Why we beat Mizzou - My analysis

[Tigeman]

So sittin around after all the ESPiN hype about Mizzou and how they're going to beat OU, I started getting a little worried. So I decided to do a drunken analysis myself and calmed myself. I came to a few conclusions...

1. Mizzou's defense is unheralded and one of the top in the country according the talking heads.

- Ok ok, haven't we heard this before? Same was said about TX, and
well TX does have a better D than Mizzou. We handled that just fine.

2. OU won't be able to handle the quick passes of Gilbert and the Mizzou offense.

- Ummmm helloooooo??????? Didn't our D spend all summer running
against almost an identical O in OUR offense! The short bubble
screens are OUr bread and butter.

3. OU won't be able to handle an away game.

- Ok if you don't think Cincinnati was an away game, your an idiot!
That being said, yeah we struggle.... we do come out gunning. I've
yet to see a game that we didn't gun a few into the endzone the
first 2 or 3 plays. This will take the crowd out quickly.

4. Mizzou has not seen a team speed like us yet this year. It always
surprises them for some reason. So on D Gabbert will get happy feet
and make miss reads.

The one variable that could throw a wrench in it all is Gabbert's running. We've yet to shut down a running QB this year. But I got faith in coach V. He shut down Booger, as he will Gabbert!

[KantoSooner]

Dunno why, but I haven't seen the picks that I expected to this year. Perhaps this is the week when our DB's feast?

[TigerMatt]

So sittin around after all the ESPiN hype about Mizzou and how they're going to beat OU, I started getting a little worried. So I decided to do a drunken analysis myself and calmed myself. I came to a few conclusions...

1. Mizzou's defense is unheralded and one of the top in the country according the talking heads.

- Ok ok, haven't we heard this before? Same was said about TX, and
well TX does have a better D than Mizzou. We handled that just fine.



How do you know Texas has a better defense than Missouri? Are falling back on the focusing only the number of stars a recruit has?

[fadada1]

the difference is between "thinking" and "wanting". ESPN doesn't think OU will lose to mizzou, they want OU to lose. this is where ESPN fails... and fails HUGE!!!!!

[BetterSoonerThanLater]

also heard that Gabbert is'nt %100 due to a hip pointer. can't recall the source, but anyone else heard this?

either way...We win with a solid performance! 37-17

[OU44life]

also heard that Gabbert is'nt %100 due to a hip pointer. can't recall the source, but anyone else heard this?

either way...We win with a solid performance! 37-17

Here ya go.

CFN

Why Oklahoma Might Win: Missouri QB Blaine Gabbert will be under more pressure than he has seen all season long. Texas A&M got into the backfield last week, but it wasn’t enough to keep Gabbert from throwing for 361 yards. OU’s pass rush is even better and the front seven even faster than A&M’s, and Gabbert, who’s still trying to get past a hip pointer, isn’t going to be all that mobile. Missouri’s run defense hasn’t been a total rock, allowing 200 yards to Illinois and 250 yards to San Diego State, and OU will come out looking to establish the ground game with DeMarco Murray hitting his stride at just the right time. The senior has run for 100 yards or more in four of the first six games with 11 touchdown runs and two scoring grabs, and he could give the Tiger front four fits being used in a variety of ways. Missouri’s stats against the run aren’t quite as good as they appear with several sacks bringing the overall number down, but it’s about to be pounded on.

[BetterSoonerThanLater]

Here ya go.

CFN

Why Oklahoma Might Win: Missouri QB Blaine Gabbert will be under more pressure than he has seen all season long. Texas A&M got into the backfield last week, but it wasn’t enough to keep Gabbert from throwing for 361 yards. OU’s pass rush is even better and the front seven even faster than A&M’s, and Gabbert, who’s still trying to get past a hip pointer, isn’t going to be all that mobile. Missouri’s run defense hasn’t been a total rock, allowing 200 yards to Illinois and 250 yards to San Diego State, and OU will come out looking to establish the ground game with DeMarco Murray hitting his stride at just the right time. The senior has run for 100 yards or more in four of the first six games with 11 touchdown runs and two scoring grabs, and he could give the Tiger front four fits being used in a variety of ways. Missouri’s stats against the run aren’t quite as good as they appear with several sacks bringing the overall number down, but it’s about to be pounded on.


yeah thats it! thanks for posting. you know after we kick their ***, and gabbert has a bad game, the excuses will start. as well as that DE that is back after breaking his leg.

