Tigers, Sooners Clash Saturday in Battle of Top-Ranked Foes
10/9/2007 12:00:00 AM | Football
Oct. 9, 2007
#11/11 Missouri Tigers (5-0, 1-0) at #6/5 Oklahoma Sooners (5-1, 1-1)
Oct. 13, 2007 — Faurot Field/Memorial Stadium — Columbia, Mo.
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- Game Notes (7 MB)
TIGERS, SOONERS CLASH SATURDAY IN BATTLE OF TOP-RANKED FOES
The #11 (A.P.)/11 (Coaches) Missouri Tigers (5-0 overall, 1-0 in Big 12 play), head south to Norman, Okla., where they'll take on the #6/5 Oklahoma Sooners (5-1, 1-1) Saturday evening at Gaylord Family/Memorial Stadium. The game will be televised nationally on Fox Sports Net, with kickoff set for 5:30 p.m. (central).
The game is one of only two in the nation this week featuring a pair of ranked teams, making it arguably the biggest game in the country. The other game featuring ranked foes has #1 LSU playing at #17 Kentucky.
Mizzou is coming off a virtual perfect 41-6 win over then-#25 Nebraska last Saturday in Columbia, and is looking for a 6-0 start for the 2nd straight season.
Oklahoma has cruised to a 5-1 start and its #6 national ranking, and is coming off a win over then-#19 Texas, 28-21, last week in the annual Red River Rivalry game. The Sooners' only loss was a 27-24 upset loss at Colorado two weeks ago.
TIGERS RIDING HIGH OFF BIG WIN
Mizzou hopes to continue the momentum it created in its landmark 41-6 win over Nebraska last week, as the Tigers put together arguably the most complete game against a quality opponent in a very long time.
Playing before a sellout crowd of 70,049 (the largest to see a Tiger game since 1984), the Tigers dominated virtually every aspect of the game from the opening kickoff, as they posted their biggest margin of victory over Nebraska since a 47-6 win in 1947.
QB Chase Daniel put himself squarely into consideration for national player of the week honors with a career performance that included a career-best 473 yards of total offense, and 4 total TDs. Daniel completed 33-of-47 passes for a career-high 401 yards (2 TDs) and also ran for a game-high 72 yards and 2 TDs.
In all, Mizzou racked up 606 yards of total offense against Nebraska – the most ever by an MU team against the Cornhuskers, and the 8th-best single-game total in Tiger history.
As impressive as the offensive firepower was to watch, perhaps the performance on the defensive side was even more eye-opening. Mizzou's defense entered the game without much fanfare, but played its most physical, complete game of the year, holding the Huskers to a season-low 297 yards of offense – they came into the game ranked 18th nationally in total offense, averaging 467.80 ypg.
The Tiger defense held Nebraska without a TD for the 1st time since 1961, grounding an offense that was averaging 35.80 points per game coming in. Mizzou had given up an average of 434.50 yards per game in total offense (ranked 93rd nationally) coming into the game.
Chase Daniel NAMED BIG 12 OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK
To no real surprise, QB Chase Daniel was named Monday morning as the Big 12 Conference Offensive Player of the Week for his performance in leading Mizzou to a 41-6 dismantling of then-#25 Nebraska last Saturday. It marks the 3rd time in his career that Daniel has won the league's weekly honor as he claimed the award in 2006 for performances against Murray State and Kansas.
Here's a few quick hitters about Daniel's night and his season to date...
