aurorasooner
10/19/2008, 04:29 PM
St. Louis paper hammers Pinkel/Booger. "feckless" That just sounds nasty! :eek:
But how do we explain Mizzou’s incredible stage fright in a big game? the Tigers have been playing the big rooms for a while now. They’ve had plenty of games on ESPN and ABC. They’ve been on the cover of Sports Illustrated, ESPN the Magazine and other national publications. They had a showdown game with Kansas last season, and played Oklahoma twice, including a matchup in the Big 12 Championship. And they’ve played Illinois twice in St. Louis, and that’s a rivalry game with a lot of built-in pressure.
Those games should have prepped the Tigers and conditioned them for the meeting in Texas. At the very least, I expected Mizzou to put up a fight and generally play well and come up short. And while losing should never be acceptable, it is possible to lose in a way that maintains respect.
Mizzou lost a ton of respect and credibility on Saturday night. The MU offense, predictably overrun by the Texas front, was shaken and rattled. And QB Chase Daniel lost his poise (again). The Tigers opened the game with three-and-outs on three of the first four possessions. And forget this bunk about Daniel playing in the NFL; if the dude encounters even a faint pass rush it unhinges him. Getting smacked around is standard in the NFL.
Given that the Tigers had a solid defense in 2007, and were returning nine or 10 starters for 2008, how can this unit be so feckless? What happened here? How did these players forget how to play pass defense in less than a year’s time? How and when did they lose their competitive fire? When did the turn so soft? And why can’t defensive coordinator Matt Eberflus get a response from the players, or adjust his schemes to close the glaring holes in the Mizzou secondary? Why are his blitzes so predictable? Texas knew when the blitzes were coming and Colt McCoy carved it up.
And the questionable coaching isn’t limited to the defensive side. Just how many times did Gary Pinkel and offensive coordinator Dave Christensen need to see redshirt freshman Elvis Fisher get buried at left tackle at Texas before they’d conclude it might be smart to give the young man some help? And why did it take the MU coaches six quarters (four vs. Oklahoma State and then the first half vs. Texas) before they closed those wide O-line gaps that made it so easy for the Cowboys and Longhorns to stuff the run or crash Daniel’s pocket?
Pinkel, Christensen and Eberflus did a terrible job of preparing their team for the last two games, and even a worse job of adjusting. And there’s really no excuse for that. Again, if Mizzou loses because of the talent deficit, that’s one thing. But it was more than that. the timid Tigers got jacked in Austin because they weren’t locked in, competitively. And once Texas began rolling, the MU coaches did nothing to slow the avalanche. Mizzou was in a daze, players and coaches.
This team wasn’t ready for a big game.
The coaches weren’t, either.
And Pinkel still hasn’t beaten Texas or Oklahoma.
Reality check?
See Bernie : Mizzou Played Scared http://www.stltoday.com/sports/mizzou
But how do we explain Mizzou’s incredible stage fright in a big game? the Tigers have been playing the big rooms for a while now. They’ve had plenty of games on ESPN and ABC. They’ve been on the cover of Sports Illustrated, ESPN the Magazine and other national publications. They had a showdown game with Kansas last season, and played Oklahoma twice, including a matchup in the Big 12 Championship. And they’ve played Illinois twice in St. Louis, and that’s a rivalry game with a lot of built-in pressure.
Those games should have prepped the Tigers and conditioned them for the meeting in Texas. At the very least, I expected Mizzou to put up a fight and generally play well and come up short. And while losing should never be acceptable, it is possible to lose in a way that maintains respect.
Mizzou lost a ton of respect and credibility on Saturday night. The MU offense, predictably overrun by the Texas front, was shaken and rattled. And QB Chase Daniel lost his poise (again). The Tigers opened the game with three-and-outs on three of the first four possessions. And forget this bunk about Daniel playing in the NFL; if the dude encounters even a faint pass rush it unhinges him. Getting smacked around is standard in the NFL.
Given that the Tigers had a solid defense in 2007, and were returning nine or 10 starters for 2008, how can this unit be so feckless? What happened here? How did these players forget how to play pass defense in less than a year’s time? How and when did they lose their competitive fire? When did the turn so soft? And why can’t defensive coordinator Matt Eberflus get a response from the players, or adjust his schemes to close the glaring holes in the Mizzou secondary? Why are his blitzes so predictable? Texas knew when the blitzes were coming and Colt McCoy carved it up.
And the questionable coaching isn’t limited to the defensive side. Just how many times did Gary Pinkel and offensive coordinator Dave Christensen need to see redshirt freshman Elvis Fisher get buried at left tackle at Texas before they’d conclude it might be smart to give the young man some help? And why did it take the MU coaches six quarters (four vs. Oklahoma State and then the first half vs. Texas) before they closed those wide O-line gaps that made it so easy for the Cowboys and Longhorns to stuff the run or crash Daniel’s pocket?
Pinkel, Christensen and Eberflus did a terrible job of preparing their team for the last two games, and even a worse job of adjusting. And there’s really no excuse for that. Again, if Mizzou loses because of the talent deficit, that’s one thing. But it was more than that. the timid Tigers got jacked in Austin because they weren’t locked in, competitively. And once Texas began rolling, the MU coaches did nothing to slow the avalanche. Mizzou was in a daze, players and coaches.
This team wasn’t ready for a big game.
The coaches weren’t, either.
And Pinkel still hasn’t beaten Texas or Oklahoma.
Reality check?
See Bernie : Mizzou Played Scared http://www.stltoday.com/sports/mizzou