Mizzou drops heartbreaker on the road vs. Boston College

It was quite a game on ESPN2 as Boston College and Mizzou went blow for blow. The Eagles eventually pulled it out 41-34 in overtime, sending the Tigers reeling to 2-2, while Boston College is 4-0 with a game against a very beatable Clemson team next.

Let’s go ahead and just talk about the elephant in the room: That Tiger defense? Woof. Boston College was playing a backup QB who struggled against Temple, but Dylan Grosel looked poised and led the Eagles up and down the field. Missouri fans are upset with new defensive coordinator Steve Wilks and while that is probably fair, it has to be hard to scheme a defense when your defensive line can’t hold blockers leading linemen to have free reign on the 2nd level and can’t get any push. The Eagles’ run game embarrassed Mizzou for 49 carries and 275 yards averaging 5.6 yards a carry. The secondary looked lost at points as Boston College converted 10-16 on 3rd down including several medium- to long-range conversions. The Tigers have a lot of work to do on defense if they even want to make a bowl game this 2021 season.

Offensively same old same old, they looked pretty good at times Connor Bazelak was fine going 30/41 for 303 yards and a touchdown but threw two ugly interceptions including one that sealed the game in overtime. Jeff Hafley is a very good coach who will get a big-time job here soon so it’s not surprising the offense had some issues. Tyler Badie only had 72 yards on 18 carries as the Eagles defense was stout but he did catch five balls for 34 yards including a beautiful catch and run on a screen on 3rd and 9. The lack of any kind of deep ball and explosive plays is worrying for Tiger fans as Mookie Cooper hasn’t been healthy and freshmen Dominic Lovett has been inconsistent.

The positives are after giving up a game-tying touchdown with 25 seconds left Bazelak was able to move the ball down the field a bit and Harrison Mevis keeps showing he is one of the top kickers in the country as he tied it with one left on a 56-yard field goal.

Missouri will take on Tennessee at 11 a.m. next Saturday. With games still against Texas A&M, Georgia, Florida and Arkansas left the Vols are a must-win for the Tigers to make a bowl.