Columbia, MO
In a game that deserves little analysis, Mizzou toppled FCS Abilene Christian on Saturday 34-17 in front of almost 53,000 fans at Faurot Field. It was never going to be a game where we learned anything new about the 2022 Tigers but as Eli Drinkwitz said afterwards: “The good news is…we got a win.”
That line from coach Drinkwitz is about all you can say about Saturday. The Mizzou offense struggled for much of the day although it did hit on two explosive plays that put the game out of reach. Coach Drinkwitz seemed very pleased with the crowd on Saturday which wound up being the largest home crowd since 2019.
“Just wanted to say thank you to our fans and our crowd for showing up today.” Drinkwitz said after the game. “There are some things we’ve got to get cleaned up. Offensively, we’re still a work in progress.”
Next Saturday, Mizzou @ Auburn
Mizzou next travels to the plains of Auburn, AL to take on the 2-1 Tigers next Saturday at 11 AM. Auburn is coming off a 41-12 loss to Penn State and could provide just what the doctor ordered for this road-challenged Missouri team. The taste of the Kansas State blowout loss is still on the tip of many Mizzou fan’s tongues. It was a game that Mizzou needed to, at the very least, be competitive in. It wasn’t. The conference season will now begin and a loss next week to Auburn will completely take the air of the season in the eyes of many fans.
The way the schedule plays out, Mizzou could very well find itself sitting at 2-4 in three weeks following games against Georgia and at Florida after the Auburn game. Drinkwitz’s Tigers have only won two round games under his leadership (At South Carolina in 2020 and at Vanderbilt last year). This is an opportunity that Mizzou needs to take advantage of if they have hopes of returning to a bowl game once again.
