Game One: Missouri Tigers (0-0) vs. Murray State (0-0)

Aug. 31, 2013 - Faurot Field at Memorial Stadium - Columbia, Mo.

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MIZZOU OPENS 2013 BY HOSTING MURRAY STATE

• The Missouri Tigers open their second season as members of the prestigious Southeastern Conference Saturday evening when they play host to the Murray State Racers from the Football Championship Subdivision. Kickoff at Memorial Stadium/Faurot Field is set for 6:07 p.m. CT for a pay-per-view broadcast produced by Fox Sports...
• Mizzou is looking to bounce back from an injury-marred 5-7 season in 2012 which broke a school-record string of seven-consecutive bowl game appearances for Head Coach Gary Pinkel (2005-11). Murray State is coming off of a 5-6 season a year ago where they won their final game of the year over Southeast Missouri State by a 42-35 score. The Racers played at Florida State in 2012 and dropped a 69-3 decision to the Seminoles...
• The 2013 season marks the 123rd year of Missouri Tiger football (the program began in 1890). In its prior 122 seasons, MU has compiled an all-time record of 627-523-52 (54.3%). The 627 all-time wins ranks Mizzou 34th in the Football Bowl Subdivision (formerly Division I-A) history entering the 2013 season...

MIZZOU VERSUS THE FOOTBALL CHAMPIONSHIP SUBDIVISION

• Mizzou is 12-0 all-time against teams from the Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) - formerly known to most as Division I-AA...
• MU Coach Gary Pinkel is 9-0 against FCS foes in his 12 previous years at Mizzou, with the average score being 49.7-to-6.8 (447-to-61 overall combined scoring)...

SERIES HISTORY - MIZZOU-MURRAY STATE - FLASHBACK: SEPT. 2, 2006

• Mizzou and Murray State have met once previously, with the Tigers claiming a 47-7 win on Sept. 2, 2006 that served as the opener for the 2006 season...
• The game marked the first career start for Mizzou QB Chase Daniel, and he couldn't have made a more impressive debut, as he went 23-of-30 passing for 320 and an MU single-game record five touchdown passes. His single-game passer rating of 207.44 was also a Mizzou record...
• Two of Daniel's TD passes went to WR Will Franklin (60 yards and 34 yards), while WR Brad Ekwerekwu (8), TE Chase Coffman (3), and WR Jared Perry (35) each had one score apiece...
• Murray State didn't notch a first down offensively until the 7:34 mark of the second quarter, when it was already 21-0 in favor of Mizzou, and the Racers were held scoreless by MU until 1:57 remained in the game...
• Mizzou outgained Murray State by a 589-to-150 margin in total offense on the night, and the Tigers converted an impressive 9-of-13 third downs, while its defense limited the Racers to only 3-of-14 third down conversions...

mizzou in SEASON openers

• In its previous 122 seasons of play, Mizzou stands 78-39-5 all-time (65.9%) in season openers. The Tigers have won 11 consecutive season openers, and 15-of-16 dating back to 1997. Mizzou's last loss in a season opener was a 20-13 home loss to Bowling Green in 2001.

mizzou in home openers

• Mizzou holds an 87-31-4 all-time (73.0%) in home openers. Included in that overall figure is a mark of 57-27-3 (67.2%) in home openers since 1926, the year that Memorial Stadium opened for play. Breaking that down even further, since the playing surface at Memorial Stadium was named Faurot Field in 1972 for MU's legendary coach, the Tigers are 30-11 in home openers (73.2%).
• The Tigers have won seven-straight home openers, and 14-of-16 overall, dating back to 1997. Mizzou Head Coach Gary Pinkel currently stands 10-2 in home openers in his 12 previous seasons of leading the Tigers. After dropping his first game as MU head coach to Bowling Green in the 2001 home and season opener (L, 20-13), Pinkel's teams have gone 9-for-10 in subsequent home openers and have scored a minimum of 35 points in nine of those outings at Faurot Field.

MEMORIAL STADIUM CAPACITY ADJUSTED TO 67,124 IN 2013

• The official seating capacity for Memorial Stadium has been reduced in 2013 to 67,124, down from the previous figure of 71,004. The figure was reached primarily by the removal of temporary bleachers on the field (behind the North end zone) and on the newly-expanded North concourse that will not be used. Additionally, the renovation of the North hill/Rock M to allow for the expanded concourse left a slightly smaller hill for general admission seating...
• The east side tower construction project will be ongoing throughout the 2013 season, and is slated for a completion date in time to debut for the 2014 season. When completed, the east side structure will have new private club seating, an upper deck for public seating, and improved amenities for concessions and public restrooms. The future capacity is anticipated to be in the lower to mid 70,000s...
• The work being done to Memorial Stadium (west side tower renovation completed for 2013) is part of a comprehensive $200 million facilities master plan. The sports of baseball, men's and women's golf and women's tennis are currently undergoing facility enhancements in addition to the work at the football stadium...

Gary Pinkel IS NINTH-WINNINGEST ACTIVE FBS COACH

• With his 163 career wins in 22 seasons as a head coach, Mizzou's Gary Pinkel enters the 2013 season ranked ninth among active FBS coaches. Pinkel has a career record of 163-98-3 all-time (62.3%), including a 73-37-3 record (64.6%) in 10 years at Toledo (1991-2000) and 90-61 (59.6%) in 12 years at Mizzou...

