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Mizzou Football: Bowl game appears manageable for Tigers in 2018

GAINESVILLE, FL - NOVEMBER 03: Missouri Tigers players celebrate with fans following a 38-17 victory over the Florida Gators at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium on November 3, 2018 in Gainesville, Florida. (Photo by Sam Greenwood/Getty Images)
GAINESVILLE, FL - NOVEMBER 03: Missouri Tigers players celebrate with fans following a 38-17 victory over the Florida Gators at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium on November 3, 2018 in Gainesville, Florida. (Photo by Sam Greenwood/Getty Images) /
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Mizzou football surprisingly took it to the 11th ranked Florida Gators over the weekend, bringing their win total to five games this season. All the Tigers need is one more to become bowl eligible.

What once appeared to be a disappointing season for Missouri football has now become a year in which the Tigers can close out the year strong. They hadn’t won a conference game all season until they upset the Gators in Gainesville over the weekend and now it should be smooth sailing for MU down the stretch.

The Tigers close the year out with three of the worst teams in the SEC East and two of those games will take place in Columbia. Next week, Mizzou hosts Vanderbilt, who isn’t very good this year.

The Commodores are 4-5 and their lone conference win came over Arkansas last week. This game being at Missouri should have the Tigers as a somewhat heavy favorite. If MU wins that game, the rest of the season wouldn’t matter as much because Missouri would become bowl eligible.

From there, the Tigers continue to get easy opponents and should finish the year out with a winning record. They’re currently 5-4 on the year and another loss shouldn’t happen, not with the teams remaining on the schedule.

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After Vanderbilt, Mizzou travels to Knoxville to play the Tennessee Volunteers, who are 4-5, did have a big win earlier in the year when they knocked off Auburn, but they’re still not a great team. This game being on the road might make it a little more challenging for MU, but the Tigers should still be favored and should easily win this game.

Their regular season finale will come at home against the Arkansas Razorbacks. This has become the “rivalry” that the SEC has tried to force upon both sides, but it really doesn’t feel like a rivalry at all.

Maybe that’s because Missouri has handled the Razorbacks pretty easily over the years, holding a 3-1 advantage since the Tigers moved to the SEC. Last year’s last second victory resulted in Arkansas firing their coach and they haven’t been good at all this year, sitting at just 2-7.

This game is in Columbia and it’s the day after Thanksgiving, so Mizzou fans are going to be hyped. Missouri should easily run the table to close the year and that’d put them at 8-4 and should be enough to save Barry Odom’s job moving forward.

As for what bowl game MU could partake in, Gabe DeArmond tweeted that he’d see the Outback Bowl, Taxslayer Bowl, Music City Bowl, or Belk Bowl as good options with the Music City Bowl being the likeliest of choices. That one takes place in Nashville, so it’d be convenient for Missouri fans to make the trip out there.

First thing’s first, however, and that’s Mizzou football actually taking care of business and getting that sixth win to become bowl eligible. That should be a breeze.