[Soonerfan88]

It might also be a hip pointer but Pinkel slipped earlier this week and acknowledged what many around Columbia already speculated -- Gabbert has sore ribs.

As for MU's defense, yes they might get Smith back at DE but they lose their MLB. As OU fans know, MLB isn't a good thing to lose especially if you don't have a back-up with experience. And Smith has been out 4 weeks with a broken leg so even if he is cleared, he won't be the 110% he claims.

[TigerMatt]

It might also be a hip pointer but Pinkel slipped earlier this week and acknowledged what many around Columbia already speculated -- Gabbert has sore ribs.

As for MU's defense, yes they might get Smith back at DE but they lose their MLB. As OU fans know, MLB isn't a good thing to lose especially if you don't have a back-up with experience. And Smith has been out 4 weeks with a broken leg so even if he is cleared, he won't be the 110% he claims.

The injury didn't affect Gabbert against Texas A&M.

Missouri has depth at MLB. Will Ebner and Andrew Wilson are talented backups.

Aldon Smith cracked his fibula. It is a non-weight bearing bone. He could have played sooner, but the coaches kept him out to heal more for the meat of the schedule.

[Widescreen]

Aldon Smith cracked his fibula. It is a non-weight bearing bone. He could have played sooner, but the coaches kept him out to heal more for the meat of the schedule.

He's about to get meated, alright.

[BillyBall]

So I decided to do a drunken analysis myself

Exactly how Einstein got started...

[Mad Dog Madsen]

I just love how games are played on paper! ...Oh wait. :rolleyes:

[Sirus]

Currently 85% of the nation agrees that we win, according to the bets laid so far.

[Sirus]

which reminds me, I've been on a losing streak lately, so should I put a few coins on mizery?

[Tigeman]

How do you know Texas has a better defense than Missouri? Are falling back on the focusing only the number of stars a recruit has?

HAHAHA.... # of stars???? Are you kidding me??? We're the last one's to come at that argument w/. We take under rated guys and make them stars all the time! But to answer your question, it's easy...I WATCH with my own eyes! I've seen TX play, and I've seen Mizzou play! Watch how's TX's DB's position themselves and how they play the receiver then look at yours! You haven't been tested deep and you know it! You have the same crew as last year, the same crew that was consistently burned deep! Even your top guy, Rutland, will be lucky to get drafted. Where as TX's guys are all 2nd rounders at the lowest. The biggest thing I'm basing it on though is simply speed! Watch the explosion TX's DE's and DT's have coming up out of their stance compared to yours! Load video's up on to your comp and compare them side by side. They are simply faster and stronger. Sure you guys are 6th in sacks, but that's against cupcake O-Lines. About the only thing you can compare is the fact that the 2 can't stop the run, but it seems TX figured that out, although it's to early to tell.

You want to say my evaluations in the first post are wrong, ok that's arguable. But don't come in and say you have a better D than *, that ludicrous! They faltered for one game against UCLA, but don't think that means your better than them. Take the black glasses off, you can't see to well with them on! :D

Of course lets throw TX out the window.... how bout Fl. State.... you care to tell us how your D is far superior to their's too?

Now that I went through and defended TX (YUCK)... I want to say Texas still sucks a$$ and can EABOD's!

[Okie35]

HAHAHA.... # of stars???? Are you kidding me??? We're the last one's to come at that argument w/. We take under rated guys and make them stars all the time! But to answer your question, it's easy...I WATCH with my own eyes! I've seen TX play, and I've seen Mizzou play! Watch how's TX's DB's position themselves and how they play the receiver then look at yours! You haven't been tested deep and you know it! You have the same crew as last year, the same crew that was consistently burned deep! Even your top guy, Rutland, will be lucky to get drafted. Where as TX's guys are all 2nd rounders at the lowest. The biggest thing I'm basing it on though is simply speed! Watch the explosion TX's DE's and DT's have coming up out of their stance compared to yours! Load video's up on to your comp and compare them side by side. They are simply faster and stronger. Sure you guys are 6th in TX, but that's against cupcake O-Lines. About the only thing you can compare is the fact that the 2 can't stop the run, but it seems TX figured that out, although it's to early to tell.

