The Missouri Tigers lost for the first time this season in a 41-10 defeat to Texas A&M, snapping their eight-game winning streak dating back to Nov. 4 of last year. 

“We all take full responsibility for not playing to our full capabilities as a team [against Texas A&M],” said head coach Eliah Drinkwitz. “The focus for us the rest of this week is how do we improve and find a way to beat UMass?”

Now sitting at 4-1, the No. 21 Missouri Tigers set their sights on their upcoming matchup with the University of Massachusetts at 11 a.m. on Saturday, Oct. 12, in Amherst, Massachusetts.

The UMass Minutemen enter the contest with a 1-5 record. They are coming off of a 34-20 loss to the Northern Illinois Huskies, who were previously ranked No. 25 and No. 23 in weeks three and four after a win against Notre Dame.

The Minutemen held a 13-7 halftime lead but could not hold off the Huskies in the second half. 

UMass’ only win of the season came against Central Connecticut State. They outlasted the Blue Devils 35-31 in week 4. In that matchup, quarterback Taisun Phommachanh threw for new career highs of 287 yards and three touchdowns.

The 24/7 composite rankings in 2019 listed Phommachanh as a four-star recruit. Though he began his career at Clemson, Phommachanh would later transfer to Georgia Tech in 2022 and once again to UMass in 2023.

Phommachanh still possesses a unique combination of size and athleticism with outstanding arm strength. 

“Taisun Phommachanh is playing his best football,” Drinkwitz said. “He’s a dual-threat quarterback. So for us defensively, we’re going to have our hands full.”

The Minutemen also boast a new top pass catcher with graduate transfer wide receiver Jakobie Keeney-James. The wide receiver has already totaled 462 yards this season, ranking No. 30 among all players in the country.

In a press conference on Tuesday, coach Drinkwitz mentioned the Minutemen being much better than their record may show.

“I think Coach [Don] Brown is instilling in those guys a competitive nature,” Drinkwitz said.

In his third year with the Minutemen, coach Brown holds a 5-25 record, not winning more than three games in a season during his tenure.

While the UMass offense boasts the talent to be successful, the talent hasn’t yet translated into wins. The defense is also a contributing factor to the losing woes. 

On either side of the ball, the Minutemen are bottom-30 nationally in scoring. The offense is averaging 19.2 points per game, which ranks No. 116 out of 134 teams. The defense has dealt with struggles, allowing an average of 31.3 points per game, ranking No. 107 out of 134.

The only common opponent between the Tigers and the Minutemen this season has been the Buffalo Bulls, whom Missouri defeated 38-0. However, in their matchup with UMass, the Bulls handled the Minutemen 34-3.

Based on these past outings, the signs are pointing to a comfortable victory for the Tigers, but UMass could manage to give Missouri trouble.

“Excited to get an opportunity to go to Amherst,” Drinkwitz said. “It’ll be an opportunity for us to play in a stadium that’s unique to us, […] I think it will be a cool experience, and one that our players will find joy and satisfaction in being able to take on that challenge.” 

Edited by Dylan Heinrich | dheinrich@themaneater.com

Copyedited by Caroline Sweet and Hannah Taylor | htaylor@themaneater.com

Edited by Emily Skidmore | eskidmore@themaneater.com