Missouri working on offensive consistency after rough opening three games

Missouri’s offensive struggles are profound.

The Tigers’ offense has produced 975 yards in the first three games, which is the program’s fewest since coach Gary Pinkel’s first season in 2001. No. 25 Missouri ranks last in the Southeastern Conference in rushing offense, trailing Vanderbilt by more than 30 yards, and is 119th among 128 Football Bowl Subdivision teams at 107.7 yards per game. Only Oregon State averages fewer than the Tigers’ 325 yards of total offense among power-five conference teams.

Junior quarterback Maty Mauk said he doesn’t think he’s ever before played in a game where the offense generated only one touchdown, like it did in a 9-6 win against Connecticut last weekend.

One thing keeps frustration from overwhelming Missouri’s locker room.

“Guys, we’re 3-0,” senior center Evan Boehm said. “It’s not a pretty 3-0, but we’re 3-0.”

Winning has allowed Missouri to stay positive, but Boehm and company also are positive that the status quo isn’t good enough moving into conference play. The Tigers open SEC play at 6:30 p.m. Saturday against Kentucky at Commonwealth Stadium in Lexington, Ky.

According to members of the offensive line, fixing the offense starts up front.

“We have to play more physical, and we have to go out there and we have to dominate the line of scrimmage,” Boehm said. “I don’t think we’ve done a very good job of that. I think we’ve shown glimpses of it these past three games, but we’ve got to do it on a consistent basis.”

Missouri opened the second half against Connecticut with a dominant 15-play, 68-yard touchdown drive. The Tigers also got stuffed on a fourth-and-goal dive play from the Huskies’ 1 a few series later.

“We expected a little bit more consistency,” Pinkel said. “... It’s frustrating for our fans. I know that, and I don’t blame them. It’s frustrating for all of us.”

Missouri has been pleased with its pass protection, but running lanes have collapsed too often.

“We’ve just got to be able to … hold our blocks and finish our blocks,” Tigers offensive line coach A.J. Ricker said. “There are holes there, but they’re probably there for a half-second when it needs to be there for two seconds. … We should be able to run the football and run the football effectively. We’ll get it. We’ve just got to keep working.”

Missouri went through a similar rough patch offensively at the start of SEC play last season. The Tigers totaled 546 yards of offense in a three-game stretch at South Carolina, against Georgia and at Florida.

“Are you kidding me? They were worse than these last three games,” offensive coordinator Josh Henson said.

He also believes Missouri, which topped 400 yards in five of the final six games last season, can learn from its approach a year ago: “Stay positive, keep believing in what we’re doing, don’t listen to all the outside noise and each guy look at themselves and say, ‘What can I do better to improve the whole?’ ”

Confidence remains unflinching that the offense will turn things around.

“At some point in time, it will click and we’ll play well, our confidence will take off a little bit and we’ll play better,” Henson said. “We’ll improve from there. … We’ve got enough talent to get it done, but we’ve got to be very detail-oriented in what we do.”

Tiny breakdowns from play to play — a missed block, a poor read, an underthrown pass or a bad route adjustment — have crippled the offense.

“It has been something different almost every play,” Henson said.

Getting senior running back Russell Hansbrough back from a right ankle sprain — he’s been upgraded to probable — certainly should help shore things up, but it’s no panacea.

“A healthy Russell Hansbrough is a dominant player, and we need him back,” Boehm said, “... but we still have to get better and we still have to open holes for these guys and do what the offensive line needs to do.”

This story was originally published September 22, 2015 at 2:29 PM with the headline "Missouri working on offensive consistency after rough opening three games."