You want to say my evaluations in the first post are wrong, ok that's arguable. But don't come in and say you have a better D than *, that ludicrous! They faltered for one game against UCLA, but don't think that means your better than them. Take the black glasses off, you can't see to well with them on! :D

Of course lets throw TX out the window.... how bout Fl. State.... you care to tell us how your D is far superior to their's too?

Now that I went through and defended TX (YUCK)... I want to say Texas still sucks a$$ and can EABOD's!

They have and Micheal and Fuller torched em. They barely had receptions too and would've had more if Johnson was more accurate. Fuller always seemed open. Tannehill dropped an easy catch(right in his hands) on 4th down that would've cut the lead in half. Most mishaps the Aggies had benefited Missouri. They dropped a lot of passes and Johnson overthrew Tannehill when he was wide open 4 times. They even ran the same post pattern two times in a row and Johnson missed the easy throw to Tannehill, twice. He was open both times. Each week is different though so who knows how Missouri game planned this week.

[Tigeman]

LOL... I saw that, but hey it doesn't count unless you catch the ball right? Ask Nebbish! I meant tested by a QB and receivers who can actually connect! But your point is taken, which is what my evaluation of their corners above is about! Good job of relating it to a game situation, cause they'd never understand otherwise. They're to worried about reading stuff in newspapers... I mean they are a journalism school after all! :)

[mightysooner]

the difference is between "thinking" and "wanting". ESPN doesn't think OU will lose to mizzou, they want OU to lose. this is where ESPN fails... and fails HUGE!!!!!



^^ This

We'll beat Mizzou because we're 7-0 against the tiggers under Stoops.

[OU_Sooners75]

Easy on the Missouri tigger fans! It isn't their fault they like a ****ty team!


Oh wait yeah it is!

[OU_Sooners75]

My analysis on why we beat Missouri:

We score more point than they do!

[Tigeman]

My analysis on why we beat Missouri:

We score more point than they do!

OMG! It's so simple, it's brilliant! A Guiness extra stout to you my friend! :)

[OU_Sooners75]

No guiness for me, but I'll take a boulevard pale ale!

I'm just tired of talking bout game and ready for Saturday prove the doubters wrong!0

[DenverSooner751]

My analysis on why we beat Missouri:

We score more point than they do!

Madden would be proud of you. =)

[VA Sooner]

Also take a look at the games that Mizzou has already played. Defense ranked highly however against teams of little consequence. Texas A&M is their toughest game to date... and so up and down.

I think we do OK on the road. We'll start out fast, defense will take a series to warm up and get their assignments down but we hit Gabbert hard, over and over again.

[ThinMan]

1. Mizzou's defense is unheralded and one of the top in the country according the talking heads.


Missouri's opponents also include some pretty crappy teams, including a DivII school. The only decent two offenses they faced they gave up a combined 820 yards.

It's possible that they are not as good as advertised.



The one variable that could throw a wrench in it all is Gabbert's running. We've yet to shut down a running QB this year. But I got faith in coach V. He shut down Booger, as he will Gabbert!

Gabbert's longest run of the season was 11 yards. Mostly he doesn't run, plus he has a hip injury.

[AzianSooner]

OU handled Texass' defense, no team in the big 12 that OU can't handle offensively.

[MyT Oklahoma]

OU has won 19 of the last 20 games. When the Sooners get up by 10 then this game is over.

[swardboy]

OU takes over a game immediately with the fast-break offense....and since last week I feel we start to finish games in a great way!

[KantoSooner]

It really comes down to our O against their D. And I think we simply have too many weapons for them to defend.
Could we go flat and fail to open holes or protect Landry? or have a brain fart and kill drives with penalties? Yes to both; it's possible.
But that's essentially saying the game is ours unless we kill ourselves. And that's about where I judge it to be.
Can't wait.

[PrideTrombone]

l

[Sooner Brewcrew]

Definately No comparison between Texas D and Mizzou's. I think OU will move the ball at will as long as they don't go into conservative mode.

[BigTime1]

I think Roy Finch creates a whole new problem for defenses from here on out. He is Big Play one slip and its over. Just one more thing to take away from opposing defenses practice times for the week.

[Widescreen]

I think Roy Finch creates a whole new problem for defenses from here on out. He is Big Play one slip and its over. Just one more thing to take away from opposing defenses practice times for the week.

Agreed. Clay brings a similar problem for opposing defenses. We're in good shape as long as the OL can open a few lanes.

[auto]

We win Reason # 1


We Are OKLAHOMA!

