Columbia, MO– In a game that saw Missouri star QB Kelly Bryant go down late in the 2nd quarter with a knee injury, the Tiger defense remained dominant during an easy 42-10 victory.
After an opening drive that saw Troy easily move down the field to take a 7-0 lead, the Missouri defense held the Trojans to 40 yards and two first downs for the remainder of the half. The defense also forced 3 turnovers, including two Cale Garrett interceptions (one of which was returned for a touchdown, the other to the one yard line).
5 quick takeaways from Missouri’s 4th consecutive win
- The metrics said that Troy’s offense was the best that Missouri has played thus far and the defense completely dominated again. This is a great sign as many believed that the teams’ overall defensive ranking (6th nationally) was merely smoke and mirrors. This defense is doing a great job stopping the run, forcing turnovers and limiting big plays in the passing game. You can win a lot of games with the defense Missouri is currently showcasing and senior linebacker Cale Garrett has become one of the most important defensive players in the country.
- Obviously the story here is Kelly Bryant’s knee. Missouri’s season just can’t truly be great if his knee injury is significant. Backup Taylor Powell has not shown that he will be able to offer much in relief. If you are a Missouri fan you just have to hope for an MCL bruise or something less significant than an ACL tear for Bryant (his 4 first half touchdowns helped cement the victory before his injury). The hit was absolutely dirty and college football wants absolutely no part of these types of hits on quarterbacks in today’s game.
- Missouri could still win the next three without Bryant. Missouri has Ole Miss next weekend followed by at Vanderbilt and Kentucky. Even if Bryant is unavailable for these games they are still winnable. After that the Tigers will take on Georgia and Florida in the final quarter of the season and, obviously, those were going to be difficult with Bryant at full health.
- Will Missouri make an appearance in the top 25 on Monday? It’s possible. With #21 Oklahoma State going down and #25 Michigan State likely going down to Ohio State, the Tigers could find themselves ranked for the first time this season.
- The crowd was solid. Battling the deadly combination of hard rain and subpar opponent, Tiger fans showed up enough to make things respectable. You’d like to see a game played in Columbia at some point this year that doesn’t contain the threat of torrential rain