Missouri coach Eli Drinkwitz had a clear explanation Tuesday for why he let a pivotal fourth-down spot stand in last Saturday night’s loss to Mississippi State.
Midway through the fourth quarter, with the game hanging in the balance, Mississippi State faced 4th-and-1 and quarterback Kamario Taylor ran the ball. He was ruled to have picked up exactly one yard and reached Missouri’s 4-yard line before being stopped by Jason Dowell, Nick Rodriguez and Elijah Dotson.
The officials gave Mississippi State the first down, though the SEC Network crew wasn’t convinced.
"Boy, that's going to be very close to the line to gain," play-by-play man Matt Schumacker said on the broadcast.
"Woo, that's close," in-game analyst Aaron Murray added. "They better snap this football so they don't get a replay if I'm the offense."
Drinkwitz said Missouri’s sideline had some doubt as well, but the view on the television copy wasn’t good enough to push for a challenge.
"We didn't have a great angle on the TV copy," Missouri coach Eli Drinkwitz said Tuesday, "but I thought we did hold him there."
Mississippi State was awarded first-and-goal at the Missouri 4, and Fluff Bothwell punched in a 4-yard touchdown on the next snap. That score tied the game at 24-24 with 7:09 left. The Bulldogs added another touchdown later and finished off a 31-24 win.
Asked again Tuesday about that spot, Drinkwitz said he was told the call had been "cleared in the booth," which helped him decide against using a challenge.
"When they tell you they cleared it, that means that they looked and saw what they saw," Drinkwitz said. "What my anticipation was, and even going back and watching it, there was no way you were going to be able to change that based off the TV angle.
"I think that's the biggest challenge of some of those looks, is your TV angles aren't always the same going down the line."
The challenge setup is different this season. Head coaches get two replay challenges per game, and if they win one, they’re awarded a third. A coach can only challenge if the team still has a timeout available, and if the challenge works, that timeout stays in the bank.
Missouri had all three timeouts at the time, but Drinkwitz chose to keep them.
"You can challenge, it just costs you a timeout if you're wrong," Drinkwitz said. "At that point, I felt like timeouts were going to be more valuable, which they were for us."
That decision became part of the late-game math. After Mississippi State pushed ahead 31-24, Missouri drove to the Bulldogs’ 11-yard line with 80 seconds left.
But the Tigers couldn’t get a 3rd-and-3 or a 4th-and-3, and State took over. Missouri used all three timeouts trying to get the ball back with 51 seconds remaining, but the comeback never came.
The result dropped Missouri to 3-1 overall and 0-1 in SEC play, while the Tigers slid to No. 25 in both major national polls. Mississippi State improved to 4-0 overall and 2-0 in SEC play, and moved up to No. 16 in both major national polls.
Missouri is back home Saturday to face No. 8 Florida, which comes in at 4-0 overall and 2-0 in the SEC.
Kickoff at Faurot Field in Columbia is set for 2:30 p.m. CT, and the game will air on ABC.
In Other News...
Mizzou's Pass Rush Suddenly Looks Like A Major Florida Concern
Missouris defensive front took on a different look last week, and now the Tigers have to wait to see whether it changes again before Florida comes to Columbia on Saturday. Eli Drinkwitz said starting edge rushers Darris Smith and Langden Kitchen are questionable for homecoming, with Smith dealing with a lower-leg injury from a previous game and Kitchen leaving early last time out because of a lower-body issue. In their absence, sophomore Daeden Hopkins has handled more of the edge-rushing load, giving Missouri at least one answer if the depth chart stays in flux.
The timing matters because this is the sort of spot where the Tigers usually need their pass rush at full strength, especially at Memorial Stadium against an SEC opponent that will spend the week preparing for pressure off the edge. Missouri now has a short runway to get healthy, and the next practice stretch will go a long way toward clarifying how much of that original rotation is available when Florida arrives. [Read more 🡒]
Mizzou Suddenly Has No Margin For Error Against Florida
Eli Drinkwitz spent the days after Missouris first loss of the season talking through the kinds of issues that can quietly flip a game before it ever settles in. The slow start at Mississippi State, the missed chances and the tackling problems all came up as the Tigers turned the page toward Florida, with Drinkwitz stressing that one setback does not define the season. He also pointed to the value of special teams and the way some younger defensive pieces have started to emerge, both of which have helped Missouri stay afloat even when the offense has been behind the curve.
Now the focus shifts to a Florida matchup that feels less forgiving by the day, because the margin for error has tightened in a hurry. Missouri still has areas it can lean on, but there are also personnel questions hanging over the week and a depth chart that will be worth watching right up to kickoff. For a team trying to steady itself after its first stumble, the next step is less about style points than surviving the kind of game that can turn on one or two small decisions. [Read more 🡒]
Florida Faces A Huge Road Test With National Respect On The Line
Florida arrives in Columbia with real momentum, still unbeaten and sitting at No. 8, and the Gators have earned that respect by pairing an efficient offense with enough balance to handle most opponents. Jadan Baugh has been a big part of that start, giving Florida the kind of run game that can travel, while the Gators numbers on that side of the ball suggest this is more than just a fast start.
Missouri, meanwhile, is trying to steady itself after taking its first loss of the season and will need a cleaner showing on offense to keep pace. The Tigers have had trouble generating much on the ground, which makes the matchup more complicated against a Florida defense that has shown some vulnerability there, setting up a game that could say plenty about where both teams really stand. [Read more 🡒]