Friday, November 24
Fayetteville, Ark.
1:30 PM
University of Missouri
at
Arkansas
Red-Hot Tigers Look For Sixth Straight at Arkansas
11/20/2017 10:41:00 AM | Football
"Keep It Rollin' Baby" Tour heads to Fayetteville
The Missouri Tigers (6-5 overall, 3-4 in Southeastern Conference play) hit the road for the regular season finale Friday in Fayetteville, Ark., where they will take on the Arkansas Razorbacks (4-7, 1-6) at Donald W. Reynolds Stadium. Kickoff for the game, which will be televised on CBS, is set for 1:30 p.m. (central time).
Setting the Stage
- Mizzou comes in as red-hot as a fried cajun turkey on Thanksgiving, winners of five straight games with an average winning margin of 35.4 points per contest (smallest win margin was 28 points) in the string. The Tigers most recently reached bowl eligibility for the first time since 2014 Saturday night with a 45-17 triumph at Vanderbilt that saw MU jump to a commanding 35-0 halftime lead and coast from there. Junior QB Drew Lock threw for three more touchdowns (moving his season total to a national-best 38, just two shy of the SEC single-season record) and the Tiger defense came up with three interceptions while holding the Commodores to just 51 yards rushing on 30 attempts (1.7 avg.) to post the win. Freshman All-American TE candidate Albert Okwuegbunam was a man among boys, with two touchdown receptions (five catches, 116 yards), moving his season TD total to nine, which is tied for most in the NCAA among all tight ends, and WR Richaud Floyd scored twice, including a 30-yard reception and a 74-yard punt return as Mizzou scored via the pass, on the ground (freshman RB Larry Rountree III), interception (junior LB Brandon Lee with a 42-yard pick six) and special teams (Floyd's return).
- Arkansas comes into its senior day game looking to shake a two-game losing streak after falling last Saturday at home to #16 Mississippi State by a 28-21 count. The Razorbacks jumped out to a 14-0 lead in that game, but found themselves in a tie ballgame late, but a failed fourth-down attempt from the minus-44 with three minutes left in the game set State up for what proved to be the game-winning drive. Arkansas held the Bulldogs to just 348 yards of total offense on the day, but the Hog offense was also held in check, as it gained 221 yards of offense, while going just 3-of-11 on third down attempts (and 0-for-2 on fourth downs).
- Mizzou is looking to become just the10th team in FBS history and just the fourth team from a Power 5 conference to start a season 1-5 and close the season by winning six straight.
- Mizzou is already the 14th team in FBS history to start 1-5 and reach bowl eligibility.
- Mizzou junior QB Drew Lock is just two TD passes shy of breaking Mizzou's single-season TD record and tying the SEC's single-season passing TD mark.
- Mizzou is limiting opponents to 98.4 yards per game on the ground during its five-game win streak. The Tigers are also surrendering just 16.6 points per game.
- Mizzou has won six games this season all by 28 points or more. Mizzou joins Ohio State as the only teams to accomplish that feat and it is the first time in school history that Mizzou can make that claim.
Locked in Lately
- Junior QB Drew Lock has been on fire over his last eight games. He has 30 touchdowns and just five interceptions while passing for 2,348 yards on 152-of-249 (61.0 percent). He now has four games in his career with 400 or more yards, tying for the most in school history with Chase Daniel (four from 2005-08).
- Last week, Lock threw for three TD passes, marking his seventh-consecutive game with at least three TD passes. That is the longest streak by any FBS quarterback this season (Ohio State's J.T. Barrett did so in six) and it is the nation's longest active streak. It is the longest streak by any SEC QB since at least 2000.
- Lock now leads the nation with his 38 passing TDs this year, which are already the second-most in school history and third-most in SEC history (SEC record is 40). Lock is second nationally in yards per completion (16.32), fifth in passing efficiency (168.3), 11th in both total passing yards (3,247) and passing yards per game (295.2) and is fifth in points accounted for (234). He is first or second in virtually every passing category in the SEC. Lock has more TD passes through 11 games than any SEC QB in the last 15 seasons.
- Lock now ranks third in school history with 7,978 career passing yards. He sits 812 yards behind second-place Brad Smith who had 8,799 from 2002-05. Lock's 65 career TD passes rank second all-time on Mizzou's career TD passes list.
| QB | Yds | Att | Comp | INT | Pct. | TD | Rtg. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Chase Daniel (2005-08) | 12,515 | 1,609 | 1,094 | 41 | 0.680 | 101 | 148.95 |
| 2. Brad Smith (2002-05) | 8,799 | 1,484 | 835 | 33 | 0.563 | 56 | 114.08 |
| 3. Drew Lock (2015-17) | 7,948 | 1,040 | 565 | 28 | 0.543 | 65 | 133.76 |
| 4. James Franklin (2010-13) | 6,962 | 943 | 586 | 25 | 0.621 | 51 | 136.70 |
| 5. Jeff Handy (1991-94) | 6,959 | 1,058 | 618 | 30 | 0.584 | 39 | 120.16 |
| 6. Blaine Gabbert (2008-10) | 6,822 | 933 | 568 | 18 | 0.609 | 40 | 132.59 |
| 7. Phil Bradley (1977-80) | 5,352 | 798 | 437 | 29 | 0.548 | 32 | 117.06 |
A Defense That Starts in the Trenches
- Mizzou has 46.0 tackles for loss over the last five games and now leads the SEC in tackles for loss, ranking 14th nationally.
- Mizzou had just 27.0 tackles for loss in its previous five games before posting 46.0 over its last five.
- Mizzou also has 18.0 sacks over its last five games after posting just 11 in the first six contests. The Tigers have three games of 5.0 sacks in that stretch, marking the first time since 2014 that Mizzou has had three separate games with at least 5.0 sacks.
- Mizzou is limiting its opponents to 98.4 yards per game on the ground over the five-game winning streak (would rank fourth nationally for perspective), its best five-game streak in rush defense since midway through 2014.
- Mizzou allowed 222.8 yards per game on the ground over the first six.
- Mizzou is allowing just 16.6 points per game over its five-game win streak after allowing 45.2 over its first six games (1-5).
Players Mentioned
Wide Receiver
/ Football
Linebacker
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Tight End
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Running Back
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