- Daniel had a career night, as he recorded a career-best 473 yards of total offense and 4 total TDs (2 passing/2 rushing). Daniel threw for a career-best 401 yards on 33-of-47 passing, and he tossed a pair of TDs, while running for a game-high 72 yards (11 carries), and running for 2 more scores on the night…
- Daniel's offense total came just 7 yards shy of the MU single-game record of 480 set by former great Brad Smith, who had that total against the same Nebraska team in 2005…
- Daniel helped rack up a whopping 606 yards of total offense on the night against the Huskers, an MU-record against Nebraska, and the 8th-highest single-game output in school history. Mizzou had 411 yards passing on the night, and added 195 yards rushing…
- Daniel's QB rating on the night was a salty 155.92, and it bumped his season number to 149.91, which currently ranks him 17th nationally…
- Daniel's passing total was the 4th-highest in MU single-game history, and he now ranks 3rd in the nation in total offense (380.00 ypg). He's also 5th in points responsible for (21.60 ppg), as he has thrown for 15 TDs and ran for 3 this year…
- Mizzou's game against Nebraska ended at 11:53 p.m. (central), just 7 minutes before Daniel celebrated his 21st birthday (Oct. 7th). Last year playing on his 20th birthday, Daniel led Mizzou to a 38-21 win at Texas Tech…
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LAST FIVE BCS OPPONENTS |
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| Here's a look at Daniel's numbers this season against his 3 BCS-conference opponents. | |||||||||||
| Opp. | Att | Comp | Int | Pct | Yards | TD | Long | Sack | Yds | Effic | |
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| Illinois | 54 | 37 | 0 | 68.5 | 359 | 3 | 33 | 2 | 26 | 142.7 | |
| Ole Miss | 42 | 31 | 0 | 73.8 | 330 | 5 | 40 | 1 | 11 | 179.1 | |
| Nebraska | 47 | 33 | 0 | 70.2 | 401 | 2 | 48 | 0 | 0 | 155.9 | |
| TOTALS | 143 | 101 | 0 | 70.6 | 1,090 | 10 | 48 | 3 | 37 | 157.7 | |
| Let's add the last 2 games of the 2006 season to the numbers above, and you get the following eye-popping statistics for Daniel playing against his last 5 BCS opponents... | |||||||||||
| 2006 | Att | Comp | Int | Pct | Yards | TD | Long | Sack | Yds | Effic | |
| Kansas | 38 | 26 | 0 | 68.4 | 356 | 4 | 74 | 1 | 15 | 181.9 | |
| Oregon St. | 29 | 16 | 0 | 55.2 | 330 | 2 | 74 | 3 | 23 | 173.5 | |
| 5 GMS | 210 | 143 | 0 | 68.1 | 1,776 | 16 | 74 | 7 | 75 | 164.3 | |
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DANIEL LEADING THE WAY FOR MIZZOU'S HIGH-FLYING OFFENSE
There can't be many QBs in the nation playing at a higher level than Tiger signal caller Chase Daniel, who currently ranks 3rd in the nation in total offense (380.00 ypg) and 17th nationally in passing efficiency (149.91 rating).
And he hasn't been putting up numbers against the sisters of the poor, exactly, as he threw for a then-career-high 359 yards in the 2007 season opener against now #18-ranked Illinois.
Daniel had a scintillating night at Ole Miss, where he tied his own MU single-game record by tossing 5 TDs (all coming in a span of just 16:07), as he helped lead the Tigers to an important 38-25 road win. In the 2nd quarter alone at Ole Miss, Daniel was 12-of-17 passing for 177 yards and 4 TDs, good for a stout QB rating of 235.7.
Last season, Daniel smashed numerous season records that former QB great Brad Smith and others held, including passing yards (3,527 – almost 1,100 more than the old record of 2,436 by Jeff Handy in 1992), passing TDs (28), TDs responsible for (32) and total offense (3,906). Daniel ranked 5th in the NCAA in total offense with his per-game average of 300.5 ypg – that was the highest a Tiger has rated in total offense nationally since Bob Steuber finished 3rd in 1942.
Daniel, in his first year as a starter in 2006, led MU to its first 6-0 start since 1973, and an 8-win season for only the 10th time in school history.