[BigTime1]

Yes he does but they are just so different...all you can say is it was an awsome job of recruiting to get 2 with such great ability and 2 totally different skill sets

[MU Tiger fan]

best stoy I've read on MU defense is here... http://www.columbiatribune.com/news/2010/oct/21/steckel-is-no-longer-captain-of-a-sinking-ship/?tigerextra

pretty fair assessment.

[OU_Sooners75]

best stoy I've read on MU defense is here... http://www.columbiatribune.com/news/2010/oct/21/steckel-is-no-longer-captain-of-a-sinking-ship/?tigerextra

pretty fair assessment.

yeah a pretty fair assessment.

However, the fact still remains, that defense is not a tested defense.

They look good, but against sub par competition.

That is not saying they are not a good defense. But OU has faced at least 2 bettter defenses than Missouri's.

[BoulderSooner79]

yeah a pretty fair assessment.

However, the fact still remains, that defense is not a tested defense.

They look good, but against sub par competition.

That is not saying they are not a good defense. But OU has faced at least 2 bettter defenses than Missouri's.

Which do you think was better other than UT's D? I don't think FSUs was.

[OU_Sooners75]

Which do you think was better other than UT's D? I don't think FSUs was.


Yes I do think Florida State's is better than Missouri's and pretty close to even with Texas at this point in the season. FSU's performance against us was by far their worst performance of this season so far.

Texas overall is the best defense we have faced and will likely face until our bowl game.

One can say Air Force is close to even with Missouri's as well. You can compare that to the numbers between Air Force vs. SDSU and Missouri vs. SDSU.

[BoulderSooner79]

I didnt say better than UT's...I said better than Missouri's...and yes I do think Florida State's is better than Missouri's and pretty close to even with Texas in this point in the season.

Texas overall is the best defense we have faced and will likely face until our bowl game.

Yes, I meant better than Mizzou's D. FSU may be better, but they played lousy against us if just count the missed tackles alone (our board would have melted down if our D did that). I think AFA played better on D than FSU did against us. Mizzou is untested, but I'm guessing they will be 2nd only the horns when we look back on it.

[MU Tiger fan]

true, not tested. aTm didn't turn the ball over though, and we handled them on the road with ease. We've held every team well below their scoring average and our athletes are faster and stronger than we've ever had as a unit.

I'm looking forward to finding out what we have. Glad we'll be playing OU every year going forward. Not a fan of the cupcake diet, even if it props up the W/L record.

Tiger fans are jacked up about this game (game day, home comming, BCS #1) in a way only a historical .500 program can be. It won't look like we've been there before. It will be more like a bunch of Afghans with rocks getting ready to take down a blackhawk. I'd say if our players can save their energy for the game, OU will have their hands full. I think we've got more than rocks to throw this year.

[Okie35]

Which do you think was better other than UT's D? I don't think FSUs was.

It easily is now.

[Okie35]

true, not tested. aTm didn't turn the ball over though, and we handled them on the road with ease. We've held every team well below their scoring average and our athletes are faster and stronger than we've ever had as a unit.

I'm looking forward to finding out what we have. Glad we'll be playing OU every year going forward. Not a fan of the cupcake diet, even if it props up the W/L record.

Tiger fans are jacked up about this game (game day, home comming, BCS #1) in a way only a historical .500 program can be. It won't look like we've been there before. It will be more like a bunch of Afghans with rocks getting ready to take down a blackhawk. I'd say if our players can save their energy for the game, OU will have their hands full. I think we've got more than rocks to throw this year.

Jerrod Johnson missed a lot of open receivers and some had a lot of drops. Most of their receivers were open all game. Johnson wasn't accurate at all.

[BoulderSooner79]

It easily is now.

Yeah, FSU might be better on D now (cred to Mark Stoops) but they were not good against us. Not taking away the way we played because we put the pressure on them. Not surprised since they switched DC and were learning a new system that they might crumble their first true test.

[Okie35]

Yeah, FSU might be better on D now (cred to Mark Stoops) but they were not good against us. Not taking away the way we played because we put the pressure on them. Not surprised since they switched DC and were learning a new system that they might crumble their first true test.

They still were leading the nation in sacks though(and they are now still). That was the only thing that scared me then.


The Sooners are No. 2 nationally in turnover margin and it’s hard to beat a team if they get more takeaways. More impressive than Oklahoma’s 14 takes thus far is the fact that the Sooners have only lost the ball five times in six games. Only Oregon State has fewer turnovers in the same amount of games.

