Missouri Tigers Must Fix Woes on Offense

By Tim Letcher
Jasen Vinlove, USA TODAY SPORTS
Jasen Vinlove, USA TODAY SPORTS

The Missouri Tigers had a big opportunity on Saturday, but they left the game with more questions than answers.

Missouri had a chance to take control of the SEC Eastern Division race on Saturday, hosting the Georgia Bulldogs, who were without Heisman Trophy candidate Todd Gurley. Instead of taking advantage of that opportunity, Missouri laid an egg, both on offense and defense.

The Tigers allowed backup running back Nick Chubb to rush for 143 yards in the 34-0 home loss. Without Gurley, the Bulldogs were still able to put up 379 yards of total offense in the game.

What is more troubling for Missouri is their offense. Not only did the Tigers fail to score, they had only 147 yards of total offense in the game. Quarterback Maty Mauk struggled, connecting on just nine-of-21 through the air for only 97 yards. Mauk also threw four interceptions in the game.

Head coach Gary Pinkel must find a way to get his offense back on track. Missouri currently ranks 98th in the country in passing offense and 78th in the country in rushing offense. Mauk is completing 54.4 percent of his passes, with 14 touchdowns and eight interceptions. He has also been sacked 10 times.

Missouri faces a tough task this weekend, heading to the Swamp to face the Florida Gators. This is essentially a must-win for both of these teams, and the Gators’ defense will be tough for Mauk and the Tigers to solve.

If Missouri can’t get the offense going, the second half of the season could be a disaster for the Tigers.

Tim Letcher is a contributing writer for www.RantSports.com and a member of the Football Writers Association of America. Follow him on Twitter @TimLetcher , on Facebook or add him to your network on Google.

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