What should Missouri football’s goals be after Georgia loss? Seven thoughts on Mizzou

Missouri football took Georgia to the wire. Again.

But almost only counts in horseshoes and hand grenades, as the saying goes.

The Tigers fell 30-21 at the No. 2 (CFB Playoff ranking) Bulldogs, dropping to 7-2 on the season, 3-2 in SEC play.

Here are seven thoughts on Missouri’s loss to Georgia in Athens ahead of this week’s game against Tennessee...

It’s OK to take the moral victory of playing Georgia close

Head coaches don’t accept moral victories.

In a bottom-line industry; wins and losses determine job status. They don’t have time to consider a loss in a positive sense.

But the Missouri fan base can take some solace in Saturday’s game. How many teams can say they’ve gone toe-to-toe with the Bulldogs?

Missouri has twice in two years. The Tigers are a good football team. Last year, Georgia made plenty of self-inflicted wounds. This year, MU had a chance to score a go-ahead touchdown on Georgia in the fourth quarter.

That’s worth hanging on to.

MU’s nine-point loss is closer than 33 of the last 39 games the Bulldogs have played. This includes both national championship games Georgia has played in; the Bulldogs won both by double digits.

Last season, Missouri earned respect in challenging a sleepwalking Georgia team at Faurot Field. This year, Missouri proved it can hang with a top-three team in the nation on the road.

“Our group’s a bunch of fighters who are going to fight you tooth and nail for every inch. I mean, we ain’t gotta prove it to y’all anyway,” Drinkwitz said. “I’m not deterred from what we’re trying to accomplish this year.”

What should Missouri’s goals be?

I don’t think there’s any question that this season is a success for Missouri. The Tigers will have a winning record, regardless of what happens in the final few weeks.

That’s step one. Step two is winning a bowl game.

Missouri has already accomplished a winning record, which is a first in the Drinkwitz era. Winning a bowl game would also be a first. Drinkwitz is moving into another tier of SEC coaches.

Aside from Kirby Smart and Nick Saban, I’m not sure who else deserves a mention for SEC Coach of the Year, especially if Missouri can finish the season with 10 wins.

All that considered, the goal has to be to win a bowl game and do something that hasn’t been done so far in the Drinkwitz era.

Last week, I projected Missouri to be in the Music City Bowl in Nashville. That’s a December bowl game much later than MU has played the last two seasons.

But there’s so much more Missouri can accomplish this season.

Losing to Georgia only cancels out an SEC Championship and the College Football Playoff. Missouri can still play in a New Year’s Six bowl and be one of the top teams in the SEC this season.

In fact, win a bowl game and that’s the first bowl win since 2014 for Missouri football.

“We fight,” Cody Schrader said. “We’re never going to give up.”

The officials made weird calls. Not reviewing a potential fumble was the worst

In the third quarter, on Georgia’s second scoring drive that made the game 24-13, the Bulldogs tossed a quick swing pass on first down at the Missouri 42.

MU safety Joseph Charleston met Georgia receiver Marcus Rosemy-Jacksaint just as he caught the pass and jarred the ball loose. Referees ruled it an incomplete pass.

It would have been worth taking a second look.

On a slower replay, Rosemy-Jacksaint had possession and made a football move. Charleston hit him and the ball came loose. At the very least, it was a catch and a gain of maybe a few.

Did Charleston jar the ball loose before Rosemy-Jacksaint hit the ground? We would have been able to tell on a review from the other side. It’s possible the ground forced the ball loose, which means there was no fumble. The ground cannot cause a fumble.

The flip-side would have been a turnover in MU’s favor. The Tigers made a clear recovery, and it would have prevented a scoring drive for Georgia. Usually, referees rule it a fumble, let it play out and then review it just to make sure. That wasn’t the case for a play that deserved another look.

I thought Drinkwitz did a good job of addressing the officiating, as he’s mastered the art of dodging referee questions while also taking a parting shot.

“You can ask me all you want. I can’t really say anything,” Drinkwitz said. “Better question is to ask them.”

The biggest difference between the Georgia games in 2022 and 2023...

Missouri’s defense did not record one takeaway against Georgia. Last year, Missouri won the turnover battle 2-0.