Missouri is first in turnover margin but against lesser competition.

[MU Tiger fan]

I've learned I can't start a new thread so I'll post this here...

Let me start by saying some fans want to smack talk, but most Tiger fans know the reality. I’m old enough to remember Joe Washington, Billy Simms, etc. We’ve seen your athletes and MU fans get it – OU’s always good. Perhaps the greatest of all football programs when you consider winning streaks, conference and national championships. Missouri has been improving under Pinkel. (From 1970 to 2006, the height of success for MU was a .500+ record and a bowl game.) But we’re still looking for our first conference title since 1969.

So why might a Tiger fan think this is the year?

We may have a defense. We don’t know yet. Our D has looked really good all year with the exception of a handful of plays. It’s a balanced D. In years past, we’ve always had a weak link (or two) in the D, but this year we seem to be solid across the board – pass rush, middle of the D-line, LB’s and secondary all making plays. We’re playing as a unit and the 4-3 scheme has been tweaked for the better. We haven’t seen the miscommunication that we’ve seen in almost every MU game over the last 10 years (and more).

Special teams have been very good. Lacking the return game that we had with Maclin, but other than that, ST have been special.

Offense… Gabbert is Josh Freeman till proven otherwise. BUT, he has potential and his arm is strong and accurate. If our receivers can find the openings in the OU D, he’ll hit them. He’s supposed to be fast, but you know there’s fast and football fast. Haven’t seen his speed show up on the field yet. IMO, he’s not a good runner. Don’t know why some say he is. Doesn’t see the seam soon enough and can’t cut. He also is prone to fumbling under pressure. Its like he just completely forgets that when the heat is on, he better cover the ball. Acts like he’s going to just step out of every tackle while one-handing a loaf of bread. MU will have to win the turn over battle, and that will start with the offense taking care of the ball. Our running game is dependent on the O-line holding their blocks for what might be too long to expect against OU. The run plays take time to develop. It will take a great effort from our O-line to get any kind of running game going. However, when our guys get a crack, they’re quick. Committee of 4 RB’s with similar skills. Think Darren Sproles x 4 – less about 20 lbs of muscle and the future NFL career. Bottom line for our O, if we’re going to beat OU, they’ll need to hit on a couple of BIG plays.

Tiger fans that have chosen to believe we win have bought into our defense (or just think we’re due, so why not this week?). I'll believe in the D until I'm proved wrong on the field. OU fans that are sure MU sucks have nothing to base it on but history. We haven’t sucked this year… yet. Don’t be too surprised if we have a great football game on Saturday.

[cvsooner]

I don't think Mizzou sucks. Y'all look pretty good, really. I know your kicker is better than ours. I think other than that, we've got better personnel.

Turnovers will be key. I do think we need to play very well to win. I also know we've been in a couple of situations so far this season that we've won...including on the road (neutral games be danged...Cincinnati is in Ohio and Dallas is in Texas).

I see us winning but I suspect it will be close...unless we just totally dominate a la FSU and ISU. We play like we did against Utah State though and we're in trouble.

Well, we'll see.

[ThinMan]

MU Tiger Fan,

Don't think you guys suck, just untested a bit. I have you beating Nebraska the next week. You guys definitely have a chance at home. If in Norman I don't see it.

[sendbaht]

[QUOTE=OU44life;2998658]Here ya go.

CFN

Why Oklahoma Might Win: Missouri QB Blaine Gabbert will be under more pressure than he has seen all season long. Texas A&M got into the backfield last week, but it wasn’t enough to keep Gabbert from throwing for 361 yards. [B]OU’s pass rush is even better and the front seven even faster than A&M’s, and Gabbert, who’s still trying to get past a hip pointer, isn’t going to be all that mobile. He better be mobile because a hip pointer injury is extremely painful, acute injury to the iliac crest of the pelvis. The injury causes bleeding into the abdominal muscles, which attach to the iliac crest. The bone and overlying muscle are often bruised, and the pain can be intense. Pain may be felt when walking, laughing, coughing, or even breathing deeply and running away from the Sooner defence. Poor kid I wish him well.

[MojoRisen]

I have to give credit to vunerables - he seems to have MU's number. Even when we are giving up huge chunks of yards - we seem to match up to Mizzou on D.