RUCKER LEADS ALL OF NCAA'S TIGHT ENDS IN RECEPTIONS & YARDAGE PER GAME
All-American candidate TE Martin Rucker bypassed the NFL draft after his junior year, in order to come back to help lead his team to great things in 2007, and also to help improve his draft status for next year. Through 5 games, his decision appears to have been an extremely good one, as Rucker has played like a man among children, as he leads all of the nation's tight ends with his per-game average of 7.60 receptions and 87.80 yards per game (38 receptions, 439 yards, 1 TD). He also ranks 11th nationally – among all position players – with his 7.60 catches per game.
It's hard to imagine a tight end playing more inspired ball right now, as Rucker has been a beast every time he's touched the ball – we're hyperbolizing a little here, probably, but it's hard to remember a time when he was brought down by any less than 3 people on a play when he's touched the ball this season.
The co-captain was a focal point of the offensive attack that rolled up 606 yards last time out against Nebraska, as Rucker caught 9 passes for 109 yards and 1 TD against the Huskers.
Rucker, who was voted a team co-captain by his teammates this off-season, caught 53 passes for 511 yards and 5 TDs a year ago. He entered his senior season (after bypassing the NFL Draft) already holding the MU career records for TEs in receptions (119) and yardage (1,341).
Rucker opened the 2007 season by catching a then-career-high 10 passes against Illinois for 86 yards. He also rushed twice for 11 yards. He followed by making 4 catches for 58 yards and 1 TD at Ole Miss, on a 40-yard catch-and-run where he broke one tackle about 10 yards from scrimmage and raced the rest of the way for the score to cap a key 93-yard drive and put MU up, 21-0. He followed with a career-best outing against Western Michigan that saw him catch 11 passes for 115 yards and added 4 catches for 71 yards against Illinois State.
Rucker is the younger brother of Mike Rucker, who was an All-American defensive lineman at Nebraska and is a standout with the NFL's Carolina Panthers. His father, Martin Sr., also has a very public job, as he is a State Representative in the Missouri House of Representatives, for District 29.
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MACLIN'S ALL-PURPOSE YARDAGE (TDs in parentheses) |
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| Opponent | All-Purpose | Rush | Rec. | PR | KOR | |
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| vs. Illinois | 227 (2) | 29 | 43 (1) | 74 (1) | 81 | |
| at Ole Miss | 181 | 19 | 52 | 14 | 96 | |
| vs. Western Mich. | 275 (2) | 52 (1) | 96 (1) | 31 | 96 | |
| vs. Illinois State | 238 (2) | 22 | 53 (1) | 81 (1) | 82 | |
| vs. Nebraska | 149 | 53 | 62 | 8 | 26 | |
| TOTALS | 1070 (6) | 175 (1) | 306 (3) | 208 (2) | 381 | |
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NCAA'S TOP ALL-PURPOSE MAN IS MIZZOU'S Jeremy Maclin
Redshirt freshman WR Jeremy Maclin was a highly-touted recruit in 2006 who figured to be a big part of the Tiger offense a year ago, before suffering a season-ending knee injury during summer drills prior to last season.
It didn't take long to show that he's fully recovered, and for MU fans to start looking for #9 jerseys in the Tiger Team Store at Memorial Stadium, as Maclin has been next-to-unbelieveable thus far for Mizzou, as he enters Saturday's game against Oklahoma leading the nation in all-purpose yardage, at 214.0 yards per game.
In fact, Maclin is the only player in the nation currently to have 100 yards in each of the 4 all-purpose categories: rushing (175 yds.), receiving (306), punt returns (208) and kickoff returns (381). In the latest NCAA rankings, of the top 100 players ranked in the all-purpose category, only 14 others even have double figures in all 4 categories.
Maclin was a big part of MU's win Saturday against Nebraska, as he had 149 all-purpose yards, including 62 receiving (4 receptions) and 53 rushing (6 carries). Nebraska held him down in the return game, as he was able to make only 1 punt return (8 yds.) and kickoff return each (26).
