Mizzou’s 54-14 win over Arkansas-Pine Bluff was as much about spreading the workload as it was about the scoreboard.
On offense, the Tigers used 33 players, which the report notes will almost certainly stand as a season high. Naeshaun Montgomery led the way with 59 snaps, followed by Jack Lange at 46.
Whit Hafer, Colin Sorenson and Zack Owens each logged 41, while Khalief Canty finished with 40. Luke Work, Tristan Wilson, Curtis Peagler and Dominick Giudice were all right behind them at 38.
Quarterback work was split between Austin Simmons and Matt Zollers. Simmons played 37 snaps, with 17 coming in run plays and 20 in pass plays.
Zollers totaled 33. Other notable totals included Logan Reichert at 33, DaMarion Fowlkes at 32, Jamal Roberts at 31, Donovan Olubgode and Cayden Lee at 30 apiece, and Jude James at 23.
The lower end of the chart showed just how deep the rotation went. Gavin Hoffman played 15 snaps, Kenric Lanier II had 12, and Preston Hatfield, Nick Evers, Malae Fonoti, Noah Flaskamp, Gavin Sidwar, Max Warner and Ryan Jostes all chipped in smaller totals.
Fonoti was the only player mentioned as getting a little banged up, and Eli Drinkwitz said a few guys were pulled earlier than expected. Still, the goal was clear: keep everyone healthy and get everyone on the field.
By that measure, Mizzou appears to have hit the mark.
Defensively, the Tigers rotated even more heavily. Forty-one defenders saw the field, and when specialists are included, more than 80 players got game action.
Jayden McGregory led the defense with 29 snaps, while CJ Bass III and Sione Laulea each played 28. Jason Dowell followed with 27, and Dante McClellan and Nick Rodriguez both reached 25.
Trajen Greco logged 24, and Donta Simpson Jr. finished with 22.
The rest of the defensive totals were spread across a long list of contributors, including Jaxson Gates, Santana Banner, Jalen Marshall, Elijah Dotson, Jackson Hancock, Cameron Keys, Jeremiah Beasley and Jaden Jones. DeMarcus Johnson, Daeden Hopkins, Brian Huff, Nick DeLoach Jr., Mark Hensley, Malik Bryant, Darris Smith, Chris Graves Jr. and Jahlil Florence also saw meaningful action.
The report notes that KLF and Marquis Gracial started and played eight snaps, and that nobody on defense topped 29. Laulea was the only projected starter to go over 25 snaps. In all, the workload was light enough that the Tigers should be fresh on that side of the ball heading into week two.
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