For the simple fact that this is on the road - if we handle the pressure we should win handily. I am guessing that it will be pretty tight ball game though - 35-24 ish. We are a different team on the road...

[Boooom!]

After last week's game, the only "issue" the Team could be considering is playing like last week, while away...

[TigerNuts]

Jerrod Johnson missed a lot of open receivers and some had a lot of drops. Most of their receivers were open all game. Johnson wasn't accurate at all.

Couldn't you say the same thing about the vaunted UT D when they played NU? If the UT D is the measuring stick, what does that say?

[OU_Sooners75]

true, not tested. aTm didn't turn the ball over though, and we handled them on the road with ease. We've held every team well below their scoring average and our athletes are faster and stronger than we've ever had as a unit.

I'm looking forward to finding out what we have. Glad we'll be playing OU every year going forward. Not a fan of the cupcake diet, even if it props up the W/L record.

Tiger fans are jacked up about this game (game day, home comming, BCS #1) in a way only a historical .500 program can be. It won't look like we've been there before. It will be more like a bunch of Afghans with rocks getting ready to take down a blackhawk. I'd say if our players can save their energy for the game, OU will have their hands full. I think we've got more than rocks to throw this year.


Handled them easily because of a lot of dropped or errant passes.

Missouri has had a pretty easy task loaded with mediocre teams and offenses.

I am not saying it wont be a good game. But Missouri does not have the weapons they had a few years ago.

[Okie35]

I've learned I can't start a new thread so I'll post this here...

Let me start by saying some fans want to smack talk, but most Tiger fans know the reality. I’m old enough to remember Joe Washington, Billy Simms, etc. We’ve seen your athletes and MU fans get it – OU’s always good. Perhaps the greatest of all football programs when you consider winning streaks, conference and national championships. Missouri has been improving under Pinkel. (From 1970 to 2006, the height of success for MU was a .500+ record and a bowl game.) But we’re still looking for our first conference title since 1969.

So why might a Tiger fan think this is the year?

We may have a defense. We don’t know yet. Our D has looked really good all year with the exception of a handful of plays. It’s a balanced D. In years past, we’ve always had a weak link (or two) in the D, but this year we seem to be solid across the board – pass rush, middle of the D-line, LB’s and secondary all making plays. We’re playing as a unit and the 4-3 scheme has been tweaked for the better. We haven’t seen the miscommunication that we’ve seen in almost every MU game over the last 10 years (and more).

Special teams have been very good. Lacking the return game that we had with Maclin, but other than that, ST have been special.

Offense… Gabbert is Josh Freeman till proven otherwise. BUT, he has potential and his arm is strong and accurate. If our receivers can find the openings in the OU D, he’ll hit them. He’s supposed to be fast, but you know there’s fast and football fast. Haven’t seen his speed show up on the field yet. IMO, he’s not a good runner. Don’t know why some say he is. Doesn’t see the seam soon enough and can’t cut. He also is prone to fumbling under pressure. Its like he just completely forgets that when the heat is on, he better cover the ball. Acts like he’s going to just step out of every tackle while one-handing a loaf of bread. MU will have to win the turn over battle, and that will start with the offense taking care of the ball. Our running game is dependent on the O-line holding their blocks for what might be too long to expect against OU. The run plays take time to develop. It will take a great effort from our O-line to get any kind of running game going. However, when our guys get a crack, they’re quick. Committee of 4 RB’s with similar skills. Think Darren Sproles x 4 – less about 20 lbs of muscle and the future NFL career. Bottom line for our O, if we’re going to beat OU, they’ll need to hit on a couple of BIG plays.

Tiger fans that have chosen to believe we win have bought into our defense (or just think we’re due, so why not this week?). I'll believe in the D until I'm proved wrong on the field. OU fans that are sure MU sucks have nothing to base it on but history. We haven’t sucked this year… yet. Don’t be too surprised if we have a great football game on Saturday.

I won't trash Missouri like that but Gabbert isn't anything close to Freeman and your RBs aren't close to Sproles.

[Tigeman]

Couldn't you say the same thing about the vaunted UT D when they played NU? If the UT D is the measuring stick, what does that say?

It says the better team lost that game!

But to answer your question about the D, I only remember one of those sure score drops being b/c the defender was out of position. I could be wrong though, it's been almost a week. But all the rest were simply perfect offensive execution, HAD THE RECEIVER CAUGHT THE BALL!

