State, finished the night without a tackle, but he was a constant presence in the Racers’ backfield throughout the first half and played a key role in keeping the Murray State offense in check.
Johannsen, a transfer from Division II South Dakota School of Mines, had a less-than-stellar first game for Murray State, finishing the night 7-for-13 with just 27 yards passing. Johannsen was also sacked twice for a loss of 14 yards and, notably, a lost fumble.
It was Florida transfer Chris McClellan who forced the fumble, one of three total tackles for him on the night. Linebacker Khalil Jacobs recorded the Tigers’ other sack.
Jacobs, a summer transfer from South Alabama, followed his former defensive coordinator, Batoon, from the Panthers to the Tigers, and in a short time in Columbia he’s already turned heads. Jacobs had a pair of tackles on the night, both on third down to force Murray State punts.
The Racers were forced to punt eight times on the night. In fact, the only drives all game in which Missouri did not force a punt were Murray State’s first, a turnover on downs; their second, the Pride pick-six; their 10th, the McClellan strip-sack, which was recovered by defensive end Joe Moore; and their 13th, when the game came to a close.
Moore has now recovered a strip-sack fumble in two consecutive games, as he fell on the game-sealing loose ball in the Tigers’ 14-3 victory over Ohio State in the Cotton Bowl in December.
Flagg and fellow linebacker Triston Newson finished the night with a team-leading five tackles apiece. Each had three solo tackles and each one tackle for a loss.
The Tigers will look to parlay their strong defensive performance into another in their next matchup at home against Buffalo on Sept. 7.
“It’s always a good feeling when you hold an offense under 100 yards,” McClellan said. “Now we’ve gotta flip the page and move on to the next team.”
This story was originally published August 30, 2024 at 1:27 PM with the headline "Missouri Tigers welcomed new defensive coordinator with first shutout since 2020."