Mizzou Football: Five bold predictions for 2017 season

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Missouri will be ranked during 2017

The Missouri Tigers won’t enter 2017 ranked, but don’t expect that to be the case for the entire season.

For starters, let’s check out Mizzou’s schedule for the 2017 season. Home games will see the Tigers pitted against Missouri State, South Carolina, Purdue, Auburn, Idaho, Florida, and Tennessee. Road games will be at Kentucky, Georgia, UConn, Vanderbilt, and Arkansas.

Looking at that list of games, it’s evident the Tigers have strong opportunities for success in 2017. In my opinion, the toughest tests the Tigers will see are at home against Auburn and on the road against Georgia.

If the Tigers live up to potential, it’s very likely Missouri would have a ranking and record to match.

Now, it’s obvious the Tigers will have a long way to go to earn respect in 2017. The pollsters should look at each year without any prior year bias, but it’s unlikely for them to do so. Mizzou’s 2017 squad will undoubtedly have to carry the shortcomings of their predecessors for a time.

If I had to project the most likely times for the Tigers to break into the Top 25 during this season, I would first project following game six against Georgia. By that point, the Tigers will have faced their two toughest games of the season. If Mizzou somehow has a record of 5-1, there’s no way Mizzou would go unranked.

More likely for the Tigers would be following game ten against Tennessee. By that point, there will have been plenty of opportunities for Mizzou to show their stuff against caliber opponents. If the Tigers live up to potential, it’s very likely Missouri would have a ranking and record to match.