Saturday was just another showing of Missouri’s terrible, horrible, no good, very bad offense.
Junior quarterback Maty Mauk made errant throws out of the pocket. Wide receivers dropped easy touchdown passes. The running game continued to be one of the worst in the country.
“We’re not scoring enough points,” coach Gary Pinkel said. “We understand that. We’re making progress, and we’re continuing to work hard on scoring more points.”
After Saturday’s 21-13 loss to Kentucky, the Tigers total offense ranks 119 out of 127 FBS teams in NCAA Division I, scoring just 20.8 points per game. Those are the worst numbers of any Power Five team in the country. The 20.8 points per game through the first four contests also comes as the worst scoring proficiency since the 1995 Tigers averaged just 20.75 points in their first four weeks. That team finished 3-8.
Missouri has most notably struggled on the ground. The absence of senior running back Russell Hansbrough certainly put pressure on sophomore Ish Witter to step up. So far, Witter has not. Averaging just 3.24 yards per play on the ground and 108.5 per game, Missouri’s running game ranks 116 in the nation.
Senior center Evan Boehm said a lot of the struggling running game is on the offensive line, which hasn’t lived up to expectations thus far. Rushing for just 111 yards, he said, isn’t solely on the sophomore running back.
Little steps, Boehm said, is what the line is working toward. It’s about getting better every day and having pride in their work on the field.
That pride was evident Monday as he sported a black “O-Line Pride” tank top.
“We need to have some pride in this room and some pride in the offensive line,” Boehm said. “Going out there and doing the things we need to be able to do, that coach (A.J.) Ricker preaches each and every day.”
Another factor in Missouri’s offensive woes has been field position this season. Off kick returns, the Tigers are averaging only 16 yards per kickoff, which is the eighth worst in the nation.
The longest kickoff return of the year went for 21 yards.
Anthony Sherrils, who has taken a majority of the returns this season, has had to fill in for Marcus Murphy, who scored two kickoff return touchdowns his senior year en route to All-American honors.
Sherrils isn’t too worried about his role on kickoff. He said he just wants to help the team where he can, most notably on defense. Pinkel said he would try other guys on kickoff as well.
Catching the ball and finding seams off the kickoff is a crucial role, especially on a team that struggles to score in the first place. Field position, Pinkel said, has a lot to do with offensive momentum and driving downfield.
Starting at even the 30-yard line makes a huge difference.
“There’s no question about it,” Pinkel said. “Kickoffs can re-establish momentum. We had (Marcus Murphy) sitting there for four years. But I think we have some talented players. I think Aarion (Penton) will return some for us, and we’ll test out some of the other guys.”
Last week’s team — the one that lost to Kentucky in its SEC opener — will be far from the same team when the Tigers take on South Carolina at home this Saturday.
Testing out other guys may be difficult with the array of injuries the Tigers have suffered – most notably just in Saturday’s game. On offense, tight end Sean Culkin and right guard Nate Crawford are both listed as out against the Gamecocks.
Culkin has been one of the Tigers’ top receiving threats this season with 12 receptions for 101 yards and a touchdown.
The country’s leading tackler, Kentrell Brothers, is listed as questionable after leaving the Kentucky game in the third quarter with an apparent ankle injury.
Perhaps the biggest change to the Mizzou offense, though, is the absence of Mauk, who, along with offensive lineman Malik Cuellar, has been suspended for “disciplinary reasons,” according to a Mizzou Athletics statement that was sent out Tuesday night.
If the Tigers can’t fix the offense, the loss column might fill up fast. And for the defending Southeastern Conference East champions, they can’t let an underperforming offense turn into a horrible, no good, very bad season.