IN DEPTH: Defense's Stand to Albert O's Catch
10/28/2017 10:43:00 PM | Football
EAST HARTFORD, Conn. – Backed up deep in their own territory, the Mizzou defense buckled down and forced a turnover on downs in the red zone with 2:43 left in the first quarter to keep the lead at 12. The Huskies kept the offense on the field for a fourth down and five, but strong coverage by DeMarkus Acy forced an incompletion that gave the ball back to Drew Lock and company.
The Tiger offense then marched down the field with ease, as Lock completed passes to three different Tiger receivers on a drive that was capped off by a nine-yard touchdown pass to Albert Okwuegbunam, his 5th touchdown in the last two games. The potential 14-point swing put the Tigers up 21-2 at the end of the first quarter, a lead that the Tigers steadily grew to 40 by the end of the night. The five-play, 80-yard drive took just 1:35 and put an exclamation mark on yet another explosive quarter for the Mizzou offense.
Albert O's second touchdown of the first quarter was also his seventh of the season, the most among Division 1 tight ends. Lock's final pass of the quarter was his 14th completion out of 15 attempts, racking up 160 yards and three touchdowns while completing passes to six different Tiger receivers in the opening quarter.
Okwuegbunam's two scores tonight both came in the red zone, making that five touchdowns inside the 20-yardline for the 260-pound tight end in the last eight quarters. He also tied his career high with four receptions, fourth most among Tiger receivers against UConn. Albert O, along with big-bodied Kendall Blanton and Jason Reese, have now combined for 24 catches, 440 yards and ten touchdowns so far in the 2017 campaign , doubling the number of tight end touchdowns all of last season. In the past five games alone, Okwuegbunam has hauled in 13 catches for 142 yards and six touchdowns.
Okwuegbunam wasn't the only Tiger making history on the offensive side of the ball. Drew Lock's five touchdown TD passes against the Huskies tonight give him 55 in his career, good for third-place in program history, just one behind Brad Smith. Lock also moved past Jeff Handy and James Franklin in career passing yards with 7,298 total, 377 of them coming tonight. Senior WR J'Mon Moore's two touchdowns tonight bring him to 18 in his Mizzou career, placing him fourth in school history.
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