Mizzou Football: Three things to watch in Week 2 vs West Virginia
By Cullen Jekel
Playing a Full 60
Where did the Tigers go after Rountree scored a touchdown putting them up 14-0 with 3:19 left in the first quarter?
After that, the Tigers didn’t score another touchdown until the 13:30 mark in the fourth quarter. The only points between those two touchdowns came from a Tucker McCann field goal with just over two minutes left in the first half that briefly tied the game at 17-17. All told, between Rountree’s first-quarter score and Badie’s fourth-quarter touchdown, Wyoming outscored the Tigers 34-3.
In a flash of urgency in the fourth quarter, Mizzou outscored Wyoming 14-3. But it was too little, too late.
🎥 Our guys will embrace the opportunity to play at home. They are excited - we look forward to a great crowd and playing our best.#MIZ #ShowMe 🐯🏈 pic.twitter.com/bv37Ei62qd
— Mizzou Football (@MizzouFootball) September 5, 2019
Simply put, the Missouri Tigers cannot disappear for large gaps of time and expect to win based on a fast start and a hurried, frenzied finish. The Tigers must play a full sixty minutes, or very close to it, to defeat quality opponents.
Now, sure, the Wyoming Cowboys are probably better than the West Virginia Mountaineers in 2019, but West Virginia is still a Power Five team with an exciting young coach and a team with a win (no matter how ugly) under its belt. They can’t be taken lightly, and to win, Mizzou cannot twiddle their thumbs for the entirety of the middle quarters.