This is a two-way street for a couple of reasons.

First, the Bulldogs didn’t give Missouri the chance to create multiple takeaways. One of the fumbles last year was on a 35-yard run by Kendall Milton where Ty’Ron Hopper forced the fumble and Ennis Rakestraw recovered. It was a good play made by a good defense.

Second, Georgia didn’t give up any turnovers. The second fumble was just a mental mistake from former Dawgs quarterback Stetson Bennett, who dropped the ball at the mesh point on a handoff. Daylan Carnell was there right away and pounced on it.

This year, nothing. Georgia did a good job of not putting the ball on the ground and not throwing bad passes.

Now, you could argue a great defense would find a way to force at least one turnover, but I’m not here to nitpick the defensive performance. Especially a defensive performance that put Missouri’s offense in a spot to take a lead in the fourth quarter.

It took nine games for Brady Cook to make a mistake like he did in 2022

This isn’t meant to pile on Cook for his mistakes against Georgia. Struggling against the Bulldogs has become the norm across the last two seasons.

Yeah, the pass intercepted by Nazir Stackhouse shouldn’t have been thrown. It was an example of Cook trying to do too much, just like an interception he threw against Vanderbilt last season where he threw the ball too late.

But making those kinds of mistakes against Georgia is forgivable when Missouri sits at 7-2 with two more fairly winnable games ahead, plus another home game against Tennessee that could open the door for 10 regular-season wins.

Cook can’t make that a habit. The good news is Cook has always learned and adjusted well.

Last year, he didn’t throw an interception in the final three weeks of the regular season. Cook has also eclipsed his touchdown total from last season, having thrown for 16 touchdowns through nine games as opposed to 14 touchdowns in 13 games last season.

Cook didn’t beat Georgia or LSU, but he has a chance to beat Tennessee at home after beating Kentucky and Kansas State.

Credit Blake Baker for the defense this year

Before Saturday, Georgia had only given up six sacks all season long.

Missouri got half of that in one game. Ty’Ron Hopper, Nyles Gaddy and Darius Robinson all had sacks, as the pressure was consistent.

Those sacks came against Amarius Mims, Sedrick Van Pran and Tate Ratledge, all offensive linemen who will be NFL Draft picks this upcoming spring. It was an impressive performance by Missouri and something that might not be replicated against Georgia the rest of the year.

Baker has his defensive players playing more instinctual and free as opposed to how they were playing earlier this season. That’s worked well with a linebackers unit that has missed Chad Bailey but hasn’t missed a step with Chuck Hicks and Triston Newson.

Baker likes sending linebackers on delayed blitzes, and that showed against Georgia as Hicks and Hopper both had tackles for loss. Getting that pressure is one thing, having it consistently is another.

MU might have to fend off other programs who’ll try to court Baker this offseason for head-coaching vacancies.

Is Burden slumping? Not really

Ever since Luther Burden went for 11 catches and 149 yards against LSU, he hasn’t broken the century mark.

Burden has 958 receiving yards through nine games this season. Through six, he had 790 receiving yards.

He was close against South Carolina with 97 yards, though.

Still, Burden has had 165 receiving yards in the last three weeks. He had 177 receiving yards against Memphis. Against Georgia, Burden caught a 39-yard touchdown where he created separation, but he only finished with 53 yards.

“We honestly probably didn’t get him enough,” Drinkwitz said.

Still, I don’t think Burden is in a funk.

Georgia’s Javon Bullard and Kamari Lassiter played incredible defense against Burden. The two eventual NFL Draft picks were great, especially Lassiter, who followed Burden across the field no matter where he lined up.

“Within a week’s notice, just something that was in the game plan,” Bullard told reporters. “Him being able to do that just shows the skill set he has.”

Burden was nursing a tweaked ankle, and he did an incredible job fighting through it.

If it weren’t for Lassiter, Burden probably would’ve had a better game. Burden didn’t need to put up big numbers to beat Kentucky, either.

So really, Burden isn’t struggling. He will, however, be needed against a Tennessee team that defends the run well.

The Star has partnered with the Columbia Daily Tribune for coverage of Missouri Tigers athletics.