Previously, J-Mac had a 238-yard outing against Illinois State, in which he scored on a 64-yard punt return for a TD and also on an 8-yard pass on offense. In all, Maclin had a team-best 5 catches for 53 yards (1 TD), 1 rush for 22 yds., 4 punt returns for 84 yds. (1 TD) and 3 kickoff returns for 82 yards (with a long of 38 yds.).
His 4th-quarter punt return for a TD against Illinois State gave him 2 for the season, and that already ties him for the MU season and career records – only 4 others alltime at Mizzou have returned 2 punts for TDs. He was named the Big 12 Special Teams Player of the Week for his big day.
Prior to that, Maclin had a career-high 275-yard all-purpose outing against Western Michigan – the 5th-highest single-game total in MU history. On the day, Maclin had 7 receptions for a career-high 96 yards and 1 TD, he rushed 6 times for 52 yards and 1 TD, had 2 punt returns for 31 yards and returned 5 kickoffs for 96 yards.
While it's very early in the season still, Maclin is on pace for 2,568 all-purpose yards so far (12-game season), which would obliterate the MU single-season record of 1,621 set in 1998 by former MU All-American, Devin West.
He currently ranks 2nd in the Big 12 and 13th in the NCAA with his punt return average of 16.00 yards.
Maclin is currently 2nd on the team with 25 receptions, 2nd in scoring (36 points), 3rd in rushing (175 yards) and 3rd in receiving yards (306).
MIZZOU REACHES HIGHEST POLL SPOT SINCE 1981
Thanks to its convincing win over Nebraska last week, Mizzou climbed 6 spots, to 11th, in both major top-25 polls. The ranking represents the highest MU has been in the Associated Press poll under Head Coach Gary Pinkel, and the highest overall by the program since 1981, when Mizzou reached as high as 8th in mid-October of that season. Mizzou dropped 4 of its last 6 regular-season games that year to fall out of the rankings after peaking at No. 8, but rebounded to upset 18th-ranked Southern Miss in the 1981 Tangerine Bowl (19-17) to finish the year 8-4 overall and ranked 19th in the final A.P. poll.
A few notes about MU carrying a ranking into a game:
- MU is 90-58-1 overall (60.7%) in its previous 149 games as a ranked team, including 4-2 alltime as the #11-ranked team in the AP poll. Here's a look at those games...
- MU is looking for its 1st road win at a ranked opponent since claiming a 51-50 win in double overtime at #12 Oklahoma State in 1997. Since then, MU has lost 13 straight road games against ranked foes...
- MU Head Coach Gary Pinkel is 0-6 at Mizzou playing on the road against ranked teams thus far, but several of those games have gone down to the wire, with close losses coming in 2004 at #9 Texas (L, 28-20), in 2003 at #19 Kansas State (L, 24-14), and in 2002 at #22 Iowa State (L, 42-35)...
- Mizzou spent 5 weeks during the 2006 season as a ranked team in the AP poll, peaking as high as 19th after starting 6-0. The Tigers went 3-2 in those games...
- Mizzou is 7-6 under Head Coach Gary Pinkel when playing as a ranked team, including 2-0 in 2007, 3-2 in 2006, 1-1 in 2004 and 1-3 in 2003.
MORE RANKING BREAKDOWN HISTORY
Saturday will mark the 12th time overall that Mizzou and Oklahoma have squared off with both teams carrying an A.P. top-25 ranking into the game. Oklahoma has won 9-of-11 games in that situation (OU has been the higher-ranked team in 8 of the 11 meetings), including 7 straight dating back to MU's last win, in 1969, when the 9th-ranked Tigers downed the 20th-ranked Sooners, 44-10 in Columbia. See the chart below for details.
Mizzou has played 52 games in its history where both teams carried an A.P. poll ranking into the game, and the Tigers are 17-35 in those instances (.327), and broke an 11-game losing streak in those games with last week's win over #25 Nebraska.
