Game report: Tennessee 19, Missouri 8

First quarter

Key play: Quarterback Drew Lock was picked off on the sixth play. There may have been some confusion as wide receiver Wesley Leftwich appeared to be blocking Vols cornerback Cameron Sutton, who snagged the interception at midfield.

Key stat: Tennessee outgained Missouri 98-19 in the quarter. The Tigers almost had more penalty yards (15) than yards from scrimmage.

Second quarter

Key play: Tennessee quarterback Josh Dobbs ran through a series of tackles on an 8-yard touchdown run with 17 seconds remaining before halftime, essentially putting the game out of reach.

Key stat: Running back Jalen Hurd gained 108 yards in 17 first-half carries, becoming the first 100-yard rusher Missouri has allowed since Alabama’s Derrick Henry plowed his way to 141 yards in the 2014 SEC Championship Game.

Third quarter

Key play: Leftwich hauled in a pass on a 44-yard post route, the longest reception of his career.

Key stat: Tennessee had 10 minutes, 40 seconds of possession time for the second straight quarter.

Fourth quarter

Key play: Lock kept the ball on an option to the short side of the field and nipped the pylon with the football as he was shoved out of bounds on fourth-and-inches, preventing the third shutout in Gary Pinkel’s MU tenure.

Key stat: Missouri only averaged 3.8 yards per play for the game, the fourth time this season the offense averaged fewer than 4.0 yards.

Offense

D+

Missouri had 62 yards in 27 plays in the first half. It got better after halftime, but the hole was too big by that time.

Defense

C+

Quarterback Josh Dobbs was 16 of 24 for just 89 yards, but Tennessee’s run game churned out 248 yards in 51 carries.

Special teams

C-

Punter Corey Fatony struggled and the kickoff coverage wasn’t great, but there were signs of life in the return game.

Coaching

C-

MU’s defense was terrific after halftime, but the horizontal offensive game plan never gave the Tigers much of a chance. Given the overall emotions, it wasn’t a failing effort on the staff’s part.

Player of the game: Junior linebacker Michael Scherer finished second on Missouri with 10 tackles behind senior Kentrell Brothers’ 12, but Scherer had a team-high 2  1/2 tackles for a loss.

Reason to hope: It’s almost over? The season has featured a quarterback suspension, a brief players’ boycott, an anemic offense and the resignation of the head coach. That seems like more than enough for one year.

Reason to mope: Missouri coach Gary Pinkel deserved a better sendoff than he received. The first half was a lifeless mess, and at 28 degrees it was the coldest home game in his tenure at kickoff.

Looking ahead: Arkansas will be motivated to improve the bowl game it lands in coming off a 51-50 shootout loss against Mississippi State. Missouri needs a win for its own bowl eligibility.

This story was originally published November 21, 2015 at 10:46 PM with the headline "Game report: Tennessee 19, Missouri 8."