While Missouri head coach Eli Drinkwitz didn’t deliver his midseason grades on Tuesday, made it clear on areas that need to improve most.

“One of the things that we talked about as a team yesterday is that we’re at the halfway point of the season, and this is where we’re at these are the statistics that have to improve in order for us to have the second half of the season that we want to have,” Drinkwitz told reporters on Tuesday.

“Number one, it starts with takeaways and turnovers. You know, we’ve committed 5 turnovers on the season, and we’ve only got 4 takeaways. That number has to change,” Drinkwitz began. “Turnovers and takeaways are the number one indicator of wins and losses.”

Mizzou committed the lion’s share of its turnovers, 4, in a 49-39 loss to No. 22 LSU on Saturday, the first defeat of the season. Otherwise, Missouri at least took care of the ball in a 5-0 start.

“Second thing that we’ve talked about is explosive plays for and against. We’ve got to reduce explosive plays and continue to find them,” Drinkwitz said. “Third down numbers have got to improve in the second half to the season.”

Mizzou has a dearth of explosive offenses ahead on the schedule with Kentucky, South Carolina, and No. 1 Georgia alone in the next 3 weeks. The Tigers likewise face tough defenses such as the Bulldogs and the Florida Gators.

“The next thing we talk about is penalties … for and against. We have way too many penalties pre snap on the offensive side of the ball, and that’s got to get taken off the tape,” Drinkwitz said. “And then, we’ve got too many unsportsmanlike conduct penalties on the defensive side of the ball, and both of those either have to be taken off the tape or the player’s got to come out of the game because the team comes first.”