Atop the mess that is the SEC East, Missouri has risen above their fellow contenders. Their one loss came to the only team threatening their throne: South Carolina. With a loss to Ole Miss, Missouri would absolutely need to win their final game against Texas A&M. So how does Ole Miss derail Missouri’s Cinderella season?
Missouri’s pass rush must be stopped. At the very least, it must be slowed down. Kony Ealy, Michael Sam, and Shane Ray have emerged as a versatile trio that has terrorized every offense that they have faced. In total, the three have 19.5 sacks on the year. Michael Sam is more of a “splash” player. Some games he is completely washed out, but in other games, he racks up multiple sacks and dominates his opponent. Ealy provides consistent pressure while not always finishing by taking down the quarterback.
He is the most reliable of the three. Ray is a “splash” player, but a lot of that is due to him being a sophomore and not getting equal snaps. Nonetheless, he is a weapon. Missouri’s favored point of attack will likely be freshman Laremy Tunsil. While he was the number one offensive tackle, he is still a freshman no matter how the situation is perceived. Whether it be in support of Tunsil or Pierce Burton, Ole Miss’ right tackle, a running back will need to be helping in pass protection as often as possible. Tight end chips and screens will also become a necessity in neutralizing Missouri’s pass rush. Reversely, Ole Miss has to attack Missouri’s quarterback.
With James Franklin still riding the bench due to injury, freshman Maty Mauk will record the fifth start of this season and of his career.
The pressure that Ole Miss brings upon the freshman quarterback will be key to their victory. Freshman and No.1 2013 high school recruit Robert Nkemdiche will be the leader of this wrecking crew.
Nkemdiche began the year well, but struggled a bit against bigger competition, which is expected from a freshman.
After missing the Idaho and LSU games with injury, he came back firing on all cylinders, recording multiple tackles for loss as well as his first sack. Unfortunately, Ole Miss’ pass rush as a whole has been rather porous. They rank second to last in the SEC in that category. Although, the pass rush may be supported by the secondary.
Dorial Green-Beckham has become a lethal weapon for whoever is at the helm of Missouri’s offense. Ole Miss cornerback Charles Sawyer has his work cut out for him. With the recent dominance Green-Beckham has been showing, safety help will be necessary. This may be problematic for Ole Miss. It will open up the field a bit and free up other receivers, forcing the rest of the Ole Miss defensive squad to step up. If they shut down Mauk and his receivers, Missouri will become a one dimensional offense that will be beaten.