3 takeaways from Missouri's incredible come-from-behind win over Kentucky
The Missouri Tigers defeated the Kentucky Wildcats in Lexington on Saturday. It was an impressive road conference win for the Tigers, who improved to 2-1 in the SEC and 6-1 overall.
It wasn’t the prettiest offensive game for the Tigers, who struggled early, but got a fake punt for a touchdown to ignite the team. However, the defense did an even better job of stifling the Wildcats’ offense. The Wildcats struggled to get anything going on offense and ultimately couldn’t get enough big plays to keep up.
Without further ado, let’s get into the 3 takeaways from this SEC East brawl:
Missouri’s defense stifled Kentucky’s offense
The Wildcats managed to collect just 286 total yards of offense. Devin Leary completed just 14-of-27 passes for 120 yards with 2 INTs. Running back Ray Davis was essentially Kentucky’s only form of offense on Saturday.
The Mizzou defense also collected 4 sacks and forced receiver Barion Brown to fumble. This was a solid all-around performance for the Tigers, who just last week were gashed by the LSU offense.
Luther Burden III was contained
Burden finished the game with just 2 catches for 15 yards. This was the first game since the opener against South Dakota that Burden didn’t eclipse the 100-yard mark.
Theo Wease Jr. stepped up with 6 catches for 58 yards and 1 score. Brady Cook and Cody Schrader each contributed a rushing TD and Marquis Johnson caught a TD pass on a fake punt. It was encouraging to see the Tigers’ offense do enough to get a win even without the best player contributing much.
Kentucky played an undisciplined game
The Wildcats not only got outplayed, but they also hurt themselves. The team racked up 14 penalties for a whopping 122 yards. More surprisingly, the Wildcats were the home team.
In addition to the penalties, the Wildcats also turned the ball over 3 times. The Wildcats were lucky to only turn it over 3 times, as Devin Leary fumbled 2 times but recovered both. You do not expect the home team to play such an undisciplined brand of football.