This Saturday will mark the 3rd straight time that Mizzou and Oklahoma have squared off as ranked opponents. In 2006, the 19th-ranked Sooners claimed a 26-10 win over the 23rd-ranked Tigers in Columbia, while in 2003, the #1-ranked Sooners downed #24 Mizzou, 34-13, in Norman.
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TOUGHEST SCHEDULE (Based on cumulative opposition) |
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| TEAM | OPP. RECORD | PCT. | |
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| 1. Texas A&M | 35-16 | 0.686 | |
| 2. Oklahoma State | 36-17 | 0.679 | |
| 3. Florida | 38-18 | 0.678 | |
| 4. Colorado | 37-18 | 0.673 | |
| 5. MIZZOU | 35-18 | 0.660 | |
| 6. Auburn | 30-16 | 0.652 | |
| 7. Oregon State | 35-19 | 0.648 | |
| 8. Kentucky | 33-18 | 0.647 | |
| 9. Nebraska | 34-19 | 0.642 | |
| 10. Washington | 39-22 | 0.639 | |
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MIZZOU PLAYING THE NATION'S 5TH-TOUGHEST SCHEDULE
Per current NCAA numbers, the Tigers entire 2007 schedule rates as the nation's 5th-toughest, based on opponents' cumulative record of 35-18 (.673) through games of Oct. 6th. Here's a quick look at the top 10 per the latest numbers on www.ncaa.org...
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PREVIOUS 6-0 STARTS |
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| Year | Start | Finish | |
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| 1899 | 7-0 | 9-2 | |
| 1960 | 11-0 | 11-0# | |
| 1973 | 6-0 | 8-4 | |
| 2006 | 6-0 | 8-5 | |
| #-Won conference championship | |||
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TIGERS LOOK TO CONTINUE PERFECT START
The Mizzou Tigers will look to continue their perfect start to the 2007 season and improve on their 5-0 record, as they play at Oklahoma Saturday evening.
Mizzou is 5-0 for only the 8th time in school history, and has now started consecutive seasons 5-0 for the first time ever. Similarly, a win over OU would give Mizzou its second straight season of at least a 6-0 start for the 1st time in school history, and only the 5th ever.
Here's a look at all of the previous seasons in which MU has started a season 6-0, with the 1st number in parentheses the start and the 2nd number the end record for the season...
PINKEL CAN MAKE HISTORY SATURDAY
Mizzou Head Coach Gary Pinkel can make history this Saturday if his Tigers claim a victory over Oklahoma.
A win for Pinkel would make him the only MU coach to start a season 6-0 two times. In 2006, Mizzou started 6-0 – matching the school's best start since 1973 – and ended 8-5 overall with an appearance in the Sun Bowl.
Pinkel is already linked with the legendary Dan Devine as the only MU coaches to have two seasons where they started a season 5-0. Devine went 11-0 in 1960 and started 5-0 in 1969, and no Tiger coach before or after has started a season 5-0 or better more than once other than Pinkel.
Pinkel is also already the 1st coach in MU history to notch three seasons of 4-0 starts, and is the 1st MU skipper to have 4-0 starts in consecutive seasons.
Pinkel's 2003 squad began the season 4-0 and ended with an 8-5 overall mark after reaching the Independence Bowl that season.
TIGER OFFENSIVE ATTACK AMONG NATION'S MOST BALANCED
Spread offensive attacks such as Mizzou's aren't usually thought of as strong in the run game, but the Tigers, through 5 games, are showing they can do more than just throw the ball.
Mizzou enters Saturday's game against Oklahoma ranked 24th in the NCAA in rushing (199.0 ypg), 5th in passing (357.6 ypg), 4th in total offense (556.6 ypg) and 11th in scoring (41.8 ppg).
The NCAA numbers show that MU is one of only 2 schools in the country to average at least 300 yards passing and 199 yards rushing.