[OU_Sooners75]

Couldn't you say the same thing about the vaunted UT D when they played NU? If the UT D is the measuring stick, what does that say?


1. Texass ddefense is not vaunted this year. Just better than Missouri's.
2. Nebraska was making a name with a Eric Crouch type of QB. A damn good runner, not a good passer. Well, Crouch looked to be better at passing than Martinez.
3. Missouri has not seen the likes of OUs offense since 2008's Big 12 Championship. OU has seen the likes of Missouri's offense since it is a copycat of a Mike Leach offense.


Good luck Saturday. I am hoping for a good clean game by both teams. Of course I am hoping for an OU victory first and foremost though!

[gaylordfan1]

Good luck Saturday. I am hoping for a good clean game by both teams. Of course I am hoping for an OU victory first and foremost though![/QUOTE]

+1

[Okie35]

Couldn't you say the same thing about the vaunted UT D when they played NU? If the UT D is the measuring stick, what does that say?

Yup I could but Nebraska is by far a better team than A&M. A&M receivers wouldn't be open against Texas' defense like that. Especially, the time A&M ran the same play(back to back mind you) to Tannehill and he was open again and Johnson missed him. He was open by at least 8 yards, both times. Your defense looked dumbfounded. Fuller and Micheal were open all game. JJ has no accuracy what so ever. He threw 4 ints to Florida International lol.

[westcoast_sooner]

I've learned I can't start a new thread so I'll post this here...

Let me start by saying some fans want to smack talk, but most Tiger fans know the reality. I’m old enough to remember Joe Washington, Billy Simms, etc. We’ve seen your athletes and MU fans get it – OU’s always good. Perhaps the greatest of all football programs when you consider winning streaks, conference and national championships. Missouri has been improving under Pinkel. (From 1970 to 2006, the height of success for MU was a .500+ record and a bowl game.) But we’re still looking for our first conference title since 1969.

So why might a Tiger fan think this is the year?

We may have a defense. We don’t know yet. Our D has looked really good all year with the exception of a handful of plays. It’s a balanced D. In years past, we’ve always had a weak link (or two) in the D, but this year we seem to be solid across the board – pass rush, middle of the D-line, LB’s and secondary all making plays. We’re playing as a unit and the 4-3 scheme has been tweaked for the better. We haven’t seen the miscommunication that we’ve seen in almost every MU game over the last 10 years (and more).

Special teams have been very good. Lacking the return game that we had with Maclin, but other than that, ST have been special.

Offense… Gabbert is Josh Freeman till proven otherwise. BUT, he has potential and his arm is strong and accurate. If our receivers can find the openings in the OU D, he’ll hit them. He’s supposed to be fast, but you know there’s fast and football fast. Haven’t seen his speed show up on the field yet. IMO, he’s not a good runner. Don’t know why some say he is. Doesn’t see the seam soon enough and can’t cut. He also is prone to fumbling under pressure. Its like he just completely forgets that when the heat is on, he better cover the ball. Acts like he’s going to just step out of every tackle while one-handing a loaf of bread. MU will have to win the turn over battle, and that will start with the offense taking care of the ball. Our running game is dependent on the O-line holding their blocks for what might be too long to expect against OU. The run plays take time to develop. It will take a great effort from our O-line to get any kind of running game going. However, when our guys get a crack, they’re quick. Committee of 4 RB’s with similar skills. Think Darren Sproles x 4 – less about 20 lbs of muscle and the future NFL career. Bottom line for our O, if we’re going to beat OU, they’ll need to hit on a couple of BIG plays.

Tiger fans that have chosen to believe we win have bought into our defense (or just think we’re due, so why not this week?). I'll believe in the D until I'm proved wrong on the field. OU fans that are sure MU sucks have nothing to base it on but history. We haven’t sucked this year… yet. Don’t be too surprised if we have a great football game on Saturday.

Good post. I have been castigated on another board for some disparaging remarks about MU's strength of schedule. Consider that OU has already beaten 2 ranked opponents, and 4 2009 bowl teams. Mizzou beat the Illini and A&M - neither ranked.

Bottom line is that I don't think MU has played anyone yet of OU's caliber. OU has had their struggles, no doubt about it, but the fact is that OU has played a tougher schedule to date than MU has, and OU has beaten Mizzou in Columbia and on neutral sites recently - and I'm thinking that has to be in their heads, much like the UT/Nebraska thing.

Good luck, but I think OU wins again.