Here are five takeaways from Missouri’s 21-20 win at South Carolina.

  • Lack of depth at receiver bogged down the offense. Oh, Dorial Green-Beckham, couldn’t you have behaved? Maty Mauk bailed out of the pocket too early on some downs. The offensive line played better, but did get driven back into Mauk a few too many times by an unproductive defensive line. But with Jimmie Hunt and Darius White out due to injuries, it was Bud Sasser and a bunch of guys. The communication between Mauk and the receivers wasn’t there at times, and the receivers didn’t get open often enough. But none of the top three receivers from 2013 returned, and adding two of the top three from ’14 to that list is too much.
  • The run blocking improved. Not that it would’ve taken much after that forgettable effort against Indiana. But the offensive line opened up gaps for Russell Hansbrough and Marcus Murphy on a pretty regular basis. As a side note, both backs have come out of the game several times the last few weeks with various nicks. This time it was Hansbrough leaving the game and returning, but he finished with three touchdowns, including the 1-yard score on fourth-and-goal that won the game.
  • Markus Golden and Shane Ray need each other. Sure, they’re good players by themselves. But when these two are lined up across from both offensive tackles — or even on the same side of the line of scrimmage, as we saw a handful of times Saturday — it acts as a multiplier. Ray may have even supplanted Golden as the team’s best defensive player, though it’s close. The defense is dynamic when both of them can get after the passer, and Mizzou’s defense is particularly tough with a second-half lead or on third down in passing situations. Ray flashed some exciting inside swim moves after lining up at defensive tackle a few times Saturday.
  • Marcus Murphy needs the ball in space more often. The team is thin at running back. (Notice that “thin” word popping up a lot?) Murphy does a nice job there. But he’s electric as a punt and kick returner, and set up Missouri with some prime field position a few times Saturday. But all the preseason practice time the team devoted to developing him as a receiver hasn’t been worth the investment yet. Murphy made a huge drop against Indiana and generally has served as Mauk’s safety valve. But the team needs to get the ball to Murphy more intentionally in the passing game with designed plays to get him the ball in space.
  • Mizzou should be thrilled with the win, but there’s work to do. The Tigers came oh-so-close to losing a second consecutive game for the first time since November 2012. This team is good enough and bad enough to play a lot of close games this season, and 4-1 feels about right at this juncture. The comeback win reframed the season in a matter of minutes. Instead of facing a strong Georgia team next game out with the possibility of falling to 3-3, and starting 0-2 in the SEC East as defending champs, Missouri can secure favorite status by beating the Bulldogs. But the team shouldn’t concern itself with any of that. Besides getting healthy, the Tigers have a lot to accomplish during the off week, and competing for another division title could turn into struggling to get to seven wins in a hurry if Mizzou loses focus.