MIZZOU-OKLAHOMA PLAY FOR THE PEACE PIPE
Mizzou and Oklahoma play for a game trophy that is called the Tiger-Sooner Peace Pipe, with the winner claiming the traveling trophy.
The ceremony of smoking the peace pipe was inaugurated in 1929 by Chester M. Brewer, Mizzou's director of athletics, and by members of Mystical Seven, a University of Missouri honorary group.
The peace pipe was donated by Mr. R.L. Hill, an “M” man and former president of the Missouri student body. The ceremony takes place during halves, with the Mystical Seven representing Mizzou, and a similar organization representing Oklahoma.
Mizzou won the peace pipe the very first year it was up for grabs, in 1929, by claiming a 13-0 shutout win over Oklahoma in Columbia. Ever since the pipe has been in play, OU leads by a 54-14-4 count, while leading the series overall by a 63-23-5 edge (series started in 1902).
MIZZOU-OKLAHOMA SERIES HISTORY
Mizzou and Oklahoma have played 91 previous times, and Oklahoma holds a commanding 63-23-5 edge in the series, including a current string of 4 straight wins in Big 12 play since MU's last win in 1998 (20-6 in Columbia).
The Sooners have won 16 of the last 17 meetings overall dating back to 1984, and 17 of the last 20 going back to 1981 when the two schools were brethren in the old Big Eight Conference. In Norman, Okla., OU holds a 31-8-5 alltime lead, including a 29-5-4 edge in games played in Memorial Stadium, which opened there in 1929.
Mizzou will have quite a challenge on hand Saturday as they'll be playing the 6th-ranked team in the nation, but they'll also be playing at one of the toughest places to play in the country. Oklahoma owns the nation's best home winning percentage from 2003-2007, taking an astounding 27 of 28 games during that time period (.964).
Along those lines, Mizzou will be looking for their first win in Norman since 1966, when MU claimed a 10-7 win.
TIGERS LEAD THE NATION IN 3RD-DOWN CONVERSIONS
The latest NCAA stats show that Missouri enters this weekend's games atop the nation's rankings in 3rd-down efficiency, converting a nation-best 59.0% (46-of-78).
The Tigers will face quite a test Saturday in Norman, Okla., as Oklahoma comes into the game ranked 3rd nationally in 3rd-down defense – allowing opponents a conversion success rate of just 25.5% (24-of-94). The game-by-game breakdown of 3rd downs allowed by OU this year include: 2-of-16 against North Texas, 3-of-17 against Miami, Fla., 3-of-14 against Utah State, 5-of-16 at Tulsa, 6-of-19 at Colorado, and 5-of-12 vs. Texas.
TIGERS 8TH NATIONALLY IN FEWEST PENALTY YARDS
One of Head Coach Gary Pinkel's tried and true lines has to do with Missouri beating Missouri, and how penalties and mistakes do just that. So far in 2007, his Tigers have done a good job of not beating themselves with penalties, as MU ranks 8th in the nation in fewest penalty yards per game, with just 39.2 yards averaged.
Through 5 games, MU has been flagged 29 times for a grand total of 196 yards. They are coming off a game in which they were penalized 9 times for a season-high 79 yards against Nebraska.
DEFENSE MAKING STATISTICAL STRIDES
Mizzou's defense took some lumps from the peanut gallery after its first two games, when it allowed 435 yards to Illinois and 534 yards to Ole Miss to begin the season.
The Tigers have made improvements statistically each of the last 3 outings, keeping each opponent to under 400 yards, including a brilliant outing last Saturday against Nebraska, when they held the Huskers to a season-low 297 yards (nearly 200 yards below their per-game average coming in).
The big plays have come down markedly, as MU allowed only 4 plays of 20 yards or more in their last 3 games combined, compared to 7 of 20 or more in the 1st 2 games alone. Nebraska failed to produce a single offensive play of 20 yards or more last time out, with the longest pass going for 18 yards, and the longest rush being 17 yards.