MIZZOU'S DEFENSE LOOKS TO CONTINUE STREAK OF THIEVERY

• The Mizzou Tiger defense carries an active streak into the 2013 season of 30 consecutive games with a turnover gained. The last time Mizzou didn't record a takeaway was Oct. 30, 2010 at Nebraska (a 31-17 loss)...
• The Tiger defense made its living in 2012 by jarring the ball loose from opposing ball carriers, as MU recovered 16 fumbles in 12 games, which ranked them 5th in the nation for most recoveries...

PINKEL HAS THIRD-MOST WINS IN MIZZOU HISTORY

• Mizzou Head Coach Gary Pinkel is in his 13th season at MU (23rd overall as a head coach) and touts a career record of 163-98-3 (62.3%).
• Pinkel, who has led MU to a combined record of 68-36 (65.4%) over the past 8 seasons, and to bowl games in 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010 and 2011, has a 12-year record in Columbia of 90-61 (59.6%). Dating back to the 2005 Independence Bowl win over Steve Spurrier and South Carolina, Pinkel has gone 62-31 in his last 93 games overall (66.7%). MU's win in the 2008 opener against Illinois gave Pinkel his 50th MU win, and he now ranks 3rd on the coaching wins list at MU, with 90. The win over Kansas in 2010 was the 150th of his career.
• Pinkel is in a select group of Mizzou coaches that includes College Football Hall of Famers Don Faurot and Dan Devine, as well as Warren Powers, to be the only coaches to have an MU record of above .500 (with at least one full season coached) dating all the way back to 1935. Here's a quick look at the top winning coaches in MU history...
• In 2007, Pinkel guided the Tigers from unranked in the pre-season to a team which won a school-record 12 games and a final ranking of #4 in the Associated Press Top-25. Mizzou ascended to #1 in the BCS rankings following the regular season, and stood just one half away from playing in the BCS National Championship Game (before Oklahoma pulled away from a halftime tie to win the Big 12 title game). For his efforts in 2007, Pinkel was a finalist for several national coach of the year awards, including the Robinson, Bryant and Munger awards. He was also named the National Coach of the Year by FieldTurf in 2007, and his 8 bowl games is an MU record.
• Pinkel has directed Mizzou to 8 winning seasons (8-5 in 2003, 7-5 in 2005, 8-5 in 2006, 12-2 in 2007, 10-4 in 2008, 8-5 in 2009, 10-3 in 2010 and 8-5 in 2011), with those representing 8 of MU's 10 winning campaigns dating back to the 1983 season.
• The Big 12 North Division titles won by Mizzou in 2007, 2008 and 2010 represent the only football conference titles of any kind Mizzou has won since 1969 - the last time it claimed a share of the old Big Eight Conference crown. In April of 2011, Pinkel agreed to a two-year contract extension, meaning he'll patrol the Tiger sidelines through the 2017 season.

MURPHY RETURNS AS ONE OF NATION'S PREMIER RETURN MEN

• Junior tailback and kick return specialist Marcus Murphy returns after a breakout 2012 season that saw him earn 2nd-Team All-American (Sports Illustrated) and 1st-Team All-SEC honors for his game-breaking returns for the Tigers. Murphy (DeSoto, Texas) ranked 2nd in the SEC and 10th in the NCAA with his punt return average of 13.85 yards, and he also ranked 5th in the SEC and 42nd in the NCAA with his kickoff return average of 24.11 yards...
• Murphy broke an MU record by returning four kicks for scores in 2012, including an MU-record three punt returns and one kickoff return. Here's a quick recap of those impact plays...
• Murphy opened the 2012 season, becoming the first Tiger ever to post two punt return TDs in a game, when he broke off returns of 70 and 72 yards in a 62-10 win over Southeastern Louisiana. He finished the game with 180 yards on five punt returns in all, breaking the MU record of 156 yards held by NFL Hall of Famer Roger Wehrli (set on Oct. 21, 1967)...
• Four games later, with MU locked in a tight battle at very tough UCF, Murphy got loose for a 66-yard punt return score that gave MU a 14-10 lead midway through the third quarter. That helped spur the Tigers on to a 21-16 win in Orlando, Fla....
• Two games later, Murphy took a kickoff back for a 98-yard score against eventual BCS National Champ Alabama, marking his first career kickoff return TD...
• Additionally, the three career punt return scores ties Murphy with former MU two-time All-American Jeremy Maclin for most in Mizzou history, meaning the next one he breaks will put him atop the record books...

WITH A TIGER VICTORY, MIZZOU...

• Starts 1-0 for the 12th-straight season, improving head coach Gary Pinkel to 12-0 in his last 12 season openers.
• Wins its eighth consecutive home opener, a streak that started with MU's 47-7 win over Murray State in 2006.
• Improves to a stout 12-1 in season openers during Pinkel's tenure in Columbia.
• Moves to 79-39-5 all-time in season-opening games.
• Moves to 88-31-4 all-time in home openers.

SERIES HISTORY - Mizzou vs. Murray State

• Second meeting all-time between Mizzou and Murray State. The Tigers won the only other meeting between the schools on Sept. 2, 2006 by a score of 47-7, a season-opening win...
• Mizzou's rousing defeat of the Racers that day helped launch the team on to an 8-5 campaign...
• Including the win over Murray State, the 2006 season began with six-straight Mizzou victories...
• Those six wins included three over eventual bowl teams: New Mexico (27-17), Ohio (31-6) and Texas Tech (38-21)...